Letter of St Ignatius of Antioch to the church of Smyrna
In the following passages, we shall see that St Ignatius based his faith on the fact that Jesus Christ had risen from the dead. This was the cornerstone of his belief, this was the faith that he taught. And it was this faith that sustained him till martyrdom.
From Ignatius, known as Theophorus, to the Church of God the Father and of Jesus Christ, his beloved Son, at Smyrna in Asia. I wish you all joy in an immaculate spirit of fidelity to the word of God. By his mercy, you have won every gift and lack none. God loves you, filled as you are with faith and charity. Persevere fruitful in sanctity.
A Christian should live as if nailed to Christ’s Cross.
1 I celebrate the glory of Jesus Christ, God, because he has given you the gift of wisdom. I am well aware of the perfection of your unshakable faith. You are, as it were, nailed in body and soul to the Cross of Jesus Christ, confirmed in charity through his Blood.
The two natures of Christ, divine and human, are described in these opening lines. Against the Docetist and Gnostic heresies, St Ignatius testifies that Christ’s Passion was real and not merely a pious story. By sharing in his Resurrection, Christ is calling us to his Kingdom and glory.
You have a firm faith in our Lord because he is “of the race of David according to the flesh” (Rom 1:3), but God’s Son by the Will and power of God. He was truly born of the Virgin and baptized by John, so that the divine plan of salvation might be fulfilled. He was truly nailed to a Cross in the flesh for our sake in the time of Pontius Pilate and the Tetrarch Herod.
We are the fruit of his most blessed Passion. By his Resurrection, he has raised up a banner flying all the time to assemble his saints and faithful ones (Jews and Gentiles alike) in the one Body of his Church.
2 For Christ endured all this for us, for our salvation; and he really suffered, just as he truly rose from the dead. Do not be fooled when you hear some unbelievers say that his Passion was merely in appearance. That is false.
It is rather these unbelievers who exist only in appearance; and, as their belief, so their end shall be. They shall not resurrect with their glorious bodies; they shall be like demons.
3 As for myself, I know and believe that Christ was united with his Body even after the Resurrection. When he visited Peter and his companions, he said to them: “Take hold of me, touch and see that I am not a spirit without a body.”
Immediately they touched him and believed, clutching at his Body and his very spirit. And for this reason they despised death and conquered it.
In addition, after his Resurrection, the Lord ate and drank with them like a real human being, even though in spirit he was united with his Father.
4 And so I am giving you serious instruction on these things, dearly beloved, even though I am aware that your faith is strong.
The real presence of our Lord in the Eucharist is emphasized.
6 Let no one be deceived. Judgment will be meted out, even to heavenly beings, the glorious angels and principalities, to visible or invisible beings, if they do not believe in the Blood of Christ.
Observe those who hold erroneous opinions concerning the grace of Jesus Christ, which we have received, and see how contrary, their opinions are to the mind of God.
They do not perform works of charity, have no care for the widows, nor orphans, nor the suffering people, nor those in prison or out of it; they have no care for the hungry or thirsty.
7 They abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer, because they do not admit that the Eucharist is the Body of our Savior Jesus Christ, who suffered for our sins; the Body that the Father, in his goodness, raised from the dead.
Rejecting the “gift of God,” they are perishing in their contestation. It would be better for them to love, so that they too might rise again.
Keep away from such men; do not speak with them either in public or in private.
Earlier, St Ignatius had requested their prayer of intercession for the conversion of these stubborn heretics.
4 Only pray for them, so that they may repent, difficult as it may seem. Yet Jesus Christ, our true Life, has the power to do even this.
The bishop is the High Priest of the liturgy and the dispenser of the mysteries of God. Neither baptism, nor the Eucharist, nor the ‘agape,’ may be celebrated without him. For St Ignatius, “to follow” him means to obey him in matters of doctrine and ecclesiastical government. The Eucharist is described as the sacrifice of the entire Church. No one can turn it into a private concern.
8 You should all follow the bishop, as Jesus Christ followed the Father; follow the college of priests as you would the apostles; respect the deacons as you would God’s commandment.
No one should do anything pertaining to the church without the bishop. The Eucharistic liturgy should be considered legitimate only when it is celebrated by the bishop or by whomever he authorizes.
No one is authorized to baptize or to celebrate the Eucharist and have a community meal (agape) without the bishop. On the other hand, whatever he approves is also pleasing to God. In this way, everything you do will be lawful and valid.
In the following passage, we have the earliest occurrence of the term “the Catholic Church” (year 110). “Catholic” means “universal,” including all the faithful collectively, with Christ at the Head. Jesus Christ in the Blessed Eucharist is the nucleus around whom the Church is constituted.
Wherever the bishop is, there should be the congregation; just as wherever Jesus Christ is, there the Catholic Church is.
In the final greetings, St Ignatius thanks the Smyrneans for their prayers.
9 You have been my consolation. May Jesus Christ be the same for you. You were charitable with me when I was with you, and when I was away. May God repay you. You will be with him one day, if you endure all things for his sake.
10 Nothing you gave is lost to you. I offer my life for you and also my chains, which you did not despise, nor were you ashamed of them. Jesus Christ, who is fidelity itself, will not be ashamed of you either.
11 Your prayer has reached as far as the church in Antioch of Syria, to which, though unworthily –for I am the least among them– I belong. I come from there in chains which are pleasing to God, and I salute you all. By the divine Will, it has been granted to me that, through your prayer, I might reach God. This is not by any merit of mine, but by the grace of God; and I pray that the final grace may be given me.
From Ignatius, known as Theophorus, to the Church of God the Father and of Jesus Christ, his beloved Son, at Smyrna in Asia. I wish you all joy in an immaculate spirit of fidelity to the word of God. By his mercy, you have won every gift and lack none. God loves you, filled as you are with faith and charity. Persevere fruitful in sanctity.
A Christian should live as if nailed to Christ’s Cross.
1 I celebrate the glory of Jesus Christ, God, because he has given you the gift of wisdom. I am well aware of the perfection of your unshakable faith. You are, as it were, nailed in body and soul to the Cross of Jesus Christ, confirmed in charity through his Blood.
The two natures of Christ, divine and human, are described in these opening lines. Against the Docetist and Gnostic heresies, St Ignatius testifies that Christ’s Passion was real and not merely a pious story. By sharing in his Resurrection, Christ is calling us to his Kingdom and glory.
You have a firm faith in our Lord because he is “of the race of David according to the flesh” (Rom 1:3), but God’s Son by the Will and power of God. He was truly born of the Virgin and baptized by John, so that the divine plan of salvation might be fulfilled. He was truly nailed to a Cross in the flesh for our sake in the time of Pontius Pilate and the Tetrarch Herod.
We are the fruit of his most blessed Passion. By his Resurrection, he has raised up a banner flying all the time to assemble his saints and faithful ones (Jews and Gentiles alike) in the one Body of his Church.
2 For Christ endured all this for us, for our salvation; and he really suffered, just as he truly rose from the dead. Do not be fooled when you hear some unbelievers say that his Passion was merely in appearance. That is false.
It is rather these unbelievers who exist only in appearance; and, as their belief, so their end shall be. They shall not resurrect with their glorious bodies; they shall be like demons.
3 As for myself, I know and believe that Christ was united with his Body even after the Resurrection. When he visited Peter and his companions, he said to them: “Take hold of me, touch and see that I am not a spirit without a body.”
Immediately they touched him and believed, clutching at his Body and his very spirit. And for this reason they despised death and conquered it.
In addition, after his Resurrection, the Lord ate and drank with them like a real human being, even though in spirit he was united with his Father.
4 And so I am giving you serious instruction on these things, dearly beloved, even though I am aware that your faith is strong.
The real presence of our Lord in the Eucharist is emphasized.
6 Let no one be deceived. Judgment will be meted out, even to heavenly beings, the glorious angels and principalities, to visible or invisible beings, if they do not believe in the Blood of Christ.
Observe those who hold erroneous opinions concerning the grace of Jesus Christ, which we have received, and see how contrary, their opinions are to the mind of God.
They do not perform works of charity, have no care for the widows, nor orphans, nor the suffering people, nor those in prison or out of it; they have no care for the hungry or thirsty.
7 They abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer, because they do not admit that the Eucharist is the Body of our Savior Jesus Christ, who suffered for our sins; the Body that the Father, in his goodness, raised from the dead.
Rejecting the “gift of God,” they are perishing in their contestation. It would be better for them to love, so that they too might rise again.
Keep away from such men; do not speak with them either in public or in private.
Earlier, St Ignatius had requested their prayer of intercession for the conversion of these stubborn heretics.
4 Only pray for them, so that they may repent, difficult as it may seem. Yet Jesus Christ, our true Life, has the power to do even this.
The bishop is the High Priest of the liturgy and the dispenser of the mysteries of God. Neither baptism, nor the Eucharist, nor the ‘agape,’ may be celebrated without him. For St Ignatius, “to follow” him means to obey him in matters of doctrine and ecclesiastical government. The Eucharist is described as the sacrifice of the entire Church. No one can turn it into a private concern.
8 You should all follow the bishop, as Jesus Christ followed the Father; follow the college of priests as you would the apostles; respect the deacons as you would God’s commandment.
No one should do anything pertaining to the church without the bishop. The Eucharistic liturgy should be considered legitimate only when it is celebrated by the bishop or by whomever he authorizes.
No one is authorized to baptize or to celebrate the Eucharist and have a community meal (agape) without the bishop. On the other hand, whatever he approves is also pleasing to God. In this way, everything you do will be lawful and valid.
In the following passage, we have the earliest occurrence of the term “the Catholic Church” (year 110). “Catholic” means “universal,” including all the faithful collectively, with Christ at the Head. Jesus Christ in the Blessed Eucharist is the nucleus around whom the Church is constituted.
Wherever the bishop is, there should be the congregation; just as wherever Jesus Christ is, there the Catholic Church is.
In the final greetings, St Ignatius thanks the Smyrneans for their prayers.
9 You have been my consolation. May Jesus Christ be the same for you. You were charitable with me when I was with you, and when I was away. May God repay you. You will be with him one day, if you endure all things for his sake.
10 Nothing you gave is lost to you. I offer my life for you and also my chains, which you did not despise, nor were you ashamed of them. Jesus Christ, who is fidelity itself, will not be ashamed of you either.
11 Your prayer has reached as far as the church in Antioch of Syria, to which, though unworthily –for I am the least among them– I belong. I come from there in chains which are pleasing to God, and I salute you all. By the divine Will, it has been granted to me that, through your prayer, I might reach God. This is not by any merit of mine, but by the grace of God; and I pray that the final grace may be given me.