In der neuesten Ausgabe des bereits verlinkten St. Francis Magazine, einem ökumumenischen Magazin von und für Missionare in der arabischen Welt (Mission unter Muslimen ist ja katholischerseits offiziell leider nicht ganz so en vogue) findet sich vom Herausgeber ein interessanter Artikel über das, was die moderne Kirche vom Martyrium von zwei exemplarischen Bischöfen der Frühzeit lernen kann: von Ignatius von Antiochien und von Polykarp von Smyrna.
Dabei faßt der Autor, wie er mir mal selbst schrieb ist er anglikanischer Kleriker, folgendes Resumee zusammen:
1. When Christians are asked to give up their faith and recognize other religions or ideologies as true, in opposition to the Christian faith, they must not compromise. This is not negotiable.
2. Suffering must never be sought but, when it comes, it must be seen as something of great value for God. It is being a sacrifice for God, in participation with Jesus Christ and the Eucharist. It is the highest form of discipleship, the grand finale of following Jesus Christ. It is therefore something to be proud of.
3. A strong focus in the church is needed on the physicality of Jesus Christ, on his physical death and resurrection, on the eternal blessing of the saints and on eternal punishment for those who do not hold on to Christ. The physicality of this should be underlined.
4. The Church must celebrate Eucharist often as this connects believers with Jesus Christ and his physical suffering andhis physical resurrection, and therefore with eternal salvation.
5. People who suffer are entitled to know what they suffer for, so the leadership of the Church must proclaim the orthodox faith with absolute clarity as eternal truth that is worth dying for. Heresy is named and rejected.
6. Stories of ancient and contemporary martyrs help the present Church to endure persecutions because they prepare the Church for suffering; they also encourage those who suffer that, if they die, they are not forgotten by the Church but treated as heroes. Therefore, there is a need for modern hagiography of those who suffer and die for the faith.
7. In the liturgies of the Church, both ancient and contemporary martyrs should be mentioned, for the same reasons as mentioned under 6.
Angesichts der Tatsache, daß unsere Geschwister in vielen Teilen der Welt leiden, zeigt sich hier die Wichtigkeit der Erinnerung in der Liturgie und einer hoffentlich starken Führung (leadership) durch die Bischöfe.