Feast of Blessed Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop & Martyr

The Collect

ALMIGHTY God, by whose grace and power thy holy Bishop and martyr Ignatius triumphed over suffering and despised death: Grant, we beseech thee, that enduring hardship, and waxing valiant in fight, we may with the noble army of martyrs receive the crown of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Epistle
Romans 8:35-39.

WHO shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Gospel
St. John 12:24-26. VERILY, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.


Today, Feb. 1st, is the Western observance of the Feast of our blog's Patron Saint. Check out some good reads on his importance.

http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bio/270.html

http://www.ewtn.com/library/MARY/IGNATIUS.HTM

http://www.magnificat.ca/cal/engl/02-01.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ignatius_of_Antioch

St. Ignatius on Discipleship, part 3

Discipleship and Eucharist

Ignatius employs creative bread and wine metaphors to relate the Eucharist to discipleship. For the early Church, only those who were fully accepted into the community through Baptism partook the Eucharist. Some misunderstand his language regarding being part of a new Eucharist. His language of becoming ‘pure wheat of God’ sounds too much like he considered himself to initiate a perpetual sacrifice in the lives of Christian martyrs. No doubt he felt that his own death was somehow connected to Christ’s. But his words on the holy Eucharist convey his belief, like baptism, that individuals participate in obedience only under the bishop.

Ephesians 13:1. ‘Take heed, then, often to come together to give thanks to God, and show forth His praise. For when ye assemble frequently in the same place, the powers of Satan are destroyed.’ The form ‘eucaristw’ in early Christian literature is closely connected to the idea of Eucharist. Of the times it seems on to refer only to thanksgiving to God, this occurrence should be seen to refer to the Lord’s Table, at which the faithful come together. This connects discipleship again to the community of faith. We come together, not in solitary, to give thanks and taking the elements.

Trallians 8:2 “Wherefore, clothing yourselves with meekness, be ye renewed in faith, that is the flesh of the Lord, and in love, that is the blood of Jesus Christ.” Faith and Love!

Philadelphians 4:1. ‘Take ye heed, then, to have but one Eucharist . . . that so, whatsoever ye do, ye may do it according to [the will of] God,’ and ‘I have confidence of you in the Lord, that ye will be of no other mind. Wherefore I . . . exhort you to have but one faith, and one 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, 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.’ Clearly the point to these two lines is unity. Just as baptism could not occur outside the Church, the Eucharist was disallowed unless the community was present under the head of the bishop. He connects the bread to Christ’s body, referring to the action of breaking the bread and passing it to one another. Apparently there was only one loaf to begin with, describing the unity of Christ’s person. Even by taking the cup and breaking the bread, they displayed their discipleship through obedience. For the Eucharist could not be considered worthy of God unless it was administered by the bishop. How do this apply to Christian discipleship? Suppose believers want to explain their faith to their neighbors, yet without the stigma of the assembly. Could they use the sacraments to display the gospel to those interested? No because the gospel must remain in the Church lest it be invalidated. For those actions would be outside the ordained manner of worship, thus disobedient.

Smyrneans 7:1. ‘They abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer, because they confess not the Eucharist to be the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ, which suffered for our sins, and which the Father, of His goodness, raised up again.’ In this interesting polemic against false teachers, Ignatius describes to the Smyrneans how heretics did not come to the table to celebrate the gospel because they did not believe correctly about Christ. The implication is that those who believe the message will obediently join the Church’s worship. Correct discipleship affirms correct doctrine. Apparently this applies to the preceding verse in that those who cannot follow the teaching of the apostles corrupt the gospel and disobediently incur wrath.

Smyrneans 8:1. ‘Let that be deemed a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop, or by one to whom he has entrusted it.’ This verse simply extends the sacrament to anyone whom the bishop has entrusted the sacred rite. Perhaps in this way, the Eucharistic celebration could be employed on the mission field by someone commissioned by the Bishop, like a parish Priest.

When you come together, it is not the Lord's Supper you eat, ²¹ for as you eat, each of you goes ahead without waiting for anybody else. One remains hungry, another gets drunk. ²² Don't you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the Church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you for this? Certainly not! 1Corinthians 11:20-. The Eucharist is the proclamation of the gospel in Corinthians. The gospel and the Eucharist are the property of the Church.

"Silence of the Apostles"

Several bloggers within the Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox faith have similar posts challenging the Protestant notion of tradition and history. Since I am a protestant I have delineated the issue farther out to the Radical Reformers...[cough, deFORMERS].

This came to my mind while preparing the next post on Blessed Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop and Martyr for our Lord Jesus Christ and His Church. It is a serious challenge too. I really want to know how a convinced Baptist/Presbyterian scholar [or any Christian that operates outside of the Apostolic Tradition] deals with the question. Here's the question.

If the Incarnation of Jesus Christ began the new Humanity into which we are all Baptised, and if the Son of God succeeded in His promise of granting the Church and the Apostles His gift of the Holy Ghost, and if the missionary activity of the Apostles and their disciples is in fact evidence of the Lord expanding His Kingdom and His Church [I'm trying not to be prolix]...
then when and HOW did they botch the job thereby losing the 'true' teaching of Scripture somehow recovered during the reformation?

If they did not lose it, then why should anyone remain separated from the Body for which Jesus died, and which Body is the mystical company of those that have kept the Apostolic Tradition of Sacraments, creeds, three-fold orders under the Bishop, and liturgical fidelity [to name a few]?

Yes, I am reading Pelikan's The Vindication of Tradition.

St. Ignatius on Discipleship, part 2

Discipleship & Baptism

Ignatius considered baptism a step of obedience underneath the authority of the Bishop. This was done within the Church, by the Bishop, as to Christ. The early Church gives evidence that the rite of baptism was a step in discipleship that preceded that of the Eucharist.¹ Likewise with the Eucharist, Ignatius teaches us to be submissive to God-ordained authorities. In other words, how can one display submission to an unseen God unless s/he submits to God’s ordained leadership? Ignatius’ words on baptism are few, but they point us to his clearer statements about right actions in respect to Christian living. His comments on baptism admonish us to be mindful of this event throughout our pilgrimage. So that, in times of suffering, we should be mindful that we approach God through His ordained channel in obedience to His plan. One should consider this a precursor to the third century statement of Cyprian, “extra ecclesium, nulla salus.” Ignatius’ idea is that outside of Christ’s body, no Christian dwells.

Let us consider his comments about baptism to see whether they speak to obedience and discipleship.

Ephesians 6:2. ‘Since also "there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all, and in all.”’ Here he describes the fact that baptism comparable to the nature of the FATHER, the SON, and the FAITH. Baptism has been connected to obedience and faith from the beginning. Also from the beginning, Baptism was the ceremony wherein one was submissive to the God-appointed Bishop, as unto Christ, in the baptismal waters and the chrismation. There could not be a baptism outside the walls of Church for Ignatius. There is one Church and one God. Also, one cannot help but notice his statement about the unity of the Lord, the faith, etc. More will be added upon that topic later in the discussion of Christology. If then the Father is over all, through all, and in all, how can there be obedience to him outside of His Church? And that in his Church, baptism standing as the initial rite of entrance and obedience all authorities agree. Remember too the context of this biblical quote. In Ephesians 4:5-7, St. Paul has the same thrust:1 I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, 2With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; 3Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 5One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. 7But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.

The quote from both SS. Ignatius and Paul connote discipleship.

Ephesians 18:2. ‘For our God, Jesus Christ, was . . . born and baptized, that by His passion He might purify the water.’ Of course, in Christ’s baptism we see the perfect example for us to follow. As part of the Father’s plan, the Son allowed John to baptize him, in Ignatius’ words, to cleanse the water. Why should he cleanse the water, if not to redeem all of creation in his incarnation, passion, and resurrection? Though an indirect example of discipleship, here Ignatius points the reader to the impartation of incorruptibility to the creation vis-à-vis the water. Our own baptism is the very symbol of this event in history and in our own lives. So we see the obedience of Christians being baptized into the Church serves as a symbol of the Son’s obedience to the Father, reconciling the world. Likewise St. Ignatius conquers the claim that water cannot save the soul. Jesus Christ quickened the water for us to be made new in Baptism. Baptism marks us as the followers our Lord by walking in His example and in His life giving water, and it serves as a sign that we are disciples of our parents who were washed previously, and who walk in His ways for a lamp unto our feet.

Smyrneans 8:2. ‘Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church. It is not lawful without the bishop either to baptize or to celebrate a love-feast; but whatsoever he shall approve of, that is also pleasing to God.’ Again Ignatius strikes the bell of submission to earthly authorities. His mind cannot accept the idea that one can be obedient to God without so being obedient to God’s appointed leadership. Thus private discipleship in isolation from the community of faith is invalid. In another place he describes the deacons as the apostles, the presbytery as the Son, and the bishop as the Father. In this we discern his view of hierarchical leadership. Without submitting to the appointed leaders, one cannot submit truly to the Father as Christ did. The Bishop is the chief mentor of every Church, just as every martial artist has a master that he follows until he is made a master himself.

Polycarp 6:2. ‘Let your baptism endure as your shield; your faith as your helmet; your love as your spear; your patience as a complete panoply.’ Here he likens baptism to the strength of a shield, a weapon of defense. Interestingly he did not conceive of baptism as a finished event in the lives of believers. Here he likens it to armor of defense to be used to endure the hardships of discipleship, finishing the faith mindful of one’s initial step of obedience. Since the life of devotion to God is hard, incurring persecution, he admonishes us to be mindful of our connection to Christ’s incorruptibility in the waters of our baptism. Martin Luther echoed this many centuries hence, "This I say lest we fall into the opinion in which we were for a long time, imagining that our Baptism is something past, which we can no longer use after we have fallen again into sin. .For the ship never breaks because (as we have said) it is the ordinance of God, and not a work of ours; but it happens, indeed, that we slip and fall out of the ship. Yet if any one fall out, let him see to it that he swim up and cling to it till he again come into it and live in it, as he had formerly begun."

Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? ¹⁴ I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, ¹⁵ so no one can say that you were baptized into my name. ¹⁶ (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don't remember if I baptized anyone else.) 1 Corinthians 1:13-16; For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.12:13

1 David F. Wright, “W.H. Griffith Thomas Lectureship,” (Dallas Theological Seminary, 2002).

St. Ignatius on Discipleship, part 1

The modern evangelical culture struggles to find balance in its application of discipleship. So this paper addresses the current need for the Church to produce true followers of the Lord Jesus Christ by listening to the voice of one who wrote on the subject shortly after the Apostles. While he was chosen because discipleship highlights his works, even some of his controversial material stands in the vein of his thinking on discipleship.

This paper also attempts to surface Ignatius’ ideas regarding baptism, Eucharist, martyrdom, and Christology, to the central theme of imitation, or discipleship. Understanding Ignatius’ concept of discipleship helps us understand his other, more misunderstood, ideas. We will understand Ignatius better once we place him within his own context and respect his insights on following Jesus. This paper’s impetus arises from questions any parishoner might ask after reading an Apostolic Father like St. Ignatius.

We will proceed by looking at the language of discipleship with the Ignatian letters. Ignatius’ use of terms and concepts will surface his thoughts, isolating several key areas that Ignatius connected to discipleship. Within each area to which discipleship relates, we will analyze the connection to discipleship from a theological standpoint. Next we will illustrate this link from the letters of Ignatius, noting specifically his use of language. Then from scripture we shall show that Ignatius was not advocating strange ideas foreign to Jesus or the apostles. Here we affirm that Ignatius, the supposed disciple of that ‘beloved disciple’,¹ possesses unique insight to speak specifically to the area of discipleship.

Ignatian insight into discipleship can profit the evangelical Church in the twenty-first century. Evangelicals misunderstand Ignatius on many levels. Protestant scholars, in particular, have declared Ignatius defective in his understanding of grace and faith and thus to be an unreliable witness concerning Christian soteriology.² Since soteriology [doctrine of salvation] impacts Christology, this seems a necessary place to answer the critics. This paper hopes to help Protestants value the writings of Ignatius. From the average Christian to the scholar, Ignatius suffers in our day because we judge him through a two thousand year lens, disregarding the situation in which Ignatius served Christ and his specific circumstance of writing. Martyrdom appears to be Ignatius’ chief chafe for modern readers. A single reading through his letters should raise the question of this death-wish. Some authors have been offended by his passionate desire for martyrdom and the lurid language in which he expressed it.³ This colorful and startling language hides from us his connection of discipleship and death. We must not allow this to occur, for his own words illustrate his emphasis. Moreover, some view the entire early Church era as consumed with an unhealthy desire for martyrdom.⁴ We tend initially to suppose that his desire for death was selfish, or even an unhealthy mental state. But a careful reading uncovers that he is equally inclined to dwell on the sufferings of Christ⁵ and the unity of the faith. In fact, that key connection illustrates how he views his own suffering as eucharistic.

Ignatius’ life remains a mystery to scholars. Our knowledge of him unfolds in reverse order from his martyrdom back to his earliest years.⁶ We can be certain of very little regarding his life. We have scarce information regarding Ignatius’ trial.⁷ But we do firmly believe that he was a Bishop in Antioch by the end of the first century. Arrested for an unknown charge, perhaps public disturbance [don't mess with Pax Romana] or maybe resisting emperor worship, he died in the Roman circus between 105 to 110 A. D. For sure, we know most about Ignatius from his own writings, which should be read mindful of his circumstances. In other words, all seven letters were written on a journey within a couple of months on the way to be sacrificed by the Roman Empire. Little wonder that following Jesus occupied Ignatius’ mind throughout these letters. And as the letters show, Christ and Paul had much to do with Ignatius’ ideas regarding discipleship.

1 However, most of the references from scripture will point to his Pauline connection.

2 Christine Trevett, “The Much-maligned Ignatius,” The Expository Times 93 (July 1982): p.299.

3 Ibid., p.299.

4 Bruce Tankersley, Class notes of this student in Church History, East Texas Baptist University, Fall 1994. I particularly remember wondering why someone would criticize ancient Christians for wanting to die for Christ when today people are persecuted and martyred continually throughout the world. Not only that, but what purpose does it serve to steer students away from imitating the Lord and His saints?

5 John MacQuarrie, “True life in death,” The Journal of Bible and Religion 31 (June 1964):, p. 200.

6 Even his earliest years can only be upheld by a tradition in the Roman Catholic Church. This tradition holds that Ignatius was the child whom Christ himself embraced while teaching the disciples to accept the kingdom of God like little children in Mark 9:36.

7 A. A. K. Graham, “Their word to our day, IV. Ignatius of Antioch,” The Expository Times 80 (Jan. 1969): p.100.

Why St. Ignatius?

St. Ignatius, Bishop and Martyr of Antioch, was the focus of my senior paper at seminary in 2002.
Let me tell the story of why I chose him to research, and why that changed me.
For the sake of keeping it brief, one needs to read the short letters of Ignatius. There are but 7. Okay, now that you've done that read on. Either in 2000 or 2001 I completed a course in the Early Church Fathers. During that seminar-style class, every student had to produce a presentation on a character from that period. All the big names were already chosen--NO that's not true! It was simply by chance that my group assigned Blessed Ignatius to me.
When I presented material for his 7 letters I knew what kind of reaction I'd get. You see I went to Dallas Theological Seminary, finishing in 2002. The standard evangelical seminary student cannot be prepared for the shock of St. Ignatius. [that fact btw was an initial chisel for me to question the evangelical claims-more on that soon] Some of the students literally gasped aloud at the content of the Bishop's letters! [Okay it's time for you to go read them-gotcha] He, quite like N.T. Wright describes St. Paul, sounds more like a fanatical terrorist than a gentle shepherd to the 21st century Western ear. I knew my classmates would misunderstand him, but it was my job to explain him to them. That is very complicated.
First, the DNA of protestants is to distrust every notion after the death of the last Apostle. Ignatius' sick descriptions must have confirmed their disdain. [surely you've gone and read him by now!] Really, it's in the DNA. They don't teach that at most evangelical seminaries! But it lingers under the surface, controlling assumptions as we study the Bible, Theology and History. The Church, say they, held its breath until the reformation when the 'true' faith was recovered by (insert the father of your protestant tradition). So Ignatius' advice to the earliest believers must have been skewed because he never mentions 5 solas...just one.
Second, Ignatius is incredibly Catholic. Yea, that Ignatius. Chances are you know him by that reputation. He is the one who championed the local Bishop being central to true Christianity. Protestants don't operate with Bishops, so that sets his teachings at odds with something they hold dear--democratic or representative leadership. 'Bishop? Hmmm...catholics don't understand the Bible like the Spirit enables me to do so.'
Third, Ignatius is not romantic, but rather graphic. He never mentions having, or inviting, Jesus in your heart...or being His private friend when you are alone. He seems to enjoy the fact that he will go to the circus, though. Only, this circus will be his end... his flesh and bones food for animals. That presents another hurdle for protestants. We don't seek martyrdom...rather victory! God forbid that we should make sacrifices. In our worldview a willing scapegoat makes no sense [except for baby Jesus]. Protestant evangelicals don't make the crucial connection that my thesis will demonstrate.
That thesis posits that St. Ignatius contains the vital link for us to read both the New Testament [mostly SS. Paul and John] and the rest of the early Church. That link is what we would call discipleship. So when I had to find a paper topic later on, St. Ignatius just screamed at me from a previous semester. 'Come follow me! Find out why I've been misunderstood, neglected, and cast aside for other glamorous figures.'
Posts that follow will be the sections of the paper in much the same style and method as originally done. I have not changed the paper much, preferring to stick to the expectations of the course to which the paper belonged. I would not approach the topic just this way if I were to do it over. That will wait for another day.

"Quivering" upper lip...and all that!

Be sure to check out my shared items feature located down the right column. Rather than posting a bunch of back-links to other stories in the main entry spaces, I put them there for your consideration.

This one could not be relegated to that position. It is a must read.

Hat-tip to The Ugley Vicar.