I Cannot Be Anything Other Than Me, St. Perpetua 2-3.2

 The Passion of St. Perpetua and St. Felicitas is one of the earliest Christian works. Here, St. Perpetua tells her story, and her inability to live a life different than her faith. 

Name:  St. Perpetua Date:  203 CE Region:  Madaura [modern Algeria] Citation:  Passio Sanctarum Perpetuae et Felicitatis 2.1 – 3.2

Some youths were arrested before they could get baptized. They were Revocatus and Felictas (his coworker), Saturninus and Little Secundus. Among them was also Vibia Perpetua, a well-born lady, well educated, married and a mother. She had a mom, a dad, and two brothers (one of whom was also an unbaptized Christian), and an infant son who had not yet been weaned. She was about twenty-two years old. This is a story of her martyrdom, written by her own hand, that she has left to us based on her own experience: When we were still among our prosecutors, my father tried to talk me out of it, out of his love for me. I told him, “Dad, do you see that vase lying over there. Is that a water jug or something else?” He said, “I see it.” And I told him, “Can you call it something other than its name?” And he said, “Nope.” And I said, “And I, too, cannot be called anything except what I am. A Christian.” Then my father got mad at this, and attacked me, trying to tear my eyes out, but he was so upset he just left, not understanding.

Apprehensi sunt adolescentes catechumeni, Revocatus et Felicitas, conserva eius, Saturninus et Secundulus. Inter hos et Vibia Perpetua, honeste nata, liberaliter instituta, matronaliter nupta, habens patrem et matrem et fratres duos, alterum aeque catechumenum, et filium infantem ad ubera. Erat autem ipsa circiter annorum viginti duo. Haec ordinem totum martyrii sui iam hinc ipsa narravit sicut conscriptum manu sua et suo sensu reliquit: “Cum adhuc, inquit, cum prosecutoribus essemus et me pater verbis vuertere cupiret et deicere pro sua affectione perseveraret: “Pater,” inquam, “vides verbi gratia vas hoc iacens, urceolum siue aliud?” Et dixit: “Video”. Et ego dixi ei: “Numquid alio nomine vocari potest quam quod est?” et ait: “Non.” “Sic et ego aliud me dicere non possum nisi quod sum, Christiana.” Tunc pater, motus hoc verbo, mittit se in me ut oculos mihi erueret, sed vexavit tantum et profectus est victus cum argumentis diaboli...”