About Saint Polycarp
Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, belonged to the generation formed by the apostles and wrote a surviving letter to the Philippians. Arrested in old age around 155, he refused to curse Christ and was killed in Smyrna’s stadium. The contemporary account of his death is among Christianity’s earliest martyr narratives.
Prayer
Pray with Saint Polycarp
God of enduring faith, you kept Saint Polycarp close to Christ from youth into old age. Through his intercession, strengthen elderly disciples, preserve apostolic teaching in your Church, and give persecuted Christians courage without hatred. Amen.
