Ignatius and Polycarp
After writing six letters to different churches, Ignatius of Antioch writes one more before facing his martyrdom in Rome. This time, he does not write to a congregation, but rather a congregation’s leader, Polycarp.
I find this last letter to be an appropriate send off for Ignatius. If we are to believe the tradition that Ignatius and Polycarp were disciples of the Apostle John, then the last letter feels like a farewell to a personal friend, similar to 2nd Timothy. For this blog, we’re going to transition from Ignatius’ letters and shift into Polycarp’s. We will look over the similarities found between Ignatius and Polycarp, as well as the differences and what it implies. For Polycarp, we will only be using his epistle to the Philippians and not his martyrdom account.
Ignatius’s Letter to Polycarp
Ignatius begins his epistle by praising Polycarp after recently getting to see him, and encourages him to continue to strive for church unity. Similar to the previous letters of Ignatius, he seeks unity, sound doctrine, and authority of the bishop.
“Have a regard to preserve unity, than which nothing is better. Bear with all, even as the Lord does with you... If you love good disciples, no thanks are due to you on that account; but rather seek by meekness to subdue the more troublesome. Every kind of wound is not healed with the same plaster. Mitigate violent attacks [of disease] by gentle applications.”
After giving household instructions similar to Paul’s, Ignatius speaks about his church in Antioch, and gives instructions to appoint a courier to go there. Recognizing that he won’t be able to write to all the churches in time, Ignatius asks Polycarp to send letters to churches ahead of him.
The Relationship between Ignatius and Polycarp
We’re going to take aside traditions and quotes from outside Church Fathers for this piece and just focus on what Ignatius and Polycarp say about each other. Whatever history the two bishops had, it’s clear they both respected each other.
“Having obtained good proof that your mind is fixed in God as upon an immovable rock, I loudly glorify [His name] that I have been thought worthy [to behold] your blameless face, which I may ever enjoy in God!”
“I exhort you all, therefore, to yield obedience to the word of righteousness, and to exercise all patience, such as you have seen [set] before your eyes, not only in the case of the blessed Ignatius, and Zosimus, and Rufus, but also in others among yourselves, and in Paul himself, and the rest of the apostles.
...The epistles of Ignatius written by him to us, and all the rest [of his epistles] which we have by us, we have sent to you, as you requested. They are subjoined to this epistle, and by them you may be greatly profited; for they treat of faith and patience, and all things that tend to edification in our Lord.”
Similarities between Ignatius and Polycarp
Before examining similarities found in the letters of Ignatius and Polycarp, let me stress again that these letters are not systematic theology textbooks. These letters do not tell us their exhaustive doctrine and what books of the Bible they did/didn’t have. We are limited to finding similarities seen in these short writings.
What we do see in both men are an orthodox understanding of the Gospel. I’ve already discussed the Christology in Ignatius’ letters, so I’ll briefly go over a few points made in Polycarp’s letter.
· Jesus Christ is Savior and Lord (Opening, 1.1)
· The Christian faith roots from ancient times to the present (1.2)
· Jesus died for our sins and rose again (1.2)
· We have been saved by grace and not works by God through Jesus Christ (1.3)
· Christ rose again and sits on the throne with all things subjected under Him, and will come to judge the living and the dead (2.1)
· In our faith, we should repent from sin and abide in the fruit of Christ (2, 3.2-5.1)
A specific thing both bishops have in common is their concern for the false doctrine of Docetism. Like Ignatius, Polycarp warns in chapter 7 to stay away from such teaching. They both also teach similar household codes that are found in Paul’s writings (Lookadoo, 2019, Pg. 37).
Differences between Ignatius and Polycarp
We have previously discussed the controversial instructions Ignatius brings in his letters regarding bishop authority. This is seen once again in his letter to Polycarp in chapter 6. However, Polycarp’s letter, which in some ways can be seen as a follow up to Ignatius’ letters, does not follow this tradition for church order.
Instead, Polycarp presents a church order that is more similar to Paul’s instructions in the Pastoral Epistles (1st Timothy, 2nd Timothy, and Titus). This has been pointed out by many scholars and has brought further confusion in how we understand Ignatius. Polycarp’s understanding is consistent with Paul’s, and 1st Clement brings a similar framework (Brent, 2007, Pg. 149). But what does this imply for Ignatius and his adamant structure of bishop, elder, and deacon?
While there is open debate, and I am far from being qualified to give a prominent solution, I would like to make just a couple points to give some direction. First, Allen Brent brings a strong argument that Ignatius’ view of the Eucharist and Church structure was based on the culture surrounding him. It’s a complex set up, so if you’re interested, check out his writings because there’s no way I will do justice explaining it! It’s also worth pointing out there’s a good chance Ignatius knew 1st and 2nd Timothy, meaning he was aware of the Pastoral Epistles tradition while writing his letters.
Second, while Polycarp doesn’t share Ignatius’ convictions of single bishop authority, he still encourages others to read Ignatius’ letters. I actually find the differences of church order showing how the same Gospel can be lived out cross-culturally, with different ways to practice church order. If we were to visit the 1st century Church of Corinth, followed by the Church of Rome or Galatia, there would probably be differences. Yes, the same Gospel, yes, the same commandments, yes, the same Scriptures. But is the structure going to be practiced the exact same globally? Probably not, and we of course see this today.
Conclusion
Ignatius of Antioch was a man of God who sought Christ and His Bride with all his heart. His passion for unity and fruit bearing is humbling to read today, and he never settled for any worldly comfort.
On the next blog, we’ll begin to examine Polycarp’s Letter to the Philippians more closely.
Bibliography
Schaff, P. (2016). The Complete Ante-Nicene, Nicene and Post-Nicene Collection of Early Church Fathers. Toronto, Canada.
Lookadoo, J. (2019). Categories, Relationships, and Imitation in the Household Codes of 1 Clement, Ignatius, and Polycarp: A Comparison with Household Codes in the Pauline Corpus. Neotestamentica, 53, Pg. 31-55.
Brent, A. (2007). Ignatius of Antioch: A Martyr Bishop and the Origin of Episcopacy. New York, NY. T&T Clark International.
Thumbnail Image: “The Meeting of St. Ignatius of Antioch and St. Polycarp of Smyrna” - By Giacomo Triga
https://www.christianiconography.info/sanClemente/ignatiusTrigia.html