Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1
“The church of God which sojourneth at Smyrna to the Church of God which sojourneth in Philomelium and to all the brotherhoods of the holy and universal Church sojourning in every place; mercy and peace and love from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ be multiplied.
We write unto you, brethren, an account of what befell those that suffered martyrdom and especially the blessed Polycarp, who stayed the persecution, having as it were set his seal upon it by his martyrdom. For nearly all the foregoing events came to pass that the Lord might show us once more an example of martyrdom which is conformable to the Gospel.
For he lingered that he might be delivered up, even as the Lord did, to the end that we too might be imitators of him, not looking only to that which concerneth ourselves, but also to that which concerneth our neighbors. For it is the office of true and steadfast love, not only to desire that oneself be saved, but all the brethren also.”
Polycarp (69-155) in The Martyrdom of Polycarp 1 (J.B. Lightfoot Translation).
The account of Polycarp’s martyrdom aimed to inspire the church in Smyrna and Philomelium and each of us many years later to embrace suffering like our Lord did.
It was passed on to inspire others to be imitators of him. We do this so that onlookers and our neighbors might see and be saved by our example of true and steadfast love.
As we explore the posture toward neighbors in 2024 in the early fathers we discover that everyone is our neighbor. Our generosity may appear as giving resources and today comes into view as setting an example in suffering.
My prayer for myself and every person reading this is that we can be imitators of Christ in both our service and our suffering in view of our neighbors. so they may see and believe or grow deeper in the faith.