CrucisSt. Polycarp of Smyrna
St. Polycarp was born around the year 69 and died a martyr around 155 at Smyrna (modern İzmir, Turkey), where he served as bishop. He is one of the Apostolic Fathers — the generation taught directly by the Apostles — and was, according to ancient testimony, a disciple of St. John the Evangelist, forming a living link between the Apostles and the early Church. His surviving Letter to the Philippians bears witness to the faith he received and handed on.
His martyrdom is recounted in the Martyrdom of Polycarp, the earliest detailed account of a Christian martyr's death outside the New Testament. Arrested in his old age and urged to save his life by cursing Christ, he answered, 'Eighty-six years I have served Him, and He has done me no wrong; how then can I blaspheme my King who saved me?' He was condemned to be burned at the stake, and is honored as a saint and courageous witness of the apostolic faith.
Selected quotes
“Eighty-six years have I served Him, and He has done me no wrong — how then shall I blaspheme my King and my Savior at the very end?”
“The witness of a single life faithfully lived for Christ is more eloquent than ten thousand arguments — let your life be your theology.”
“The martyr does not die in defeat; he dies in the most complete act of witness that any life can offer to the God who gave it.”