Letter of St Ignatius of Antioch to Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna
This is a personal letter from St Ignatius to bishop Polycarp of Smyrna, although some portions are addressed to all the faithful of that city. His style is direct and even blunt when he warns Polycarp of the dangers of false doctrines and reminds him of his duties as a pastor.
Ignatius, also called Theophorus, to Polycarp, who is bishop of the church of Smyrna, or rather he who has for his bishop and guardian God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, greetings and all good wishes.
1 Contemplating how uncompromising your union with God is, how firmly built as if upon a solid rock, I am full of thanksgiving to Him for allowing me to see your blessed countenance. May I forever enjoy the sight of it in God!
We must bear with everything for God, so that he in turn may bear with us. Christian life is like running in on race course. The struggle is in sanctity and personal apostolate.
The letter continues with specific directions for the administration of the episcopal office, applicable to all with authority.
The divinity of Christ is implied; he is timeless (achronos), eternal, and invisible (aoratos).
Clothed, as you are, with the garment of divine grace, I encourage you to press forward on your course and also to persuade all men to run to salvation.
Fulfill your assignment with constant concern for the others, both in the spiritual and in the material aspect. Be concerned about unity, the greatest of all goods. Carry all men in your heart as the Lord carries you in his Heart. Have patience with all in charity, as indeed you do.
Give yourself to prayer continually; ask for an increase in wisdom and understanding; keep alert without getting tired. Deal with each man individually, following God’s way. Be patient with the defects of all, like a perfect sportsman of God.
The greater the toil, the richer the reward.
2 The physician heals all wounds, but not with the same medicine. High fever, for instance, is calmed with cold, moist poultices. Thus, you must win over your more troublesome disciples by kindness. If you love only the good ones, you gain no merit.
Be prudent as the serpent in all things, and innocent as the dove always. You are both body and soul; therefore, deal gently with the manifestations of human fault that are visible, and pray that you may get to know those invisible. Thus, you will lack nothing, but abound in every gift of grace.
Do as your vocation requires. As the pilot pursues favorable winds and the storm‑tossed sailor seeks the harbor, you should reach for God together with your people.
Exercise self‑discipline and mortification, for you are God’s athlete. The prize is immortality and eternal life, as you know full well.
For your sake I sacrifice myself, I with my chains, which you have kissed.
3 Do not be overwhelmed by those who seem trustworthy and yet teach heresy. Remain firm, like the anvil under the hammer. A good athlete must receive blows in order to win the fight. So too must we endure everything for God, so that he in turn may bear with us.
Be more diligent in everything. Understand how important this is in these times. Look for him who is outside time, the eternal One, the invisible, who became visible for us; he cannot be touched and cannot suffer, yet he became subject to suffering and endured so much for our sake.
4 Do not neglect widows; after the Lord, you must be their guardian. Nothing must be done without your knowledge, and you must do nothing without God’s knowledge, as indeed is the case. Stand firm. Services should be held more often. Seek out everyone by name.
Do not look down upon slaves, whether men or women; yet they too should not be arrogant, but should give better service for the glory of God; thus, they will gain from him a better freedom. They should not be anxious for their freedom to be bought at the community’s expense, for they might then become the slaves of their own desires.
In these lines, St Ignatius encourages married people to live chastity within their state, avoiding sinful practices. Matrimony, as in St Paul’s letters, symbolizes the eternal bond between Christ and his bride, the Church. Marriages should be contracted before the bishop. St Ignatius also praises virginity for God’s sake. He exhorts all to do everything for God’s glory.
5 Evil practices should be avoided; indeed, have conversations with the faithful to warn them. Thus, tell my sisters to love the Lord and be content with their husbands in the flesh and in the spirit. In the same way, tell my brothers in Christ’s Name to love their wives as the Lord loves his Church.
If anyone can remain chaste, imitating the Savior in his flesh, let him do so without ever boasting. For if he boasts of it, he is lost; if –for this reason– he thinks himself better than the bishop, he is lost.
Those who marry should be united with the bishop’s knowledge, so that the marriage may follow God’s will and not merely the desires of the flesh.
Let everything be done for God’s glory.
Christian vocation is a beautiful commitment to fight God’s battle in firm solidarity with all other Christians.
6 Pay close attention to your bishop, so that God may listen to you. My life is a sacrifice for those who are obedient to the bishop, the presbyters, and the deacons. May I share my prize with them in God!
Work together, struggle together, run the race together, suffer together, take your rest together, and rise up again as stewards, members of his household, and servants of God.
Seek to please God, whose soldiers you are, and from whom you draw your pay. Let none of you become a deserter. Let your baptism be your shield, your faith a helmet, your charity a spear, your fortitude a suit of armor covering your entire body.
Let your good works be your deposit, like money put in a bank, so that you may draw out well‑earned savings in due time. So be humble, be patient and gentle with one another, as God is with you. May you be my joy always!
7 I have heard that –through your prayers– the church of Antioch in Syria is now in peace. Thus, I gather fresh courage, while I abandon confidently myself in God. If only I find my way to God through my passion! I will be found to be a disciple of Christ at the resurrection.
My most blessed Polycarp, a Christian is not his own master; his time belongs to God. We are doing the work of God; and a prize will be ascribed to you as well, when you have accomplished your part. I have trust in the grace of God that you are ready to act generously when it comes to doing the work of God. Since I knew so well your love for the truth, I have limited my appeal to these few words.
8 I could not write to all the churches because I am sailing at once from Troas to Neapolis, for such is the order of the day.
I want you, therefore, as one who knows God’s purpose, to write to the main churches of the East and bid them to do the same with the rest. Those who can should send representatives to Antioch to give them some consolation. The rest should send letters through your delegates. Thus, your community will be honored for a good work that will be remembered forever, as their bishop deserves.
I wish all of you well forever in Jesus Christ; through him may you all persevere united to God and under his care. Farewell in the Lord!
Ignatius, also called Theophorus, to Polycarp, who is bishop of the church of Smyrna, or rather he who has for his bishop and guardian God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, greetings and all good wishes.
1 Contemplating how uncompromising your union with God is, how firmly built as if upon a solid rock, I am full of thanksgiving to Him for allowing me to see your blessed countenance. May I forever enjoy the sight of it in God!
We must bear with everything for God, so that he in turn may bear with us. Christian life is like running in on race course. The struggle is in sanctity and personal apostolate.
The letter continues with specific directions for the administration of the episcopal office, applicable to all with authority.
The divinity of Christ is implied; he is timeless (achronos), eternal, and invisible (aoratos).
Clothed, as you are, with the garment of divine grace, I encourage you to press forward on your course and also to persuade all men to run to salvation.
Fulfill your assignment with constant concern for the others, both in the spiritual and in the material aspect. Be concerned about unity, the greatest of all goods. Carry all men in your heart as the Lord carries you in his Heart. Have patience with all in charity, as indeed you do.
Give yourself to prayer continually; ask for an increase in wisdom and understanding; keep alert without getting tired. Deal with each man individually, following God’s way. Be patient with the defects of all, like a perfect sportsman of God.
The greater the toil, the richer the reward.
2 The physician heals all wounds, but not with the same medicine. High fever, for instance, is calmed with cold, moist poultices. Thus, you must win over your more troublesome disciples by kindness. If you love only the good ones, you gain no merit.
Be prudent as the serpent in all things, and innocent as the dove always. You are both body and soul; therefore, deal gently with the manifestations of human fault that are visible, and pray that you may get to know those invisible. Thus, you will lack nothing, but abound in every gift of grace.
Do as your vocation requires. As the pilot pursues favorable winds and the storm‑tossed sailor seeks the harbor, you should reach for God together with your people.
Exercise self‑discipline and mortification, for you are God’s athlete. The prize is immortality and eternal life, as you know full well.
For your sake I sacrifice myself, I with my chains, which you have kissed.
3 Do not be overwhelmed by those who seem trustworthy and yet teach heresy. Remain firm, like the anvil under the hammer. A good athlete must receive blows in order to win the fight. So too must we endure everything for God, so that he in turn may bear with us.
Be more diligent in everything. Understand how important this is in these times. Look for him who is outside time, the eternal One, the invisible, who became visible for us; he cannot be touched and cannot suffer, yet he became subject to suffering and endured so much for our sake.
4 Do not neglect widows; after the Lord, you must be their guardian. Nothing must be done without your knowledge, and you must do nothing without God’s knowledge, as indeed is the case. Stand firm. Services should be held more often. Seek out everyone by name.
Do not look down upon slaves, whether men or women; yet they too should not be arrogant, but should give better service for the glory of God; thus, they will gain from him a better freedom. They should not be anxious for their freedom to be bought at the community’s expense, for they might then become the slaves of their own desires.
In these lines, St Ignatius encourages married people to live chastity within their state, avoiding sinful practices. Matrimony, as in St Paul’s letters, symbolizes the eternal bond between Christ and his bride, the Church. Marriages should be contracted before the bishop. St Ignatius also praises virginity for God’s sake. He exhorts all to do everything for God’s glory.
5 Evil practices should be avoided; indeed, have conversations with the faithful to warn them. Thus, tell my sisters to love the Lord and be content with their husbands in the flesh and in the spirit. In the same way, tell my brothers in Christ’s Name to love their wives as the Lord loves his Church.
If anyone can remain chaste, imitating the Savior in his flesh, let him do so without ever boasting. For if he boasts of it, he is lost; if –for this reason– he thinks himself better than the bishop, he is lost.
Those who marry should be united with the bishop’s knowledge, so that the marriage may follow God’s will and not merely the desires of the flesh.
Let everything be done for God’s glory.
Christian vocation is a beautiful commitment to fight God’s battle in firm solidarity with all other Christians.
6 Pay close attention to your bishop, so that God may listen to you. My life is a sacrifice for those who are obedient to the bishop, the presbyters, and the deacons. May I share my prize with them in God!
Work together, struggle together, run the race together, suffer together, take your rest together, and rise up again as stewards, members of his household, and servants of God.
Seek to please God, whose soldiers you are, and from whom you draw your pay. Let none of you become a deserter. Let your baptism be your shield, your faith a helmet, your charity a spear, your fortitude a suit of armor covering your entire body.
Let your good works be your deposit, like money put in a bank, so that you may draw out well‑earned savings in due time. So be humble, be patient and gentle with one another, as God is with you. May you be my joy always!
7 I have heard that –through your prayers– the church of Antioch in Syria is now in peace. Thus, I gather fresh courage, while I abandon confidently myself in God. If only I find my way to God through my passion! I will be found to be a disciple of Christ at the resurrection.
My most blessed Polycarp, a Christian is not his own master; his time belongs to God. We are doing the work of God; and a prize will be ascribed to you as well, when you have accomplished your part. I have trust in the grace of God that you are ready to act generously when it comes to doing the work of God. Since I knew so well your love for the truth, I have limited my appeal to these few words.
8 I could not write to all the churches because I am sailing at once from Troas to Neapolis, for such is the order of the day.
I want you, therefore, as one who knows God’s purpose, to write to the main churches of the East and bid them to do the same with the rest. Those who can should send representatives to Antioch to give them some consolation. The rest should send letters through your delegates. Thus, your community will be honored for a good work that will be remembered forever, as their bishop deserves.
I wish all of you well forever in Jesus Christ; through him may you all persevere united to God and under his care. Farewell in the Lord!