“General Judgment” (detail) by Michelangelo
“You threaten me with fire which burns for an hour, and after a little is extinguished, but are ignorant of the fire of the coming judgment and of eternal punishment, reserved for the ungodly. But why do you tarry? Bring forth what you will.” (St. Polycarp of Smyrna, Bishop and Martyr; The Martyrdom of Polycarp, Chapter XI; St. Polycarp responds to threats of the Roman proconsul)
The Memorial of Saint Polycarp, Bishop and Martyr ( – A.D. 155) is February 23.
