apostolicfathers0201clem - Carmel Apologetics

642 EPISTLE OF S. POLYCARR
But does his error extend likewise to the group of Pergamene
martyrs whom he mentions just after Until recently the martyrdoms
of Carpus, Papylus, and Agathonice, were represented only by the
Acts in the Metaphrast [Patrol. Grace, cxv. p. 106 sq). These are
obviously spurious. But in the Revue ArcMologiqiie 1881, p. 348 sq,
Aube pubhshed for the first time a shorter form of the Acts from a
Paris MS, Grace. 1468. There seems no reason for doubting that we
have here the same Acts of vvhich Eusebius speaks, and that they are
authentic. Carpus and Papylus are brought before the proconsul at
Pergamon. Papylus describes himself as belonging to Thyatira.
When asked Hast ' thou children (rcKva ex^')
' l^e replies ' Yes, many
by God's grace ' {k(Ci ttoXXo. Sm tov ©eoV). He would seem from this
answer to have been a bishop of his Church. The Acts of the Metaphrast
assign these martyrdoms to the reign of Decius and Aube' so
;
places them along with those of Pionius and Metrodorus (p. 349)'. In
the genuine Acts no date is directly given, but they suggest a divided
sovereignty (tci Trpoo-rdyfJiaTa Twv Avyovarwv p. 354) «' jiXa(r^y]fXiav...
Ttoi' 0€c3v KOI Tw»/ 2€/3ao-Ta)j/ p. 357); nor is this inconsistent with the
fact that in one passage a single emperor
is named (oiJtojs yap tKe'Aeuo-ev
d avTOKpa.TU)p, p. 355). These expressions would seem to point to
the reign of M. Aurelius' (a.d.
161^— 169, 177
— 180), or to that of
Severus (a.d. 198 — 211), with their respective colleagues^ The name
of Agathonice is introduced in these genuine Acts {'AyaOovtKr]
Bi rts
eo-Two-a Koi iSoScra k.t.X.)
in a way which explains the vague reference
of Eusebius (ywaiKos 'Aya^oviVr/s) ;
(§17) she is made a sister of Papylus.
whereas in the Metaphrast's account
(2)
From the true Pionius we turn to the spurious. A Life of
Polycarp is extant full of legendary matter and demonstrably false in its
1
Aube has since reprinted these Acts
in his last volume Vilglise et PJ^tat dans
la seconde moitie du Hi" siicle p. 499 sq
(1885).
He still places these martyrdoms
in the reign of Decius.
^
The day of these Pergamene martyrs
is April 13th in the ancient Syriac Martyrology
('In the city of Pergamus of the
number of the ancient confessors Cyrillus
[1. Carpus] the bishop, Agathonice, and
Paulus [1. Papylus] in the Old Roman
') ;
Martyrology {'Apud Pergamum Asiae
Carpi episcopi et Papyrii [1. Papyli],
Agathonicae, et aliarum multarum'), and
in the Hieronymian Martyrology (where
however there is much confusion of the
names between this and the preceding
day). The Metaphrast (§ 18) assigns
them to October 13, which is the day of
Carpus, the companion of S. Paul, in the
Old Roman j\Ia7-tyrology.
The Mcnaa
have the same day and the same story as
the MetajArast.
*
Zahn {Forschungen zur Geschichte
des Nentest. Rations p. 279) holds that
Eusebius is correct in assigning them to
the reign of M. Aurelius.