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Introduction to the Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas
Post-Apostolic Church
The Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas is an
account of the martyrdom of Viva Perpetua, an educated woman of high social standing,
and Felicitas (anglicized as Felicity), a female servant, along with their
fellow Christians. It was written in Carthage about AD 210.
The introduction to the work reads,
Among them also was Vivia Perpetua, respectably born, liberally educated, a
married woman, having a father, mother, and two brothers.... She also had an infant son at the
breast. She herself was about twenty-two
years of age. From this point onward,
she will herself narrate the whole course of her martyrdom, as she left it
described by her own hand and with her own mind. (Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas. AD 210.
ANF, vol 3, page 699.)
Most of the work was written by Perpetua as
she recorded her experiences as a Christian martyr. Therefore, this is the first Christian work
authored by a female that has survived.
The work was finished by an unknown editor. It might have been Tertullian, who also was in Carthage around the same time. Or, the editor might have been Pomponius, who was a
deacon who ministered to them in their imprisonment. Or, he might have been one of their jailors who was converted by their testimony
and martyrdom.
Perpetua was so completely devoted to the
Lord, that nothing in the world would keep her from obeying God. Her greatest temptation probably came from
her father. Her father came to her
multiple times pleading for her to deny God and sacrifice to the gods and to
Caesar. After Perpetua's arrest, her
father came to her:
While we were still
with the persecutors, my father, for the sake of his affection for me, was
persistent in seeking for me to turn away and for me to cast down the
faith. I said, "Father, do you
see... this vessel lying here to be a little pitcher or something
else?" He said, "I see it to
be so." I replied to him, "Can
it be called by any other name than what it is?" He said, "No." "Neither can I call myself anything else
that what I am: a Christian." Then
provoked at this saying, my father threw himself upon me, as if he would tear
my eyes out [with affection]. But he
only distressed me and went away overcome by the devil's arguments." (Perpetua.
AD 210. ANF, vol 1, page 669.)
Immediately before her trial, he came to her
again:
He said, "My
daughter, have pity on my grey hairs.
Have pity on your father, if I am worthy to be called a father by
you. If with these hands I have brought
you up to this flower of your age, if I have preferred you to all your
brothers, do not deliver me up to the disgrace of men. Have regard to your brothers, have regard to
your mother and your aunt, have regard to your son, who will not be able to
live after you. Lay aside your courage,
and do not bring us all to destruction; for none of us will speak in freedom if
you should suffer anything." My father said these things in
his affection, kissing my hands, and throwing himself at my feet. With tears, he did not call me Daughter, but
Lady. I grieved over the grey hairs of
my father, that he alone of all my family would not rejoice over my
suffering. I comforted him, saying,
"On that torturous platform whatever God wills will happen. For know that we are not placed in our own
power but in that of God." He
departed from me in sorrow.
(Perpetua. AD 210. ANF, vol 1, page 700-701.)
Her father came to her a last time:
And
when the day of the exhibition drew near, my father was worn with suffering and
came to me. He began to tear out his
beard, to throw himself on the earth, to cast himself down on his face, to
reproach his years, and to utter such words as might move all creation. I grieved for his unhappy old age. (Perpetua.
AD 210. ANF, vol 1, page 702.)
Perpetua also demonstrated a supernatural
devotion to holiness. While she was in
the arena among the wild beasts and soldiers, she was thrown to the ground and
drug around the arena in a net by a wild cow.
"[When] she saw
that her tunic was torn from her side, she drew it over her as a veil for her
middle. [For she was] more mindful of
her modesty than her suffering.
(Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas.
AD 210. ANF, vol 1, page 705.)
At the end when all the martyrs were
receiving their killing blows with the sword, the young gladiator who was
assigned to kill Perpetua did not give her a lethal blow. Instead, he pierced her ribs. Then Perpetua voluntarily took the young
gladiator’s shaking hand and placed his sword upon her own neck.
Many believe that Perpetua and her companions
were part of the Montanist sect. This
was a sect of Christianity started by Montanus.
In the preface the
editor says,
Thus we both
acknowledge and revere, even as we do the prophecies, modern visions as
equally promised to us, and consider the other powers of the Holy Spirit as
an agency of the Church for which also He was sent, administering all gifts in
all, even as the Lord distributed to everyone as well. [We find it] necessary to collect them in
writing, and commemorate them in the reading to God’s glory. (Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas. AD 210.
ANF, vol 1, page 699.)
Soon following Perpetua's trial, while she
waited for execution, she had a vision in a dream. She saw her brother, who had died at a very
young age of cancer. Her dead brother
was in agony. Over the next few days, Perpetua prayed for her
brother. On another day, she had another
vision in a dream. She saw her dead
brother cleaned up and refreshed. When
she woke, she knew that he was moved away from the place of punishment.
This has been used by some to support the idea
of Purgatory or Indulgences, although Perpetua's writing does not explicitly support
either of these teachings. While the
ideas of Purgatory and Indulgences are rejected by most of Christianity,
praying that God might not remember the sins of the dead is encouraged
by most of Christianity.
The godly example of Perpetua is a powerful
testimony for the church. As it says in the preface,
Therefore, what we
have heard and handled, we declare also to you, brethren and little children,
that you who were concerned in these matters may be reminded of them again to
the glory of the Lord. Perhaps you may know
them by [this] report and may have communion with the blessed martyrs, and
through them with the Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory and honor, forever
and ever. Amen. (Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felitcitas. AD 210.
ANF, vol 1, page 699.)
