For my church history class at Biblical Seminary, I was assigned to read and present on The Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas. It’s a truly fascinating account of the martyrdom of a wealthy third century Roman woman in Carthage. He’s the background:
Historical Background
In the third century, Carthage was the capital of the Roman province of North Africa. Carthage was second only to Rome in wealth and sophistication. The area surrounding Carthage was the breadbasket of the Roman Empire and was known for producing wheat and fine olive oil. The wealth produced by this industry enabled the elites of Carthage to enjoy access to public art, literature, and the theater. Carthage was famous for its amphitheater.
Carthage was culturally diverse. Many Carthiginians were proud of their dual Roman-African heritage. We might say that if Rome was like a combination of New York City and Washington, D.C. today, Carthage was like Chicago or Los Angeles.
The Passion states that Perpetua came from a “good family.” Perpetua’s family name Vibius, was an ancient aristocratic Roman name. It is likely that Perpetua’s family had deep roots in the Roman-Carthiginian upper classes.
The Roman family was deeply patriarchal. Perpetua’s father likely was directly involved in her upbringing and education, and expected her unquestioned love and devotion in return. It is clear from the language and style used by Perpetua in her prison diary that she was intelligent, strong willed, and highly literate.
Pepetua was “wedded honorably” and was nursing a baby when she was martyred at twenty-two years of age. We know nothing of her husband.
Perpetua and the other martyrs we meet in her diary were “cathecumens.” These were people undergoing an extended period of preparation for baptism.
The early Christian writer Tertullian (ca. 160-ca. 240), a native of Carthage, wrote a scathing treatment of the spectacles offered in the amphitheater, which he considered idolatrous. Tertullian also collected and published martyr stories, including Perpetua’s. It is possible that Tertullian wrote the editorial glosses at the beginning and end of the account from Perpetua’s diary.
Later in his life, Tertullian allied himself with the Montanists, a group that believed the Holy Spirit continued to offer new revelation to the Church. Female prophets were important in the Montanist movement. The possible connection between Perpetua – a strong-willed woman who was admired by Tertullian and who received visions – and Montanism or proto-Montanism is hotly disputed. Montanist teaching eventually was condemned by the Bishop of Rome.
Sources:
Joyce E. Salisbury, Perpetua’s Passion: The Death and Memory of a Young Roman Woman (Routledge 1997).
David Baumgardner, The Carthage Amphitheater: A Reappraisal, American Journal of Archaeology, Vol. 93, No. 1 (Jan. 1989), pp. 85-103.
Paul Turner, The Hallelujah Highway: A History of the Cathecumenate (Liturgy Training 2000), at pp. 28-30.
Paul McKechnie, “Second Century ‘Women’s Religion,’” in Everett Ferguson, ed., Recent Studies in Early Christianity: A Collection of Essays (Routledge 1999).