To Polycarp 7.2

Ignatius of Antioch · To Polycarp · ca. 110 (range ca. 105–135) · Troas · Read in context

Summary: Ignatius asks Polycarp to call a council and choose a messenger to go to Antioch.

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Greek text · Lake, LCL 24:274

πρέπει, Πολύκαρπε θεομακαριστότατε, συμβούλιον ἀγαγεῖν θεοπρεπέστατον καὶ χειροτονῆσαί τινα, ὃν ἀγαπητὸν λίαν ἔχετε καὶ ἄοκνον, ὃς δυνήσεται θεοδρόμος καλεῖσθαι· τοῦτον καταξιῶσαι, ἵνα πορευθεὶς εἰς Συρίαν δοξάσῃ ὑμῶν τὴν ἄοκνον ἀγάπην εἰς δόξαν θεοῦ·

English · Claude translation

It is fitting, most blessed Polycarp, to call together a most godly council and to appoint someone whom you regard as especially dear and tireless, who can be called God's courier; to count him worthy to go to Syria and glorify your tireless love, to the glory of God.

About this passage

Source: Lake, LCL 24:274 · Kirsopp Lake, ed. and trans., The Apostolic Fathers, vol. 1, LCL 24 (London: Heinemann; New York: Macmillan, 1912), 172–277 · Greek text: K. Lake, The Apostolic Fathers (LCL, 1912-1913), digitized by the First Thousand Years of Greek project (Open Greek and Latin), CC BY-SA 4.0
Also in: PG 5:725a–725b (found by text match)
Translation: Claude translation (claude-opus-5-5), 2026-09-26 · Translated by Claude from the Greek text of Lake (LCL 24, 1912); made independently of existing English translations.
Topics: Church office

Notes

Translation notes

“Appoint” (χειροτονῆσαι): literally “elect by raising hands.”
“God's courier” (θεοδρόμος): a word apparently coined by Ignatius, “God's runner.”

Cite this passage

Ign. Pol. 7.2 (PG 5:725a–725b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/ign-polycarp/7/2/).

Plain text

Ign. Pol. 7.2 (PG 5:725a–725b; trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/ign-polycarp/7/2/).

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