Early Christians, from Perpetua to Antony's Experiences: Analysis of Multiple Texts Farah Charania College

In the Roman Imperial World — precisely around 202 CE and 356 CE — early Christian martyrs and ascetics documented their experiences dealing with overcoming their adversaries and, more largely, Satan. Their personal victories hinged on their embodiment of supernatural power. Within the texts The Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas and Athanasius: Life of Antony there is clear evidence one can experience the power of Jesus Christ in various ways: within one’s own body, through one’s own body, and through Scripture. Furthermore, one can experience the power of Satan through their opponents or in one’s own body.

In the martyrological text, The Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas, Perpetua believes that she has supernatural power vested in her because of her faith in Jesus Christ. Oftentimes, Perpetua realizes her personal possession of power, along with her fate, through visions. Perpetua uses this emotional rhetorical strategy to vivify her reality and illuminate her embodiment of supernatural power. Perpetua’s first recorded request was for a vision which foreshadowed her ultimate fate in the arena. In this vision, Perpetua saw a towering ladder to the heavens. Attached to the sides of the ladder were many dangerous weapons and...