Unless otherwise stated, all citations taken from Ignatius of Antioch. (1885). The Epistle of Ignatius to the Ephesians. In A. Roberts, J. Donaldson, & A. C. Coxe (Eds.), The Apostolic Fathers with Justin Martyr and Irenaeus (Vol. 1, p. 49). Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Company.
Authorship
Ignatius of Antioch (not to be confused with Ignatius of Loyola—a Catholic priest and theologian of the 16th century) served in Antioch, Syria, and he was martyred under the Roman Emperor Trajan in ~AD 108.
A very late and unreliable tradition states that Ignatius was the little boy whom Jesus placed in front of the apostles in Matthew 18:2. While this tradition is not reliable, it may give us an idea of when Ignatius was born (~AD 30?). Other traditions tell us that Ignatius and Polycarp were both disciples of John the apostle.
Polycarp refers to Ignatius (Polycarp to the Philippians, 9, 13). Irenaeus quotes from his letter to the Romans, but he doesn’t cite him by name (Against Heresies, 5:28). Origen cites him by name in his commentary on Song of Solomon and in his sixth homily on Saint Luke. Eusebius states that Ignatius was the second bishop after Peter and Evodius (Ecclesiastical History, 3.36.2).
The seven letters all identify “Ignatius” as the author. He carried the nickname “Theophorus” (“bearer of God”). Yet Ignatius didn’t view himself as unique in this regard: He calls Paul “the Christ-bearer” (Letter to the Ephesians, 6), and he taught that all believers had this title: “Blessed, then, are [you] who are God-bearers, spirit-bearers, temple-bearers, bearers of holiness, adorned in all respects with the commandments of Jesus Christ” (Letter to the Ephesians, 9).
He wasn’t a proud man. He refers to himself as “the very insignificant Ignatius” (Letter to the Ephesians, 12). He writes to the Magnesians, “May I enjoy you in all respects, if indeed I be worthy! For though I am bound, I am not worthy to be compared to one of you that are at liberty” (Magnesians, 12).
Ignatius’ martyrdom
Ignatius wrote his letters on his way to Rome to face martyrdom. He travelled from Syria to Rome—tied to ten soldiers (Romans 5). We assume that he faced martyrdom, as he expected, in Rome. Ignatius wanted to face martyrdom, rather than fleeing from it. Eusebius writes, “He wrote also to the church of Rome, entreating them not to secure his release from martyrdom, and thus rob him of his earnest hope” (Ecclesiastical History, 3.36.6). Historian Justo Gonzalez writes,
Ignatius had heard that Christians in Rome were considering the possibility of freeing him from death. He did not look upon this with favor. He was ready to seal his witness with his blood, and any move on the part of the Christians in Rome to save him would be an obstacle to his goal. He therefore wrote to them: I fear your kindness, which may harm me. You may be able to achieve what you plan. But if you pay no heed to my request it will be very difficult for me to attain unto God.[1]
A fourth century source (The Martyrdom of Ignatius) explains his death in Rome. Eusebius also states that he “became food for wild beasts on account of his testimony to Christ” (Ecclesiastical History, 3.36.3). Ignatius himself anticipated his death. He wrote, “[Allow] me to become food for the wild beasts, through whose instrumentality it will be granted me to attain to God. I am the wheat of God, and am ground by the teeth of the wild beasts, that I may be found the pure bread of God” (Romans 4).
Date
Eusebius places the death of Ignatius during the reign of Emperor Trajan (AD 98-117; Ecclesiastical History, 3.33-36), specifically AD 108. Since he wrote en route to Rome to face death, these letters can be dated sometime shortly before then.
Are these letters of Ignatius historically reliable?
The letters of Ignatius are heavily disputed. A small minority of scholars “do not believe that any of the letters associated with Ignatius are authentic.”[2] In fact, Jefford writes,
These researchers insist instead that the entire corpus was created only as later forgeries (maybe the fourth century) in an attempt to validate the antiquity of certain ideas about church structure and doctrine that became popular among Christians of that period. This is by no means the dominant view among scholars today, but perhaps it bears mention as a witness to certain suspicions that scholars sometimes have about ancient literature and its origins.[3]
However, the majority of scholars believe that the letters are trustworthy on some level. They separate the reliability into different recensions (i.e. different groups or versions):
(1) Long recension. This version contains not only the seven letters (e.g. Ephesus, Magnesia, Tralles, Rome, Philadelphia, Smyrna, and Polycarp), but also contains six additional ones. Virtually all scholars view these additional six letters to be spurious.
(2) Short recension. This version contains only seven letters (e.g. Ephesus, Magnesia, Tralles, Rome, Philadelphia, Smyrna, and Polycarp), but cuts out portions of the letters to Polycarp, Ephesus, and Rome. Most scholars believe that this version “was extracted from a longer collection.”[4]
(3) Middle recension. Jefford writes, “A majority of scholars support the authenticity of the middle recension, which contains letters addressed to the churches in Ephesus, Magnesia, Tralles, Rome, Philadelphia, Smyrna, and the bishop Polycarp (in Smyrna).”[5] This text comes from AD 11th century. Eusebius refers to this version of Ignatius’ letters in his writings in the 4th century (Ecclesiastical History, 3.36.5).
We will utilize the middle recension in our study of Ignatius. Donaldson and Coxe have the short and middle recension side by side in their translation. We quote from the middle recension (called the “longer version” in their translation).
Important contents of Ignatius’ letters
High Christology. Ignatius plainly and clearly refers to Jesus as God incarnate.
“Jesus Christ, our God” (Ephesians 1; shorter recension).
“We have also as a Physician the Lord our God, Jesus the Christ, the only-begotten Son and Word, before time began, but who afterwards became also man, of Mary the virgin. For ‘the Word was made flesh.’ Being incorporeal, He was in the body; being impassible, He was in a passible body; being immortal, He was in a mortal body; being life, He became subject to corruption, that He might free our souls from death and corruption, and heal them, and might restore them to health, when they were diseased with ungodliness and wicked lusts” (Ephesians 7).
He mentions all three persons of the Trinity in conjunction with one another: “The Holy Spirit does not speak His own things, but those of Christ, and that not from himself, but from the Lord; even as the Lord also announced to us the things that He received from the Father” (Ephesians 9).
“For our God, Jesus Christ…” (Ephesians 18; shorter recension).
“God being manifested as a man” (Ephesians 19).
He calls Jesus “our God and Savior” (Romans introduction).
“Jesus Christ, our God and Saviour” (Romans 1).
“Our God, Jesus Christ, now that He is with the Father, is all the more revealed” (Romans 3; shorter recension).
“I glorify God, even Jesus Christ, who has given you such wisdom” (Smyrnaeans 1; shorter recension).
False teaching. Most scholars believe that Ignatius was battling Docetism.[6] Docetism comes from the Greek dokeō, which means “to appear or to seem.” In this case, Jesus “appeared” or “seemed” to be human, when he actually wasn’t. This heresy denied the humanity of Christ, and it was very active in the first century church, due to proto-Gnostic teaching which was offended at the humanity of Christ. Ignatius goes to great lengths to refute this false view:
“He really, and not merely in appearance, was crucified, and died, in the sight of beings in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth” (Trallians 9).
“If… He became man in appearance [only], that He did not in reality take unto Him a body, that He died in appearance [merely], and did not in very deed suffer, then for what reason am I now in bonds, and long to be exposed to the wild beasts? ….I do not place my hopes in one who died for me in appearance, but in reality” (Trallians 10).
“He suffered all these things for us; and He suffered them really, and not in appearance only, even as also He truly rose again. But not, as some of the unbelievers, who are ashamed of the formation of man, and the cross, and death itself, affirm, that in appearance only, and not in truth, He took a body of the Virgin, and suffered only in appearance, forgetting, as they do, Him who said, ‘The Word was made flesh’” (Smyrnaeans 2).
He doesn’t place himself on par with the apostles. He doesn’t take an authoritative role with this church. Instead, he writes,
“I do not issue orders to you, as if I were some great person. For though I am bound for His name, I am not yet perfect in Jesus Christ. For now I begin to be a disciple, and I speak to you as my fellow-servants.” He even recalls needing to be “admonished” by them (Ephesians 3).
“I do not issue orders like an apostle” (Trallians 3).
He didn’t put himself on par with “Paul or Peter” (Trallians 5).
“I do not, as Peter and Paul, issue commandments unto you. They were apostles of Jesus Christ, but I am the very least” (Romans 4).
“I do not ordain these things as an apostle: for ‘who am I, or what is my father’s house,’ that I should pretend to be equal in honour to them? But as your ‘fellow-soldier,’ I hold the position of one who [simply] admonishes you” (Philadelphians 4).
Criticism of the Judaizers. The “Judaizers” were a pseudo-sect of Christianity who believed in Jesus, but added laws from the OT. We see Paul battling this view in his letter to the Galatians. Ignatius has harsh—and even anti-Semitic—language for the Judaizers of his day:
“If we still live according to the Jewish law, and the circumcision of the flesh, we deny that we have received grace” (Magnesians 8).
The Sabbath shouldn’t be kept in the “Jewish manner.” Instead, Ignatius argues for keeping it in a “spiritual manner, rejoicing in meditation on the law, not in relaxation of the body, admiring the workmanship of God, and not eating things prepared the day before, nor using lukewarm drinks, and walking within a prescribed space, nor finding delight in dancing and plaudits which have no sense in them.” He tells them to keep “the Lord’s Day as a festival, the resurrection-day” (Magnesians 9).
“It is absurd to speak of Jesus Christ with the tongue, and to cherish in the mind a Judaism which has now come to an end. For where there is Christianity there cannot be Judaism” (Magnesians 10).
He refers to the “the Christ-killing Jews” (Magnesians 11).
“The Jews, those fighters against God, those murderers of the Lord” (Trallians 11).
Submission to the bishop. Ignatius is the first source to claim that a singular bishop should oversee each church. He outlines the leadership as a singular bishop, presbyters, and deacons. Throughout his letter, he repeatedly tells them to submit to their bishop:
“It is manifest, therefore, that we should look upon the bishop even as we would look upon the Lord Himself, standing, as he does, before the Lord” (Ephesians 6).
He tells them to “contradict [the bishop] in nothing” (Magnesians 3).
“he that is without is one that does anything apart from the bishop, the presbyters, and the deacons. Such a person is defiled in his conscience, and is worse than an infidel. For what is the bishop but one who beyond all others possesses all power and authority, so far as it is possible for a man to possess it, who according to his ability has been made an imitator of the Christ Of God?” (Trallians 7).
“Let no man do anything connected with the Church without the bishop. Let that be deemed a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop, or by one to whom he has entrusted it…. It is not lawful without the bishop either to baptize, or to offer, or to present sacrifice, or to celebrate a love-feast” (Smyrnaeans 8).
Transubstantiation and the Eucharist. Ignatius believed that the bread was the actual “flesh” of Jesus (Smyrnaeans, 6.2; Philadelphians, 4). The “agape meal” wasn’t valid unless it was given by the bishop (Smyrnaeans, 8).
“Breaking one and the same bread, which is the medicine of immortality, and the antidote which prevents us from dying, but a cleansing remedy driving away evil, [which causes] that we should live in God through Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 20).
“I desire the bread of God, the heavenly bread, the bread of life, which is the flesh of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who became afterwards of the seed of David and Abraham; and I desire the drink, namely His blood, which is incorruptible love and eternal life” (Romans 7).
“[I] exhort you to have but one faith, and one [kind of] preaching, and one Eucharist. For there is one flesh of the Lord Jesus Christ; and His blood which was shed for us is one; one loaf also is broken to all [the communicants], and one cup is distributed among them all: there is but one altar for the whole Church, and one bishop, with the presbytery and deacons, my fellow-servants” (Philadelphians 4).
Roman Catholic theologians often appeal to Ignatius as an early source for the doctrine of transubstantiation. Yet this seems overstated. We need to realize the context in which Ignatius made these statements. In context, the heretics at the time denied the physical nature of Jesus (i.e. Docetism). How could they celebrate the Lord’s Supper if they denied Jesus existed? Moreover, Ignatius refers to “the gospel” as the “flesh of Jesus Christ” (Philadelphians 5). Thus he may be speaking metaphorically when he refers to the Lord’s Supper in this way.
Onesimus. In Ephesians 1, Ignatius states that “Onesimus” was the bishop in Ephesus. Is this the same Onesimus from Paul’s letter to Philemon? He describes Onesimus as a man of “inexpressible love” and as “an excellent bishop.” If it’s the same Onesimus, then he must’ve had a radical experience of grace after being treated kindly by Paul and Philemon. Jefford writes, “Scholars have speculated that Onesimus, mentioned by Ignatius as the bishop of Ephesus in Ephesians 1.3, was in fact the same slave about whom the apostle Paul wrote in his letter to Philemon in the New Testament… there is no way to confirm that the references are to be associated with the same person. Nevertheless, this connection circulated widely within early Christian tradition and may in fact reflect some ancient foundation.”[7]
Eschatology. Ignatius believed he was living in the last days: “The last times are come upon us” (Ephesians 11). Jefford writes, “[Ignatius’] theology is continually driven by a concern for the end times, that is, for the life of the Christian as it was lived in the last days before the expected return of Christ.”[8]
Marriage. Ignatius believed that the apostles were “married men” (Philadelphians 4).
1. Letter to the Ephesians
(Chapter 1) Ignatius was ready to face martyrdom. He writes, “On hearing that I came bound from Syria for the sake of Christ, our common hope, trusting through your prayers to be permitted to fight with beasts at Rome, that so by martyrdom I may indeed become the disciple of Him ‘who gave Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God.’”
The shorter version states, “Jesus Christ, our God.”
He states that “Onesimus” was the bishop in Ephesus. Is this the same Onesimus from Paul’s letter to Philemon? He describes Onesimus as a man of “inexpressible love” and as “an excellent bishop.” If it’s the same Onesimus, then he must’ve had a radical experience of grace after being treated kindly by Paul and Philemon.
(Chapter 2) He wants them to be “subject to the bishop and the presbytery.”
(Chapter 3) He doesn’t take an authoritative role with this church. Instead, he writes, “I do not issue orders to you, as if I were some great person. For though I am bound for His name, I am not yet perfect in Jesus Christ. For now I begin to be a disciple, and I speak to you as my fellow-servants.” He even recalls needing to be “admonished” by them.
(Chapter 4) He compares the bishop and the presbytery as “strings are to the harp.” They work together in unity. He wants them to be unified, because they are members of the Body of Christ.
(Chapter 5) Because leadership has been instituted by Christ, Ignatius writes, “He that is subject to these is obedient to Christ, who has appointed them; but he that is disobedient to these is disobedient to Christ Jesus.” He compares factious men as wolves in sheep’s clothing. He even compares the priest’s authority as like being disobedient to Christ himself (citing Jn. 3:36).
(Chapter 6) He keeps hammering home the point that dishonoring the bishop is like dishonoring Jesus himself: “It is manifest, therefore, that we should look upon the bishop even as we would look upon the Lord Himself, standing, as he does, before the Lord.”
(Chapter 7) He tells them to avoid false teachers. He held a high view of Christ: “We have also as a Physician the Lord our God, Jesus the Christ, the only-begotten Son and Word, before time began, but who afterwards became also man, of Mary the virgin. For ‘the Word was made flesh.’ Being incorporeal, He was in the body; being impassible, He was in a passible body; being immortal, He was in a mortal body; being life, He became subject to corruption, that He might free our souls from death and corruption, and heal them, and might restore them to health, when they were diseased with ungodliness and wicked lusts.” Remember, Ignatius was battling Docetism, so he emphasizes the humanity of Jesus.
(Chapter 8) While he warns them against false teachers, he’s confident that they are not deceived.
(Chapter 9) He mentions all three persons of the Trinity: “The Holy Spirit does not speak His own things, but those of Christ, and that not from himself, but from the Lord; even as the Lord also announced to us the things that He received from the Father.”
He compares the Holy Spirit’s function in glorifying Jesus and the Father with Satan’s spirit to glorifying himself.
He mentions Jesus’ crucifixion (“[Jesus] was crucified for you”).
(Chapter 10) He tells them to pray for the false teachers. He writes, “Be humble in response to their wrath; oppose to their blasphemies your earnest prayers; while they go astray, stand [steadfast] in the faith. Conquer their harsh temper by gentleness, their passion by meekness.” Again, he writes, “Let us make them brethren by our kindness. For say to those that hate you, ‘[You] are our brethren,] that the name of the Lord may be glorified.”
(Chapter 11) He believed he was living in the last days: “The last times are come upon us.”
He encourages them with these words, “Let our present and true joy be only this, to be found in Christ Jesus, that we may truly live.”
As he makes his way in chains from Syria to Rome, he refers to his chains as “spiritual jewels.”
He believed that John, Paul, and Timothy had a close connection with the church in Ephesus.
(Chapter 12) He wants to suffer for Christ and bleed for him.
(Chapter 13) He believed that the unity of the church could fight back Satan: “When [you] come frequently together in the same place, the powers of Satan are destroyed, and his ‘fiery darts’ urging to sin fall back ineffectual. For your concord and harmonious faith prove his destruction, and the torment of his assistants. Nothing is better than that peace which is according to Christ, by which all war, both of aërial and terrestrial spirits, is brought to an end.”
(Chapter 14) He writes, “The beginning of life is faith, and the end is love.” He believed we could identify true believers by their lives of love: “Those that profess themselves to be Christ’s are known not only by what they say, but by what they practice.”
(Chapter 15) He tells them to be consistent with their teaching and their lifestyles.
(Chapter 16) More rebuke against false teachers and their subsequent judgment.
(Chapter 17) He interprets the Song of Songs as referring to Jesus.
(Chapter 18) He speaks more about the pre-existence of Jesus and his incarnation. He argues that Jesus was baptized in order to purify the water: “He was born and baptized, that by His passion He might purify the water” (shorter recension).
He writes, “For our God, Jesus Christ…” (shorter recension).
(Chapter 19) Three mysteries. He refers to the deity of Christ and the incarnation, when he writes, “God being manifested as a man.”
(Chapter 20) He closes up with a call to unity and submission to the leadership. He writes about the Lord’s Supper in this way: “breaking one and the same bread, which is the medicine of immortality, and the antidote which prevents us from dying, but a cleansing remedy driving away evil, [which causes] that we should live in God through Jesus Christ.”
(Chapter 21) He mentions Polycarp in his conclusion. He concludes, “Pray for the Church of Antioch which is in Syria, whence I am led bound to Rome, being the last of the faithful that are there, who yet have been thought worthy to carry these chains to the honour of God.”
2. Letter to the Magnesians
(Chapter 1) Ignatius was encouraged by the love of this church.
(Chapter 2) He had been in contact with their bishop, Damas.
(Chapter 3) Their bishop was young. Ignatius defends him by appealing to all of the youthful men God used in the past. He writes, “Youth is not to be despised when it is devoted to God.”
He tells them to “contradict him in nothing.” He cites OT examples where God judged people who rebelled against the leadership.
(Chapter 4) He wanted an authentic Christianity.
(Chapter 5) He explains that there is one humanity, but we bear the image (ownership?) of God or Satan. He writes, “If we are not in readiness to die for the truth into His passion, His life is not in us.”
(Chapter 6) More exhortation to be unified and submit to the bishop.
(Chapter 7) Do not do anything without the bishop’s approval. Be unified.
(Chapter 8) He writes against the Judaizers: “if we still live according to the Jewish law, and the circumcision of the flesh, we deny that we have received grace.”
(Chapter 9) The Sabbath shouldn’t be kept in the “Jewish manner.” Instead, Ignatius argues for keeping it in a “spiritual manner, rejoicing in meditation on the law, not in relaxation of the body, admiring the workmanship of God, and not eating things prepared the day before, nor using lukewarm drinks, and walking within a prescribed space, nor finding delight in dancing and plaudits which have no sense in them.”
He tells them to keep “the Lord’s Day as a festival, the resurrection-day.”
(Chapter 10) He has very strident words against Judaism: “It is absurd to speak of Jesus Christ with the tongue, and to cherish in the mind a Judaism which has now come to an end. For where there is Christianity there cannot be Judaism.”
(Chapter 11) He refers to the “the Christ-killing Jews.”
(Chapter 12) Don’t forget: be subject to the bishop!
(Chapter 13) He encourages them to study “the doctrines of the Lord and the apostles.”
(Chapter 14) He asks them to pray for him.
(Chapter 15) Farewell.
3. Letter to the Trallians
(Chapter 1) Their bishop, Polybius, came to visit him in Smyrna.
(Chapter 2) Submit to the bishop: “Do nothing without the bishop.”
(Chapter 3) He didn’t put himself on par with the apostles: “I do not issue orders like an apostle.”
(Chapter 4) He is prepared to suffer. He believes that his humility will fight the devil.
(Chapter 5) He didn’t put himself on par with “Paul or Peter.”
(Chapter 6) There were false teachers who denied Christ: “They also calumniate His being born of the Virgin; they are ashamed of His cross; they deny His passion; and they do not believe His resurrection…. They introduce God as a Being unknown; they suppose Christ to be unbegotten; and as to the Spirit, they do not admit that He exists. Some of them say that the Son is a mere man, and that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are but the same person, and that the creation is the work of God, not by Christ, but by some other strange power.”
(Chapter 7) He has an extremely high view of the authority of bishops: “he that is without is one that does anything apart from the bishop, the presbyters, and the deacons. Such a person is defiled in his conscience, and is worse than an infidel. For what is the bishop but one who beyond all others possesses all power and authority, so far as it is possible for a man to possess it, who according to his ability has been made an imitator of the Christ Of God?”
(Chapter 8) Watch for how Satan could be infiltrating your church.
(Chapter 9) In this chapter, he refutes Docetism. Here is one key excerpt: “He really, and not merely in appearance, was crucified, and died, in the sight of beings in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth.”
(Chapter 10) More refutation of Docetism: “If… He became man in appearance [only], that He did not in reality take unto Him a body, that He died in appearance [merely], and did not in very deed suffer, then for what reason am I now in bonds, and long to be exposed to the wild beasts? ….I do not place my hopes in one who died for me in appearance, but in reality.” He really goes into specific details about the humanity of Christ: his conception, his infancy, his life, his death, and his resurrection.
(Chapter 11) The heretics are downplaying the death of Christ. He goes to great lengths to explain how the Jews killed Jesus: “The Jews, those fighters against God, those murderers of the Lord.” This shows that anti-Semitism entered the church early on.
(Chapter 12) He asks for their prayers.
(Chapter 13) Farewell… Don’t forget: Submit to the bishop.
4. Letter to the Romans
While Ignatius addressed all of his other letters to the bishop, he doesn’t address this letter to the bishop of Rome, but to the Church. He calls Jesus “our God and Savior.”
(Chapter 1) He is worried that they will interfere with his martyrdom.
He refers to the deity of Christ, when he writes, “Jesus Christ, our God and Saviour…”
(Chapter 2) He is worried that out of love the Church in Rome will interfere with his martyrdom.
(Chapter 3) He writes, “I may not merely be called a Christian, but really found to be one.”
He refers to the deity of Christ, when he writes, “Our God, Jesus Christ, now that He is with the Father, is all the more revealed” (shorter recension).
(Chapter 4) He writes, “[Allow] me to become food for the wild beasts, through whose instrumentality it will be granted me to attain to God. I am the wheat of God, and am ground by the teeth of the wild beasts, that I may be found the pure bread of God.”
He writes, “I do not, as Peter and Paul, issue commandments unto you. They were apostles of Jesus Christ, but I am the very least.”
(Chapter 5) He travelled from Syria to Rome—tied to ten soldiers.
(Chapter 6) He writes, “It is better for me to die for the sake of Jesus Christ, than to reign over all the ends of the earth…. Permit me to be an imitator of the passion of Christ, my God.”
He writes, “There is living water springing up in me, and which says to me inwardly, ‘Come to the Father.’”
(Chapter 7) He writes, “I desire the bread of God, the heavenly bread, the bread of life, which is the flesh of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who became afterwards of the seed of David and Abraham; and I desire the drink, namely His blood, which is incorruptible love and eternal life.”
(Chapter 8) He tells them not to interfere with his martyrdom.
(Chapter 9) Instead of praying for him, Ignatius wants them to pray for his church, which doesn’t have a bishop any longer.
(Chapter 10) Crocus is still with him.
5. Letter to the Philadelphians
(Chapter 1) He opens by writing about their bishop, whom he respects.
(Chapter 2) He encourages them to have unity with their bishop.
(Chapter 3) He encourages them to avoid factious people.
(Chapter 4) He writes, “[I] exhort you to have but one faith, and one [kind of] preaching, and one Eucharist. For there is one flesh of the Lord Jesus Christ; and His blood which was shed for us is one; one loaf also is broken to all [the communicants], and one cup is distributed among them all: there is but one altar for the whole Church, and one bishop, with the presbytery and deacons, my fellow-servants.”
Evodius and Clement “departed this life in chastity.” But the apostles were “married men.”
He didn’t believe he was an apostle: “I do not ordain these things as an apostle: for ‘who am I, or what is my father’s house,’ that I should pretend to be equal in honour to them? But as your ‘fellow-soldier,’ I hold the position of one who [simply] admonishes you.”
(Chapter 5) He writes, “I flee to the Gospel as to the flesh of Jesus Christ.”
(Chapter 6) He speaks against false teachers and Docetism.
(Chapter 7) He writes, “Do nothing without the bishop; keep your bodies as the temples of God; love unity; avoid divisions; be ye followers of Paul, and of the rest of the apostles, even as they also were of Christ.”
(Chapter 8) He writes, “He who disbelieves the Gospel disbelieves everything along with it.”
(Chapter 9) The OT points to the gospel.
(Chapter 10) He wants Antioch to elect a bishop, because he expects to die. He asks if this church could send a bishop, presbyters, or deacons to help.
(Chapter 11) Farewell.
6. Letter to the Smyrnaeans
(Chapter 1) He is confident that they are true believers. He goes to great lengths to show that Jesus was fully human, and that he existed in the flesh.
He refers to the deity of Christ, when he writes, “I glorify God, even Jesus Christ, who has given you such wisdom” (shorter recension).
(Chapter 2) He is fighting against Docetism: “He suffered all these things for us; and He suffered them really, and not in appearance only, even as also He truly rose again. But not, as some of the unbelievers, who are ashamed of the formation of man, and the cross, and death itself, affirm, that in appearance only, and not in truth, He took a body of the Virgin, and suffered only in appearance, forgetting, as they do, Him who said, ‘The Word was made flesh.’”
(Chapter 3) More teaching against Docetism by appealing to Scripture.
(Chapter 4) He asks why he would suffer if Jesus didn’t really suffer physically.
(Chapter 5) He refers to Jesus as “God incarnate.”
(Chapter 6) He explains the consequences of rejecting the core truths of Christianity.
(Chapter 7) Flee from heresies and heretics.
(Chapter 8) They need to listen to their bishop: “Let no man do anything connected with the Church without the bishop. Let that be deemed a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop, or by one to whom he has entrusted it…. It is not lawful without the bishop either to baptize, or to offer, or to present sacrifice, or to celebrate a love-feast.”
(Chapter 9) More material on honoring the bishop.
(Chapter 10) He is thankful for their kindness during this difficult time.
(Chapter 11) He wants them to send a letter to his church in Antioch, encouraging them for restoring unity and peace in their church. This must imply that there was disunity after he was gone.
(Chapter 12) Farewell. He specifically mentions Polycarp as being their bishop.
7. Letter to the Polycarp
(Chapter 1) He encourages his friend, Polycarp, to continue to be active in his faith.
(Chapter 2) He tells him, “If [you love] the good disciples, no thanks are due to [you] on that account; but rather seek by meekness to subdue the more troublesome.”
(Chapter 3) He writes, “[While you are] here, be a conqueror; for here is the course, and there are the crowns.”
He believed in the deity of Christ and the incarnation: “[Jesus] was impassible as God, but became passible for our sakes as man.”
(Chapter 4) He gives him some practical advice on leading in his church.
(Chapter 5) He instructs him on marriages.
(Chapter 6) He tells them to listen to the bishop and not desert Christ.
(Chapter 7) He asks that Polycarp would send a letter and messenger to Antioch.
(Chapter 8) Farewell.
[1] Gonzalez, Justo L. The Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1984. 43.
[2] Jefford, C. N. (2012). Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student’s Introduction (Second Edition, p. 45). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
[3] Jefford, C. N. (2012). Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student’s Introduction (Second Edition, pp. 45–46). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
[4] Jefford, C. N. (2012). Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student’s Introduction (Second Edition, p. 45). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
[5] Jefford, C. N. (2012). Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student’s Introduction (Second Edition, p. 45). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
[6] Jefford, C. N. (2012). Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student’s Introduction (Second Edition, p. 52). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
[7] Jefford, C. N. (2012). Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student’s Introduction (Second Edition, p. 56). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
[8] Jefford, C. N. (2012). Reading the Apostolic Fathers: A Student’s Introduction (Second Edition, p. 49). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.