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The martyrdom of Polycarp of Smyrna

Polycarp was in his youth a disciple of the Apostle John and for many years bishop of Smyrna. He was the keeper of the letters of Ignatius of Antioch. After the execution of a group of Christians, an enraged crowd demanded him.

The elderly bishop first went into hiding, then accepted his arrest as God's will. To the demand to curse Christ he replied: "Eighty-six years I have served him... how can I curse my King who saved me?" He was burned at the stake.

The eyewitness account, the Martyrdom of Polycarp, is the oldest surviving document of its kind. It deliberately condemns the deliberate courting of martyrdom. As a contrast it cites a certain Quintus, who volunteered and then recanted.

Polycarp was an important link between the apostolic generation and Irenaeus of Lyons. Irenaeus had heard his teaching in his youth.