J. B. Lightfoot is responsible for the definitive edition of the Apostolic Fathers, printed in five volumes. Since previously publishing his treatment of the Clementine epistles, the scholarly community had waited a long time for his three-volume work on Ignatius and Polycarp. Lightfoot was considered the premiere authority on the subject at the time. His edition on Ignatius and Polycarp was finding its way into Anglican places of learning, and into the libraries of the clergy, when Muir's article appeared in The British and Foreign Evangelical Review. The publication of such an authority as Lightfoot on the writings of these two early church leaders reopened a dormant controversy regarding their authenticity. More specifically, the debate was over which of the three recensions of Ignatius's letters was genuine, if any. Muir summarizes the issues concerning the genuineness of the Ignatian epistles in this article, which in many ways introduced the Lightfoot's edition to a popular audience. His comprehensive knowledge allows complicated issues to be easily understood.
Book Description
Ignatius and Polycarp were direct links to the Apostolic Age, both being associated with the twelve apostles. Ignatius of Antioch was the prominent leader of perhaps the most influential church at the turn of the first century. For this reason the Roman Empire sought after him for martyrdom. Along the way to execution he penned seven epistles that serve as a principal record of church life of that period. They were popular documents, especially for later redactors who found in them a means to promote a strong bishopric. Herein lies the difficulty of the Ignatian corpus. Seventeen works had been attributed to him by the Middle Ages; even the original treatises were altered significantly. Among those receiving letters, according to the original collection, was Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna. This letter demonstrates the cordial nature of communication between fellow church leaders. Polycarp was asked to collect the Ignatian epistles and to preserve them. By his death, he was regarded as the last link representing apostolic teaching.
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