From ‘Passio Perpetuae’ to ‘Acta Perpetuae’: Recontextualizing a Martyr Story in the Literature of the Early Church

Description

While concentrated on the famous Passio Perpetuae et Felicitatis, this book focuses on an area that has so far been somewhat marginalized or even overlooked by modern interpreters: the recontextualizing of the Passio Perpetuae in the subsequent reception of this text in the literature of the early Church. Since its composition in the early decades of the 3rd century, the Passio Perpetuae was enjoying an extraordinary authority and popularity. However, it contained a number of revolutionary and innovative features that were in conflict with existing social and theological conventions. This book analyses all relevant texts from the 3rd to 5th centuries in which Perpetua and her comrades are mentioned, and demonstrates the ways in which these texts strive to normalize the innovative aspects of the Passio Perpetuae. These efforts, visible as they are already on careful examination of the passages of the editor of the passio, continue from Tertullian to Augustine and his followers. The normalization of the narrative reaches its peak in the so-called Acta Perpetuae which represent a radical rewriting of the original and an attempt to replace it by a purified text, more compliant with the changed socio-theological hierarchies. Contents Preface Acknowledgements 1 Fortissimi martyres: The Passio Perpetuae et Felicitatis as a pre-text 1.1 The Passio Perpetuae in the context of the earliest Christian martyr literature 1.2 The structure and composition of the Passio Perpetuae 1.3 The Passio Perpetuae in its historical context: Dating, authorship, text localization, and text variants 1.3.1 Dating 1.3.2 The identity of the editor, authorship, and the authenticity of the text 1.3.3 Surviving versions of the Passio Perpetuae and the issue of the original 1.3.4 The Passio Perpetuae and Montanism 2 Nova documenta fidei: The Passio Perpetuae et Felicitatis and its innovative features 2.1 The Passio Perpetuae and its context 2.2 The Passio Perpetuae, the emancipation of womanhood, and the subversion of social and gender hierarchies 2.3 The Passio Perpetuae, masculinity, and Christian identity 2.4 The Passio Perpetuae and the power of martyrs 3 From exemplum fidei to admirandum, non imitandum: The Passio Perpetuae et Felicitatis and its later interpreters 3.1 Mandatum sanctissimae Perpetuae: The editor and his literary staging of the Passio Perpetuae 3.2 Tertullian and his fortissima martyr 3.3 The Passio Perpetuae and the North African passiones of the 3rd century A.D 3.4 Spreading the cult: The Passio Perpetuae from the 4th century onward 3.5 Nec illa sic scripsit: The Passio Perpetuae according to Augustine and the Augustinian tradition 3.5.1 Augustine and the Passio Perpetuae 3.5.2 Augustine and Perpetua’s vision of Dinocrates 3.5.3 Perpetua felicitas: Augustine’s Sermones 3.5.4 Augustine’s successors and the Passio Perpetuae 3.6 The Passio Perpetuae and the Acta Perpetuae: Between tradition and innovation 3.6.1 Acta Perpetuae A, Acta Perpetuae B, and their mutual relationship 3.6.2 Perpetua and the evolving ideal of sainthood: Motivation, aims, and means Conclusion A chronological outline of the reception of the Passio Perpetuae until the end of the 5th century A list of abbreviations of the books, journals and book series used Bibliography Cited primary sources and translations Cited secondary literature General index Index locorum Index of modern names