The year
is 155. The Church is being persecuted. We see two men walking along a country
path towards a farmhouse. They have been walking for several hours and it is
late in the afternoon. The older one is doing most of the talking as they enter
and look around:
Well, here
we are Antonius. Not yet dark. No sign of our being followed yet. Thank you for
coming all this way with me. It's dangerous to be found with an old bishop like
me in this time of persecution. The police have probably some idea where we
have gone. They are bound to have made one of our two boys they arrested talk
by now. .. We'd better find you
something to eat so that you can get on your way back to town. Let's see what
we can find in the larder. Perhaps a can of baked beans. Ah. Here we are!
You were
asking me about what I remember of the apostle John. It was so long ago and at
my age, I am amazed at the detail I can recall. It's a funny feeling, because I
asked him once how he could remember in so much detail the things the Lord said
and did. 'Polycarp', he said to me,
'when you're older you'll find that certain special occasions get fixed in your
mind. You can relive them without any effort. That's how it was the last time
we shared supper with the Lord'.
Did you
hear anything just then? Are the soldiers coming already? No, nothing. I'd
better remember that they will be noisier than that. They never remove their
armour and weapons. I think they are proud of their appearance! And please
don't ask me to move on to another refuge. Remember my dream of sleeping on the
burning pillow? If they come for me tomorrow, I shall be ready.
But eat up.
You should be on your way before it gets really dark. As I was saying, John was
so clear about it. He explained everything that Jesus did that evening - How it
felt special in a way that they did not understand until later - The things
that Jesus said to them. You know, they seem really special to me tonight. Just
like the Lord at that last supper, I may be taken by the police tomorrow to the
Prefect and then to the arena. It's wonderful to imagine the scene in the upper
room and to think through the words. 'Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe
in God. Believe also in me. .. I am going to prepare a place for you ..' Dear
Lord, I think I may be coming to take you up on your promise very soon!
But,
Antonius, you need not worry about that yourself yet. They always go for the
leaders, so it's old Bishop Polycarp first. Remember some of the other things
John told us Jesus said that evening, 'If you love me, keep my commandments,
and I will pray the Father and he will send you another Comforter, even the
Spirit of Truth.' We all know, in our community, Antonius, how important that
Spirit is to us. Without it we could not continue, and without it I don't think
I could face what may happen tomorrow. Did you hear anything then? No, we are
left with some peace yet.
But what
was still more important, John made it clear, was what Jesus did. You know we
can often say far more by our actions than we can with words. In many ways the
meaning is more precise - we know what an action means, a bit like we do with a
piece of music, but we can't pin it down in words. So imagine what it was like
what the Lord knelt down and washed his friends' feet. How did they feel? What
did they see and think when they looked into his eyes? What did they think on
the next day when they had all betrayed him and he hung, dying? What then two
days later when they began to realise that there was much more to come and so
much of that last evening together began to make sense? They remembered the
words, 'Do this in remembrance of me'. What could be easier to remember well?
What could be easier to re-present? He took, he blessed, he broke. .. 'Take,
eat, this is my body' .. 'This is my blood of the new covenant' .. 'Do this in
remembrance of me'.
And that is
what we all have done and shared in, in all the years since our Lord was with
us on earth. I shiver with excitement when I remember that I learnt that from a
man who was there at the very time. Such a clear and simple thing to remember,
but with such deep meaning, now that we see it in the light of what happened
afterwards. It could still be being repeated hundreds of years from now!
You are
right. It's getting late. You should be on your way. Make sure you go straight
back to town. Don't call by our other houses on the way. The police are bound
to be searching them. Tell everyone I am not going to go further. If they come,
they come. And now, let us say farewell. The Lord be with you. ...
Well, there
he goes. I hope he survives these troubled times. If he does I'm sure he will
keep the tradition alive. It's quiet and nearly dark now. I'll get some sleep.
No-one will come before morning. ...
Lord Jesus,
thank you for the clear memory of you given to us by the apostles. Thank you
that I knew your apostle John. Thank you for the simple acts of taking,
blessing and breaking. Thank you for being with us in the bread and the wine.
Thank you for allowing me to stand in your place and take, bless and break, so
many times, for so many people and even as far away as Rome. ... 'My peace I
leave you, my peace I give you. Trouble not your hearts' ...
Yawn. Ah,
here is the dawn. Now we shall see. .. Lord, send your Spirit to strengthen me
today. Let's look along the path. .. There we are. I thought it would not be
long. Listen to them come! Look at their armour shining in the morning sun!
Hello, there. Who are you looking for? Yes, I am Bishop Polycarp. Come in and
sit down for a moment. It is a long walk from the town, and you look as if you
have not had much sleep! Would you like something to eat before we return to
the town? I think I can find some baked beans. ..
Polycarp
returned with the police, reaching the stadium at the end of the day. When
asked, Polycarp refused to deny Christ. Because the games were over, the
Prefect could not throw him to the beasts so he was tied to a stake, stabbed
and burnt. He had his burning pillow. Polycarp was the first Christian martyr
outside the Bible whose story was recorded in detail.
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