Polycarp of Smyrna

Polycarp (69-155 AD) was a Christian bishop of Smyrna (modern-day Turkey). According to the Martyrdom of Polycarp, he passed away a martyr, bound & burned at the stake, then stabbed when the fire failed to consume his body. Polycarp is regarded as a saint & Church Father in the Eastern Orthodox Church, Catholic Church, Oriental Orthodox Church, Lutheranism, & Anglicanism.

Irenaeus & Tertullian said that Polycarp had been a disciple of John the Apostle, one of Jesus’ disciples. This is Polycarp’s primary claim to fame. John the Apostle was the 1 who ordained Polycarp as Bishop of Smyrna. Polycarp is regarded as 1 of 3 chief Apostolic Fathers, along with Clement of Rome & Ignatius of Antioch.

In an period before the New Testament was fully formed into its modern version, Polycarp represented the “Living Voice.” If a dispute came around about what Jesus had meant, people went to Polycarp because he’d heard it from people who were actually there.

The only 1 authentic surviving work credited to Polycarp is the: Epistle/Letter of Polycarp to the Philippians. This Epistle/Letter is essentially a “mosaic” of early Christian writings. Polycarp quoted or alluded to almost 1/2 of the New Testament books (including Paul’s letters, 1 Peter, & the Gospels).

As early as the 2nd century, Polycarp was already fighting Docetism. This is the idea that Jesus only seems to have a body. He called, famously, anyone who denied the reality of Christ’s physical suffering “the 1st born of Satan.”

In particular, Irenaeus had heard the account of Polycarp’s discussion with John & with others who had actually seen Jesus. Irenaeus reports that Polycarp was converted to Christianity by the apostles, was consecrated a presbyter, & communicated with many who had seen Jesus.

Smyrna (modern-day Izmir, Turkey) was the center of “Emperor Worship.” In 26 AD, it won the right to build a Temple to the Emperor Tiberius. Smyrna also had a large, & influential, Jewish population. The tense relationship between the synagogue & the emerging Christian “sect,” which would play a role in Polycarp’s eventual arrest.

In his old age, Polycarp traveled to Rome (circa 154 AD) to meet with is fellow Syrian, the Bishop of Rome, Pope Anicetus. They come together to talk through a major secular & religious disagreement: Quartodecimanism.

Polycarp & the Eastern Churches celebrated Easter on the 14th of Nisan (the Jewish Passover), regardless of what day of the week it fell on. Rome, however, insisted it must ALWAYS be a Sunday. The Pope & Polycarp couldn’t find a compromise. This would become a problem in later centuries.

But Polycarp & the Pope stayed respectful, & friendly, towards each other. Pope Anicetus even let Polycarp celebrate the Eucharist in his own church in Rome as a sign of respect.

The Martyrdom of Polycarp is the 1st recorded account of a Christian martyrdom outside the New Testament. During a period of local unrest, the crowd in the Smyrnaean stadium began shouting for Polycarp. Initially, he didn’t flee but retreated to a small farm.

When he was eventually betrayed by a young servant under torture, he welcomed the guards, fed them a meal, & asked for an hour to pray. The Roman Proconsul, Quadratus, didn’t want to actually kill Polycarp. He pleaded with Polycarp to “have respect for our age” & to simply say, “Away with the atheists” (in this case, “the atheists” were the Christians).

Polycarp looked at the pagan crowd in the stadium, pointed at them (the pagans), & said “Away with the atheists!” Also in Martyrdom of Polycarp, Polycarp is reported to say on the day of his death: “Eighty & six years I have served Him, & He has done me no wrong.”

Polycarp was sentenced to death for not burning incense to the Roman Emperor. He was “burned” at the stake but the flames arched around him like a sail, refusing to touch him. Eventually, he was killed with a dagger/spear.

Relics of Polycarp are under the main altar of the church of Sant’Ambrogio della Massima. The right arm of St. Polycarp had been kept at the Monastery of the Dormition of the Theotokos-Saint Polycarp, in Ampelakiotissa near Nafpaktos, Greece, for over 500 years.

It was stolen on March 14, 2013 & was never found. A fragment, however, taken from the arm on a previous occasion, was discovered & returned to the monastery on July 14, 2019.

In the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, & Greek Catholic Churches, the feast day of St. Polycarp is February 23. In the Coptic Orthodox Church, his feast day is on Amshir 29 (March 8 in the Gregorian Calendar). In the Church of England, he was honored with a Lesser Festival on February 23. In the Lutheran Church, his feast day is on February 23.

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#1Peter #14July2019 #14March2013 #14thOfNisan #26AD #2ndCentury #Ampelakiotissa #Anglicanism #ApostolicFathers #atheists #Bishop #BishopOfSmyrna #CatholicChurch #Christian #ChurchFathers #ChurchOfEngland #Circa154AD #ClementOfRome #CopticOrthodoxChurch #Docetism #Easter #EasternOrthodoxChurch #EmperorTiberius #EpistleOfPolycarp #EpistleOfPolycarpToThePhilippians #Eucharist #February23 #Gospels #Greece #GregorianCalendar #IgnatiusOfAntioch #Irenaeus #Izmir #Jesus #Jewish #JohnTheApostle #LesserFestival #LutheranChurch #Lutheranism #March8 #MartyrdomOfPolycarp #MonasteryOfTheDormitionOfTheTheotokosSantPolycarp #Nafpaktos #NewTestament #OrientalOrthodoxChurch #Pagans #PolycarpOfSmyrna #PopeAnicetus #Quadratus #Quartodecimanism #relics #RomanProconsul #Saint #SantAmbrogioDellaMassima #Satan #StPolycarp #synagogue #Tertullian

Looks like there will be another, "YL POTA (Parks-on-the-Air) Party" this year on International Women's Day, March 8th 2026!

#AmateurRadio #HamRadio #hamr #ParksOnTheAir #POTA #radio #YL #YLRL #InternationalWomensDay #WomensDay #March8 #March8th #YLPOTA #YLPOTAParty #YL_POTA_Party

The thread about an A to Z (almost!) of Edinburgh and Leith streets named after women

For International Women’s Day (on March 8th 2021), I thought I would flick through the books and do an A-Z (as far as possible) of Edinburgh and Leith places named after women. Unsurprisingly there are relatively few, to pick from – but there are some fascinating women behind some of the names.
n.b I have tried to keep this thread up to date on occasion, with new street names to fill in some blanks.

A is for Annfield in Newhaven. Named for Ann Steuart, wife of John Steuart of Blairhaw, who built a house in late Georgian times. There was a trend for giving places fancy names at the time in the form x–field, where x was usually the name of a wife or daughter.

B is for Mary Burton (1819-1909), a suffragist and campaigner for women’s rights who lived at Liberton Bank House between 1844 and 1898. A street of new-build houses nearby in Gilmerton has been named Burton Place in her honour.

C is for Clarice Mcnab Lane, a brand new street off of West Bowling Green Street in Leith. Born in Leith and known usually by her married name Clarice Shaw, she was a prominent interwar Labour party member and activist. She was MP for Kilmarnock for a year, dying in 1946.

D is for Dauline Road. Marion, Margaret and Helen Dauline of South Queensferry were accused, alongside Helen Thomson, Marion Stein, Marion Little and Isobel Young, of Witchcraft in 1643. At least 8 of the women were executed by burning at the stake. A new build street in South Queensferry is name for them.

E is for Edith Burnet Hughes (1888-1971), the first practising female architect in the UK, establishing her own firm in 1920, and the first woman nominated to the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). She was born at West Circus Place in Stockbridge and is buried in Warriston Cemetery. A new build street that can be seen from that cemetery and that is about half a mile downstream on the Water of Leith from Stockbridge has been named Hughes Close in her honour.

F is for Flora Stevenson‘s, a primary school in Comely Bank named for the Glasgow-borne social reformer who was an early campaigner (with her sister Louisa) for women’s entry into universities and became an organiser of education in the city for poor children; particularly girls and would serve as a convenor on the Edinburgh School Board.

G is for Geissler Drive, named for Alison Geissler and (as of June 2020) one of the newest additions to the street names of Edinburgh. Alison was a lauded glass engraver with an MBE for her services to her craft and lived to the grand age of 103. Her grandson is Martin Geissler, the ITV and BBC news broadcaster and correspondent.

H is for Hope Street. Not named after a woman, but named because of a woman. In 1803, Mrs Maxwell of Carriden (nee Mary Charlotte Bouverie) wrote to the town council to complain that she lived on a street with no name. The council obliged by naming it for a man: Stuart Harris says this may have been Charles Hope of Granton MP, Lord Advocate. An alternative explanation may be that it was for Admiral Sir George Hope of Carriden, a 2nd cousin of Granton.

I is for Elsie Inglis Way, named in 2019 in Abbeyhill for the well known (but not well enough) WW1 military doctor, suffragist, teacher, campaigner, philanthropist, organiser and pioneer of women’s’ medicine in the city. A maternity hospital nearby once bore her name.

J is for Jex-Blake Drive, a new build street in Abbeyhill named for Sophia Jex-Blake, one of the first seven women to study medicine at the University of Edinburgh, the first female doctor in Scotland and founder of 2 medical schools for women, Bruntsfield Maternity Hospital, amongst many other things.

K is for Mary King’s Close, that well known tourist trap, and subject of endless paranormal hot air. Mary King was the widow of Alexander King, a burgess of the city, in the early-mid 17th c. – except that she probably wasn’t… Who she actually was is not entirely clear. The close had been partially abandoned after the plague of 1645, and was still vacant in 1751 when a neighbouring tenement collapsed. This opened up a gap that was widened to create a space for the construction of the Royal Exchange, which would later become the City Chambers. The tenements in the upper parts of Mary King’s Close (and two others) were largely built over, but the lower parts remained occupied, and were so well into the 19th century. It was the construction of Cockburn Street in 1854 that really swept away Mary King’s Close.

L is for Lady Lawson Street, formed from Lady Lawson’s Wynd. The Lawsons were landowners in the West Port as early as the 15th century. That Lady Lawson herself became recorded as landowner is unusual and notable in itself.

M is for Murray Cottages, named after David Murray, Deputy Controller for Excise in Scotland, but on behalf of his last surviving daughter, who left the family fortune to a fund for providing housing for the “deserving (and pious) poor“. The Almonry Fund (an Almoner is someone who distributes funds to the poor, usually on behalf of the church) was set up on her behalf in 1905. Prospective candidates were to be “sober, respectable, men and women about sixty years” (i.e. a married couple) who “must have spent most of their lives in Edinburgh or its immediate vicinity and preferably have belonged to the Church of Scotland“.

N is for Nicolson Square (and Street). These were built between 1765-1780 on the park lands and house of Lady Nicolson, Elizabeth Carnegie. She moved to the Pear Tree House (now the Pear Tree pub) to allow the road and square to be built. The Nicolson Baronets had owned the land here since the early 16th century, the title becoming dormant in 1743 on the death of her husband, the 7th Baronet. The house (highlighted yellow) remained here until around 1790 when Nicolson Street and South Bridge were connected.

O is for Lady Nairne a neighbourhood (and Beefeater pub and restaurant) in Duddingston with 4 streets taking the honorific name of Carolina Oliphant. Baroness Nairne lived here in the early 19th century. A prolific songwriter, and contemporary of Burns, amongst other well known romantic ballads she wrote “Will ye no’ come back again?” and “Charlie is my Darling“.

P is for Pape’s Cottages in Roseburn, named by George Pape in his will, in memory of his wife Jessie Paterson, who was the landowner of Coltbridge House. The three cottages were built for “the use of poor widows in all time coming“.

Q is for Queens take your pick of Queens; Anne, Charlotte, Margaret, Alexandra, Mary of Guise or Ferry. Queen Charlotte Street in Leith, was originally Charlotte Street, but was renamed in the 1960s to avoid confusion with the street of the same name in Edinburgh’s New Town.

R is for the Reverend Elizabeth Wardlaw, whose name is on the name bank for Leith. The long time minister of Hermitage United Free Church and a Councillor for Leith Links from 1984 – 2003. She was a supporter of Leith Festival.

S is for Saint Triduana, long associated with Restalrig, and gives her name to some streets and a medical centre in the area. Her beautiful eyes were lusted after by a Pictish king, so she plucked them out and sent him them, thereafter devoting her life to the blind. The church at Restalrig and the cult of Triduana were both destroyed in the Scottish reformation in 1560.

T is for Townswomen’s Guild Walk, one of the paths across the Meadows. It was named in 1973 after the gift to the city of the trees that line it by the guild.

I’m afraid I drew a blank on U…

V is for anything named after Queen Victoria. Victoria Terrace, Park, School, Baths etc. Take your pick, the lady needs no introduction.

W is for Mary and Barbara Walker of Coates, sisters who lived at Coates Hall in the 19th c. They gifted the land for – and huge funds to – the Episcopal Church of Scotland in 1873 for the building of St Mary’s Cathedral. Coates Hall was left by them in their will as the Choir School.

X is a blank, as there are no X– streets in Edinburgh.

Y is for Lady Yester, Margaret Hay, who in 1647 gave a benefaction of 10,000 Merks to the city to establish a new parish church. This became known as Lady Yester’s Kirk, and served the south east district of the Old Town.

Finally, there is only one Z street in Edinburgh (which is named for Zetland, the archaic form of Shetland), so that too is a blank.

I’ve frequently referred to the council’s name bank here, you can see it too at this link. There is meant to be a presumption towards giving women’s names priority, but look at the list and make of that priority what you will.

If you have found this useful, informative or amusing, perhaps you would like to help contribute towards the running costs of this site – including keeping it ad-free and my book-buying budget to find further stories to bring you – by supporting me on ko-fi. Or please do just share this post on social media or amongst friends.

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#Edinburgh #Leith #March8 #streetNames #Toponymy #Women

#metoohomeless #metoo #jobdignity #homeless #women #home #adress #femmessansadresse #8mars #march8 #8maart #brussel #brussels #bruxelles #grandhospice #JoinUs

Berlin: Fight by Night

Über 2.000 Menschen gingen unter dem Motto „Fight by Night“ mit einem FLINTA-Frontblock in Berlin-Kreuzberg am 8. März 2025 auf die Straße, um gegen Patriarchat, Staat und Kapital zu protestieren. Mehrfach zündeten Teilnehmende Pyrotechnik. Die Polizei trat martialisch auf und begleitete den Frontblock eng, hielt sich sonst aber weitgehend zurück.

„Wir blicken zurück auf ein Jahr voller Krisen. Voller neu entfachter Kriege. Ein Jahr geprägt von einer Regierung, die sich selbst als „feministisch“ und „wertegeleitet“ bezeichnet, jedoch moralische Werte nur als Fassade für eine kapitalgeleitete Politik nutzt.

Eine Regierung, die sich Jin Jiyan Azadî auf die Fahnen schreibt, aber Eurofighter-Jets an die Türkei liefert. Die sich für die Menschlichkeit ausspricht, aber mit deutschen Bomben Zivilist*innen in Gaza tötet. Eine Regierung, die sich nach außen hin für ein geschlechterbefreites Syrien einsetzt, aber gleichzeitig einer neuen islamistischen und frauenfeindlichen Regierung in Damaskus die Hand schüttelt – oder es zumindest versucht. Und wie in jedem Krieg sind FLINTA-Personen mit am meisten von den Umständen betroffen.

Doch damit muss endlich Schluss sein! Die Tradition des 8. März und aller feministischer Kämpfe zeigt uns, dass wir uns bei der Bekämpfung des Patriarchats nicht auf den Staat verlassen können. (…) Jedes Recht von FLINTA-Personen musste immer wieder aufs neue durch Protest von unten erkämpft werden. Dieser kämpferischen Tradition gehen wir auch dieses Mal nach und verleihen ihr neue Kraft“.

(...)

Zum Blogbeitrag

#Feminismus #8M2025 #8m #march8 #Berlin #Foto #Gaza #Eurofighter #Türkei #Flinta

#Art #WonderWoman #DianaofThemyscira #AbsoluteUniverse #DC #DCComics #DCUniverse #Absolute #AbsoluteWonderWoman #InternationalWomensDay #March8 #HappyInternationalWomensDay #womensday #HappyWomensDay #fromMarch8 #happymarch8th This drawing was not originally drawn for March 8th. I had another idea of ​​what to draw for this holiday. However, since the heroine is associated with examples for inspiration, then so be it. I hope you congratulated your friends on this day.

#Art #WonderWoman #DianaofThemyscira #AbsoluteUniverse #DC #DCComics #DCUniverse #Absolute #AbsoluteWonderWoman #InternationalWomensDay #March8 #HappyInternationalWomensDay #womensday #HappyWomensDay #fromMarch8 #happymarch8th This drawing was not originally drawn for March 8th. I had another idea of ​​what to draw for this holiday. However, since the heroine is associated with examples for inspiration, then so be it. I hope you congratulated your friends on this day.

#Art #WonderWoman #DianaofThemyscira #AbsoluteUniverse #DC #DCComics #DCUniverse #Absolute #AbsoluteWonderWoman #InternationalWomensDay #March8 #HappyInternationalWomensDay #womensday #HappyWomensDay #fromMarch8 #happymarch8th This drawing was not originally drawn for March 8th. I had another idea of ​​what to draw for this holiday. However, since the heroine is associated with examples for inspiration, then so be it. I hope you congratulated your friends on this day.

#Art #WonderWoman #DianaofThemyscira #AbsoluteUniverse #DC #DCComics #DCUniverse #Absolute #AbsoluteWonderWoman #InternationalWomensDay #March8 #HappyInternationalWomensDay #womensday #HappyWomensDay #fromMarch8 #happymarch8th This drawing was not originally drawn for March 8th. I had another idea of ​​what to draw for this holiday. However, since the heroine is associated with examples for inspiration, then so be it. I hope you congratulated your friends on this day.

#art #WonderWoman #DianaofThemyscira #AbsoluteUniverse #DC #DCComics #DCUniverse #Absolute #AbsoluteWonderWoman #InternationalWomensDay #March8 #HappyInternationalWomensDay #womensday #HappyWomensDay #fromMarch8 #happymarch8th This drawing was not originally drawn for March 8th. I had another idea of ​​what to draw for this holiday. However, since the heroine is associated with examples for inspiration, then so be it. I hope you congratulated your friends on this day.

:sparkles_trans: On March 8, we marched with SUF, Allt åt Alla Stockholm and AåA Kvinnofront, in a women, trans and NB separatist demo, to take the night back! Thank you all for being there with us! :sparkles_trans:

💥Ta Natten Tillbaka!💥

#March8 #tanattentillbaka #selforganization #TransCare

Fight by Night

Über 2.000 Menschen gingen unter dem Motto „Fight by Night“ mit einem FLINTA-Frontblock in Berlin-Kreuzberg am 8. März 2025 auf die Straße, um gegen Patriarchat, Staat und Kapital zu protestieren. Mehrfach zündeten Teilnehmende Pyrotechnik. Die Polizei trat martialisch auf und begleitete den Frontblock eng, hielt sich sonst aber weitgehend zurück.

Zu den Fotos beim Umbruch Bildarchiv.

„Wir blicken zurück auf ein Jahr voller Krisen. Voller neu entfachter Kriege. Ein Jahr geprägt von einer Regierung, die sich selbst als „feministisch“ und „wertegeleitet“ bezeichnet, jedoch moralische Werte nur als Fassade für eine kapitalgeleitete Politik nutzt.

Eine Regierung, die sich Jin Jiyan Azadî auf die Fahnen schreibt, aber Eurofighter-Jets an die Türkei liefert. Die sich für die Menschlichkeit ausspricht, aber mit deutschen Bomben Zivilist*innen in Gaza tötet. Eine Regierung, die sich nach außen hin für ein geschlechterbefreites Syrien einsetzt, aber gleichzeitig einer neuen islamistischen und frauenfeindlichen Regierung in Damaskus die Hand schüttelt – oder es zumindest versucht. Und wie in jedem Krieg sind FLINTA-Personen mit am meisten von den Umständen betroffen.

Doch damit muss endlich Schluss sein! Die Tradition des 8. März und aller feministischer Kämpfe zeigt uns, dass wir uns bei der Bekämpfung des Patriarchats nicht auf den Staat verlassen können. (…) Jedes Recht von FLINTA-Personen musste immer wieder aufs neue durch Protest von unten erkämpft werden. Dieser kämpferischen Tradition gehen wir auch dieses Mal nach und verleihen ihr neue Kraft“.

(...)

#Feminismus #8M2025 #8m #march8 #Berlin #Foto #Gaza #Eurofighter #Türkei #Flinta

Am Samstag waren wir in verschiedenen Städten mit Gewerkschaftskolleg:innen aus anderen Branchen für feministische Anliegen auf der Straße, so zum Bsp in #Göttingen, #Freiburg, #Marburg, #Leipzig, #Berlin oder wie auf dem Bild 2000-3000 Menschen in #Dresden. Doch der Kampf um Gleichberechtigung geht jeden Tag weiter - v.a. im Betrieb. Wenn ihr Lust habt, damit nicht allein zu sein, werdet Gewerkschaft|smitglied!

#8M #March8 #8März #Feminismus #Landwirtschaft #Forst #Gartenbau #Umwelt

#8mars
#8maart
#March8
#MetooHomeless
#Metoo
#Homeless
#Women
#JobDignity
#womensday
#womenrights
#manifestation
#brussel
#brussels
#bruxelles
#droitsdesfemmes
#femmes
#vrouwen
#bénévole
#vrijwilligers #FoodDignity

💐 Women Make the World a Better Place! 💐
👩🚀👩🏫👩⚕️👩💻👩🎨👩🔧
Women are everywhere— in every profession, every struggle, and every success story!
Their strength, love, and dedication make the world a more beautiful place.

💜 Let’s support women’s dreams today and every day!
💬 Want to appreciate a woman who inspires you? Tag her in the comments!

🔹 #InternationalWomensDay #WomenAreUnstoppable #StrongWomen #March8

Happy March 8, International Women’s Day!

We still live in a world mostly ruled by old men and where the majority of those in poverty are women. This is also true in the US.
Women have done amazing things despite all of this.

A great quote I read in The Hidden Lamp: “As women, our lives are a message to each other. When we live from the intuitive truth that anything is possible, then this message of fearlessness can be passed on through generations of women.”

#March8 #InternationalWomensDay

Question for feminist women:

What ally men should and shouldn't do?

#march8

✨ On this International Women’s Day, we honor those who inspire and innovate around the world. A special thought for the women of Viana do Castelo and all passionate women who, through their courage, shape a fairer future. Your strength changes the world! 💜💪 #March8 #Equality #WomensDay #Photography