What Role Does Perpetua Play In Christianity

Women’s roles in Christianity are an excellent example of the unevenness of women’s contributions to history. Women were the last disciples at the cross and the first at the empty tomb. They remained integral to the work of the church in its early centuries. Traditional Christianity believed that the statements attributed to St. Paul in I Timothy 2 that women were created second, sinned first, and should keep silence. Women traditionalists believed and accepted these teachings as true. Jesus’ actions according to the Bible consistently resonated his belief in the equality of women, and that woman could study, teach and preach. Paul imposed a patriarchal interpretation of Christianity that taught that women are inferior, primarily culpable …show more content…
What set Perpetua and Felicity apart from other women saints in the early church was that both were mothers and wives. The significance of the text, especially in regards to women and Christianity, should not be understated. Though Perpetua was a strong woman, her narrative still upheld the idea that the only way to be heroic is to be like a man. Perpetua of Carthage, who later became a saint, was a well-born woman, who was imprisoned for being a Christian. We are fortunate to have an eye-witness account of her execution. Apparently she was still nursing her infant and the crowed was horrified when “her breast still dripped with milk” as she was led into the arena. Finally, when an inexperienced soldier was unable to kill her with the first blow, Perpetua guided his sword to her chest. Recent research has postulated that Perpetua was the victim of incest, and so did not recant when given the …show more content…
She cursed this womanly state as standing in the way for her desire to transcend womanhood and die for God. Being a pregnant woman reduced Felicity to being common, it denied her any glory. Therefore, she was relieved when she gave birth before the execution and was separated from the child that chains her to sexuality and womanhood. The theme of the narrative seems to be that women can take on a masculine role for the sake of God to the point where they “become men” in the eyes of Christianity. Perpetua deliberately masculinized herself in order to subvert the restrictions placed on her in her role as a woman. Unfortunately, her society did not allow her to see strength in her femininity and even tried to shame her with it, so she saw no other choice but to do this. The Passion of Saints Perpetua and Felicity certainly does not celebrate womanhood, it is a narrative about a woman who transcends the boundaries of her society and comes out on the dominant side. For that, it is a valuable