Polycarp of Smyrna | |
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![]() Mosaic of Saint Polycarp inside the monastery of Hosios Loukas. | |
Martyr, Church Father and Bishop of Smyrna | |
Born | AD 69 |
Died | AD 155 (aged 85-86) Smyrna, Roman Empire |
Venerated in | Catholic Church, Church of the East, Oriental Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Lutheran Church, Anglican Communion |
Major shrine | Sant'Ambrogio della Massima, Rome |
Feast | 23 February (formerly 26 January) |
Attributes | Wearing the pallium, holding a book representing his Epistle to the Philippians |
Patronage | Earache Sufferers |
Influences | Clement of Rome,[1] John the Apostle |
Influenced | Irenaeus |
Major works | Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians |
Polycarp (/ˈpɒlikɑːrp/; Greek: Πολύκαρπος, Polýkarpos; Latin: Polycarpus; AD 69 – 155) was a Christian bishop of Smyrna.[2] According to the Martyrdom of Polycarp, he died a martyr, bound and burned at the stake, then stabbed when the fire failed to consume his body.[3] Polycarp is regarded as a saint and Church Father in the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Churches, Lutheranism, and Anglicanism.
Both Irenaeus[4] and Tertullian[5] say that Polycarp had been a disciple of John the Apostle, one of Jesus's disciples. In On Illustrious Men, Jerome similarly writes that Polycarp was a disciple of John the Apostle, who had ordained him as a bishop of Smyrna.[6] Polycarp is regarded as one of three chief Apostolic Fathers, along with Clement of Rome and Ignatius of Antioch.
Wace
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