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and sending [him] to Rome, they thought they were sending [him] to his death, but they were sending a teacher to the Jews dwelling there, 50.593 this indeed also happened in the case of Ignatius with a certain abundance.

For not only to those dwelling in Rome, but also to all the cities lying in between, he went as a marvelous teacher, persuading them to despise the present life, and to consider the things seen as nothing, and to long for the things to come, and to look towards heaven, and to turn aside for none of the terrors in this present life. For teaching them these things and more than these through his actions, he journeyed like some sun rising from the east and running to the west; or rather, even brighter than this one; for this one ran from above, bringing a perceptible light, but Ignatius shone forth from below, sending an intelligible light of teaching into their souls; and that one, going away to the parts of the west, is hidden, and immediately brings on night; but this one, having gone to the parts of the west, rose more brightly from there, and having benefited all along the way in the greatest things; and when he set foot in the city, he taught it also to be wise. For this reason also God permitted him to end his life there, so that his death might become a lesson of piety for all those dwelling in Rome. For you, by the grace of God, needed no further proof, being rooted in the faith; but those dwelling in Rome, since there was much impiety there at that time, were in need of greater assistance. For this reason both Peter and Paul, and after them this one, were all sacrificed there; on the one hand, so that they might cleanse with their own blood the city which had been polluted with the blood of idols, and on the other hand, so that they might provide by their deeds the proof of the resurrection of the crucified Christ, persuading those dwelling in Rome that they would not have despised the present life with such pleasure unless they had strongly persuaded themselves that they were about to ascend to the crucified Jesus and see him in the heavens. For truly the greatest proof of the resurrection is for the slain Christ to have shown such power after death, as to persuade living men to look down upon homeland, and house, and friends, and relations, and life itself for the sake of confessing him, and to choose scourgings, and dangers, and death instead of present pleasures.

For these were not the achievements of some dead man, nor of one who remained in the tomb, but of one who had risen and was living. Since how would it be reasonable that, when he was living, all the apostles who were with him, having become weaker from fear, betrayed their teacher and fled away, but when he had died, not only Peter and Paul, but also Ignatius, who had not even seen him nor enjoyed his company, showed such zeal for him as even to give up his own soul for his sake?

5. Therefore, so that all those dwelling in Rome might learn these things by deed,

God permitted the saint to be perfected there. And that this is the cause, I will confirm this from the very manner of his death. For not outside the walls 50.594 in a pit, nor in a court of justice, nor in some corner did he receive the condemning vote, but in the middle of the theater, with the entire city seated above, he endured the manner of his martyrdom, with beasts being let loose upon him, so that having set up the trophy against the devil under the eyes of all, he might make all the spectators emulators of his own contests, not only dying so nobly, but also dying with pleasure. For not as one about to be torn from life, but as one called to a better and more spiritual life, so gladly did he see the beasts. From where is this clear? From the words which he uttered when he was about to die.

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καὶ εἰς τὴν Ῥώμην ἀποστείλαντες ἐνόμιζον μὲν ἐπὶ θάνατον πέμπειν, ἔπεμπον δὲ τοῖς ἐκεῖ κατοικοῦσιν Ἰουδαίοις διδάσκαλον, 50.593 τοῦτο δὴ καὶ ἐπὶ Ἰγνατίου γέγονε μετὰ περιουσίας τινός.

Οὐδὲ γὰρ τοῖς τὴν Ῥώμην οἰκοῦσι μόνοις, ἀλλὰ καὶ ταῖς ἐν τῷ μέσῳ κειμέναις πόλεσιν ἁπάσαις διδά σκαλος ἀπῄει θαυμάσιος, πείθων καταφρονεῖν τῆς παρ ούσης ζωῆς, καὶ μηδὲν ἡγεῖσθαι τὰ βλεπόμενα, καὶ τῶν μελλόντων ἐρᾷν, καὶ πρὸς τὸν οὐρανὸν βλέπειν, καὶ πρὸς μηδὲν τῶν ἐν τῷ παρόντι βίῳ δεινῶν ἐπιστρέφε σθαι. Ταῦτα γὰρ καὶ τὰ τούτων πλείονα διὰ τῶν ἔργων αὐτοὺς παιδεύων ὥδευε, καθάπερ ἥλιός τις ἐξ ἀνατολῆς ἀνίσχων καὶ πρὸς τὴν δύσιν τρέχων· μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ τούτου φαιδρότερος· οὗτος μὲν γὰρ ἄνωθεν ἔτρεχεν, αἰσθητὸν ἄγων φῶς, Ἰγνάτιος δὲ κάτωθεν ἀντέλαμπε, νοητὸν φῶς διδασκαλίας ταῖς ψυχαῖς ἐνιείς· κἀκεῖνος μὲν εἰς τὰ τῆς δύσεως ἀπιὼν μέρη κρύπτεται, καὶ νύκτα εὐθέως ἐπάγει· οὗτος δὲ εἰς τὰ τῆς δύσεως ἀπ ελθὼν μέρη φαιδρότερον ἐκεῖθεν ἀνέτειλε, καὶ τοὺς κατὰ τὴν ὁδὸν ἅπαντας εὐεργετήσας τὰ μέγιστα· ἐπειδὴ δὲ τῆς πόλεως ἐπέβη, κἀκείνην φιλοσοφεῖν ἐπαίδευσε. ∆ιὰ γὰρ τοῦτο καὶ ὁ Θεὸς συνεχώρησεν ἐκεῖ τὸν βίον αὐτὸν καταλῦσαι, ὥστε τὴν τούτου τελευτὴν διδασκάλιον γενέσθαι εὐσεβείας τοῖς τὴν Ῥώμην οἰκοῦσιν ἅπασιν. Ὑμεῖς μὲν γὰρ τῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ χάριτι οὐδεμιᾶς ἐδέεσθε λοιπὸν ἀποδείξεως, ἐῤῥιζωμένοι κατὰ τὴν πίστιν· οἱ δὲ τὴν Ῥώμην οἰκοῦντες, ἅτε πολλῆς τότε ἀσεβείας οὔσης ἐκεῖ, πλείονος ἔχρῃζον βοηθείας. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο καὶ Πέτρος καὶ Παῦλος καὶ μετ' ἐκείνους οὗτος ἐκεῖ πάντες ἐτύθη σαν· τοῦτο μὲν ἵνα μολυνθεῖσαν τὴν πόλιν τοῖς τῶν εἰ δώλων αἵμασι, τοῖς οἰκείοις αἵμασιν ἐκκαθάρωσι, τοῦτο δὲ ἵνα τῆς ἀναστάσεως τοῦ σταυρωθέντος Χριστοῦ διὰ τῶν ἔργων παράσχωνται τὴν ἀπόδειξιν, πείσαντες τοὺς τὴν Ῥώμην οἰκοῦντας ὡς οὐκ ἂν μετὰ τοσαύτης ἡδονῆς τῆς παρούσης κατεφρόνησαν ζωῆς, εἰ μὴ σφόδρα ἦσαν πεπεικότες ἑαυτοὺς, ὅτι πρὸς τὸν ἐσταυρωμένον ἔμελ λον ἀναβαίνειν Ἰησοῦν, καὶ ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς αὐτὸν ὄψε σθαι. Μεγίστη γὰρ ὄντως ἀναστάσεως ἀπόδειξις τὸ τὸν σφαγέντα Χριστὸν τοσαύτην μετὰ θάνατον ἐπιδείξασθαι δύναμιν, ὡς τοὺς ζῶντας ἀνθρώπους πεῖσαι καὶ πατρίδος, καὶ οἰκίας, καὶ φίλων, καὶ συγγενῶν, καὶ αὐτῆς ὑπεριδεῖν τῆς ζωῆς ὑπὲρ τῆς εἰς αὐτὸν ὁμολογίας, καὶ μάστιγας, καὶ κινδύνους, καὶ θάνατον ἀντὶ τῶν παρόντων ἡδέων ἑλέσθαι.

Ταῦτα γὰρ οὐχὶ νεκροῦ τινος, οὐδὲ ἐπὶ τῷ τάφῳ μείναντος, ἀλλ' ἀναστάντος καὶ ζῶν τος ἦν τὰ κατορθώματα. Ἐπεὶ πῶς ἂν ἔχοι λόγον, ἡνίκα μὲν ἔζη, τοὺς συνόντας αὐτῷ πάντας ἀποστόλους ἀπὸ τοῦ φόβου γενομένους ἀσθενεστέρους προδοῦναι τὸν δι δάσκαλον, καὶ φεύγοντας ἀπελθεῖν, ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἐτελεύτη σεν, μὴ μόνον Πέτρον καὶ Παῦλον, ἀλλὰ καὶ Ἰγνάτιον τὸν οὐδὲ ἑωρακότα αὐτὸν, οὐδὲ ἀπολελαυκότα αὐτοῦ τῆς συνουσίας τοσαύτην ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ προθυμίαν ἐπιδεί ξασθαι, ὡς καὶ αὐτὴν δι' αὐτὸν ἐπιδοῦναι τὴν ψυχήν;

εʹ. Ἵν' οὖν ταῦτα ἔργῳ μάθωσιν οἱ τὴν Ῥώμην οἰκοῦντες ἅπαντες,

συνεχώρησεν ὁ Θεὸς ἐκεῖ τελειωθῆναι τὸν ἅγιον. Καὶ ὅτι αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ αἰτία, ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ τρόπου τῆς τελευτῆς τοῦτο πιστώσομαι. Οὐ γὰρ ἔξω τειχῶν 50.594 ἐν βαράθρῳ, οὐδὲ ἐν δικαστηρίῳ, οὐδὲ ἐν γωνίᾳ τινι τὴν καταδικάζουσαν ἐδέξατο ψῆφον, ἀλλ' ἐν μέσῳ τῷ θεάτρῳ, τῆς πόλεως ἄνω καθεζομένης ἁπάσης, τὸν τοῦ μαρτυ ρίου τρόπον ὑπέμεινε, θηρίων ἐπ' αὐτὸν ἀφεθέντων, ἵν' ὑπὸ ταῖς ἁπάντων ὄψεσι τὸ τρόπαιον στήσας κατὰ τοῦ διαβόλου, τοὺς θεατὰς ἅπαντας ζηλωτὰς ποιήσῃ τῶν ἀγωνισμάτων τῶν ἑαυτοῦ, οὐκ ἀποθνήσκων μόνον οὕτω γενναίως, ἀλλὰ καὶ μεθ' ἡδονῆς ἀποθνήσκων. Οὐ γὰρ ὡς ζωῆς ἀποῤῥήγνυσθαι μέλλων, ἀλλ' ὡς ἐπὶ ζωὴν καλού μενος βελτίω καὶ πνευματικωτέραν, οὕτως ἀσμένως ἑώρα τὰ θηρία. Πόθεν τοῦτο δῆλον; Ἀπὸ τῶν ῥημάτων ὧν ἀποθνήσκειν μέλλων ἐφθέγξατο.