3
sign of "an abnormal mentality."
9
A careful study, though, of Ignatius thinking about
his own death reveals a man who rightly knows that Christian believing demands
passionate engagement of the entire person, even to the point of physical death. To
borrow some words from contemporary theologian Kevin Vanhoozer, martyrdom for
Ignatius is "a powerful form of truth-disclosive action," namely the truth about Christ and
about himself as a Christian.
10
In an important study of the differences between Ignatius letters, Mikael Isacson has
rightly noted that Ignatius letters to the Romans and to Polycarp are substantially
different from the other five. That to Polycarp is the only one of Ignatius letters
addressed to an individual and contains mostly a series of pastoral exhortations from one
bishop to another. While the letter to the Romans is to a church with which Ignatius has
no personal link, unlike the other five churches to which he sends letters. And with regard
to its content, it is extremely focused: it is on his impending martyrdom.
11
As such,
Ignatius martyr-centred letter to the Romans will be the focus of the central section of
this paper.
12
Given his concern to rebut heresy, it is not surprising to find Ignatius linking
the theme of martyrdom and Christological orthodoxy. This link is primarily made in the
letter to the Smyrnaeans and will be examined in the final section of this paper. First,
what can be known about his journey to Rome--the historical context of his letters--
needs to be laid out.
The physical journey
9
"Why were the Early Christians Persecuted?", Past & Present, 26 (November 1963), 23-24. De Ste.
Croix further suggests that Ignatius is the precursor of a type of early Christian martyr heavily critiqued by
Church leaders, namely, the voluntary martyr (23-24). But there is no evidence to support this suggestion.
10
First Theology: God, Scripture & Hermeneutics (Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVaristy
Press/Leicester, England: Apollos, 2002), 364-365.
11
To Each Their Own Letter: Structure, Themes, and Rhetorical Strategies in the Letters of Ignatius of
Antioch (Stockholm: Almqvist & Wiksell International, 2004), 20.
12
For the phrase "martyr-centred," I am indebted to Lucy Grig, Making Martyrs in Late Antiquity
(London: Duckworth, 2004), 16.