St. Polycarp Church Fathers

St. Polycarp was the Christian bishop of Smyrna in the second century AD. He was taught by the Apostle John himself, therefore representing the next generation of Christians after the Apostles. He in turn taught St. Irenaeus who would become bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul (modern-day Lyon in France). In 155 AD, Polycarp was martyred in the arena at Smyrna by the Roman authorities. This edition in the St. Polycarp Church Fathers Series contains St. Polycarp's Epistle to the Philippians and the account of his death, The Martyrdom of Polycarp, along with notes and commentary by Rev. Aaron Simms. About the Editor Rev. Aaron Simms is a writer specializing in Christian theology, history and classical studies. He is also a pastor in The Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod, a member of the American Academy of Religion, and the founder of St. Polycarp Publishing House. His academic studies include international relations, economics, psychology, classical history, and theology at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta, Georgia), Troy University (Troy, Alabama), and Concordia Seminary (St. Louis, Missouri). His blog is at aaronsimms.com

Justin Martyr was a mid-second century Christian writer. A Greek-speaking Gentile, he was born in Flavia Neapolis (present day Nablus) in Samaria and was martyred around 165 AD in Rome. In approximately 150 AD, he wrote his First and Second Apologies as defenses of the Christian faith. Justin addressed the First Apology to the Roman emperor Antoninus Pius and his sons Lucius and Verissimus (better known as Marcus Aurelius); the Second Apology was addressed to the Roman Senate. In both Apologies, Justin seeks to defend the Christian faith from the misrepresentations that were current in his day, demonstrate that persecutions of Christians were unjust, and convert his readers to the faith. This edition in the St. Polycarp Church Fathers Series presents these two works with notes and commentary by Rev. Aaron Simms.

Athenagoras of Athens was a Christian writer, who lived in the Roman empire from approximately 133 to 190 AD. He was well-versed in Greek philosophy and may have been a Platonist philosopher prior to his conversion to the Christian faith. This edition in the St. Polycarp Church Fathers Series presents Athenagoras' two extant works: Embassy for the Christians and On the Resurrection of the Dead. Within these two treatises, Athenagoras provides a well-reasoned defense of the Christian faith and the doctrine of the resurrection.

Tertullian was a Christian writer who lived in the Roman province of Africa at the end of the second century and beginning of the third century AD. He wrote his Apology or "Defense of the Christian Faith", during the joint rule of the Roman emperor Septimius Severus with his imperial peer Caracalla (around 200 AD). Tertullian's work presents a classic defense of Christians and their faith in the face of Roman persecution. This edition in the St. Polycarp Church Fathers Series presents Tertullian's Apology with notes and commentary by Rev. Aaron Simms.