Wilgefortis, Protected By The Beard of Christ [from Acta Sanctorum Mensis Julius]

Hail, Wilgefortis, holy servant of Christ!

You loved Christ with all of your heart

and, when you rejected a marriage to the king of Sicily,

you proved your faith on the Cross.

By your own earthly father’s decree

You endured the tortures of imprisonment,

You grew a beard on your face,

Which you obtained from Christ as a gift

Because you wanted to stop others from wanting to marry you.

Seeing this, your heathen father raised you up

High up on a cross, still wearing your beard

And ready [to die].

Since you had both grace as well as virtue,

As soon as you could,

Your soul fled to Christ’s protection.

O lady,

Because we cherish your memory with solemn praises,

O blessed Wilgefortis,

We beg you to pray on our behalf!

 

--Acta Sanctorum Mensis Julius,  Volume 7, Issue 5 (1748) p. 64 ; (Originally published in Enchiridion praeclarae ecclesiae Sarisburensis, 1533)

 

Ave sancta famula,Wilgefortis,Christi,

quae ex tota anima Christum dilexisti;

dum regis Siciliae nuptias sprevisti;

Crucifixo Domino fidem praebuisti.

Jussu patris carceris tormenta subisti,

crevit barba facie, quod obtinuisti

a Christo pro munere, quod sibi voluisti

te volente nubere sibi confudisti.

videns pater impius te sic deformatam

elevavit arius in cruce paratam.

Ubi cum virtutibus reddidisti gratam

animamque quantocius,Christo commendatam.

Quia devotis laudibus tuam memoriam, virgo, recolimus,

o beata Wilgefortis, ora pro nobis quaesumus.

The Death of Hippolytus and the Rebirth of Virbius, [Lactantius, Div. Inst.1.17]

 

Name:  Lactantius Date:  3rd century CE Region:  Numidia [modern Tunisia] Citation:    Div. Inst. 1.17

[Condemning the love affairs of the gods, Lactantius criticizes the relationship between Artemis and Hippolytus, insinuating that it was impure. He follows this passage with wild accusations that will not be published here.] When another goddess [Diana] nearly lost her lover [Hippoluytus / Virbius] who was “torn apart by spooked horses,” she begged the most famous healer Asclepius to heal him. And, once he was healed, she “took him away safely to a remote location, Entrusted him to the nymph Egeria, And abandoned him to the grove, Where he, alone and forgotten in the woods of Italy Would spend the rest of his life Under the changed name Virbius.”

Altera cum pene amatorem suum perdidisset,qui erat "turbatis distractus equis," praestantissimum medicum Asclepium curando iuveni advocavit, eumque sanatum: "Secretis alma recondit / sedibus, et nymphaea Egeriae, nemorique relegate: / solus ubi in silvis Italis ignobilis aevum / exigeret, versoque ubi nomine Virbius esset."

 

Keep Me In Your Hearts, Friends! Egeria' s last note home

 

Name:  Egeria Date:  4th century CE Region:  [modern Spain] Citation:   Journey Abroad 1.23.10

Egeria was a Christian woman from Spain who lived during the 4th century CE. The narrative of her pilgrimage is an important document, as it shows rare insight into the lives of women during that time period. She was not only able to travel to visit holy sites in Constantinople, Jerusalem, and other holy places, she was also literate and able to write of her experiences to the women in her social circle, who were presumably also literate.   Ladies, light of my life, even though I have already given this update from [Constantinople] to give you cheer, I am headed towards Asia (specifically, Ephesus) in the name of Jesus Christ our God, for prayer and reverence of the sacred and blessed St. John. When I get back to our church, if I can think of other places in my travels, I will tell you of my continued adventures either in person (God willing!) or if not, in a letter. But you, ladies, light of my light, please keep me in your hearts, whether I am physically with you or not*. * in corpore can refer to either her physical body or the symbolic church / congregation

De quo loco, dominae, lumen meum, cum haec ad vestram affectionem darem, iam propositi erat in nomine Christi Dei nostri ad Asiam accedendi, id est Ephesum, propter martyrium sancti et beati apostoli Iohannis gratia orationis. Si autem et post hoc in corpore fuero, si qua praeterea loca cognoscere potuero, aut ipsa praesens, si Deus fuerit praestare dignatus, vestrae affectioni referam aut certe, si aliud animo sederit, scriptis nuntiabo. Vos tantum, dominae, lumen meum, memores mei esse dignamini, sive in corpore sive iam extra corpus fuero.

 

Many Wounds in Achilles' Heart: Quintus of Smyrna, Posthomerica 1.718-721

Name:  Quintus of Smyrna Date:  4th century CE Region:   Smyrna [modern Greece] Citation: Posthomerica 1.718-721

But Achilles grieved as he gazed

Down at Penthesilea’s beautiful body lying dead in the dust

The pain in his heart was no less

than feeling the recent loss of his beloved Patroclus.

--Quintus Smyrnaeus, Posthomerica 1.718-721, Translated into Latin by Lorenz Rhodomann

  μέγα δ᾽ ἄχνυτο Πηλέος υἱὸς

κούρης εἰσορόων ἐρατὸν σθένος ἐν κουίῃσι:

τοὔνεκά οἱ κραδίην ὀλοαὶ κατέδαπτον ἀνῖαι

ὁππόσον ἀμφ᾽ ἑτάροιο πάρος Πατρόκλοιο δαμέντος.

 At Pelei filius valde contristabatur,

delectabilem puellae speciem in pulverem contuens;

ideo nociva aegritudo ipsius cor edebat,

non minus quam nuper ob Patroclum amicum interfectum.

 Quintus of Smyrna was a Greek poet who lived during the 4^th century CE. His epic poem, the Posthomerica, was a fourteen volume epic depicting the events of the later half of the Trojan War; this epic preserves many literary sources that are no longer extant.

Challenging Gender Roles: Hipparchia's Universal Home

I don’t have a roof, or a house, or a homeland

Instead the whole world, both city & countryside

are available to me as a home.

 --Hipparchia, published in Mulierum Graecarum (1735) p. 68, Translated into Latin by Christian Wolff

Ουχ εις πάτρας μοι πύργος ου μία λέγη

Πάσης δὲ χέρσε καὶ πόλισμα καὶ δόμος

Ἕτοιμος ἡμῖν ἐνδιαιτᾶσθαι πάρα.

Non turris una, nec casa una patriae

mihi est, sed universae arces terrae,& domus

parata nobis mansio & caenacula. 

Too Little, Too Late, Narcissus! Ausonius, fragment 99

Name:  Ausonius Date:  4th century CE Region:  Aquitania, Gaul [modern France] Citation:    Epigram 99

In this poem, Narcissus is coded as an asexual youth instead of gay:  Narcissus, if you wanted to date someone, You would have been successful. But now that you’re abounding in love There’s no one to reciprocate.

Si cuperes alium, posses, Narcisse, potiri. Nunc tibi amoris adest copia, fructus abest.

 

The Gender-Bending Vision of St. Perpetua

The Gender Bending Vision of St. Perpetua

Name:  St. Perpetua Date:  203 CE Region:  Madaura [modern Algeria] Citation:  The Martyrdom of Saints Perpetua and Felicitas 10

Before she was killed, St. Perpetua had a vision in which she became a man and fought a gladiator. Many people interpret this transformation as her gaining skills and abilities that she was denied access to because of her gender.

The day before our execution, I saw this in a vision. The deacon Pomponius came to the door of the prison and started knocking on it violently. I went to the door and opened it. He was clothed in loose, bright clothing, and had special shoes on. He told me, “Perpetua, we are waiting for you, come on!,” and he held out his hand for me, and we began to walk through rough and uneven places. We nearly didn’t make it, but we finally arrived at the amphitheater and he brought me into the middle of the arena and told me, “Don’t panic. I am here with you, and I’ve got your back.” And he disappeared.

Then I saw a huge crowd of people, thunderstruck. Since I knew that I was condemned to die by beasts, I was wondering why there weren’t any animals around me. Instead, a certain Egyptian fighter—an absolutely huge warrior—came to fight me along with other gladiators. But young, honorable youths rose up alongside of me to cheer me on and help me fight. I took off my robe, and became a man. And my helpers began to anoint me with oil (something that happens in the arena). And I saw the Egyptian gladiator rolling in the dust. And there was a certain man who was huge (even taller than the tower of the amphitheater), who wore a loose purple robe with two stripes across the middle of his chest, wearing special shoes made of gold and silver. He carried a staff like a referee would, but it was a leafy branch that had golden apples. He shushed the crowd and said, “If this Egyptian fighter gladiator wins, he will kill her with a sword, but if this woman wins, she will get this staff as a trophy.” And he left.

And we approached each other and began to fight. He tried to grab my feet, but I started kicking him.  He tossed me into the air and I kept kicking him with my legs. But when I saw I had a chance, I wove my fingers together and I grabbed him by the head, and I struck him in the face and I kicked him in the head. And the crowd began to shout and my fans began to cheer. And I went up to the referee and I got the staff as a trophy of my victory. And he kissed me and told me, “Daughter, Peace be with you.” And I began to do my victory dance towards the Winner’s Gate. And then I woke up. And I understood that I wasn’t going to fight beasts, but I was going to fight the devil, but that I would be victorious. I had this vision the day before the Games; if someone wishes to write down what actually happens at the Games, let them do so.

 

The Gender Bending Vision of St. Perpetua

Pridie quam pugnaremus, video in horomate hoc: venisse Pomponium diaconum ad ostium carceris et pulsare vehementer.Et exivi ad eum et aperui ei; qui erat vestitus discincta candida, habens multiplices galliculas. Et dixit mihi: “Perpetua, te expectamus; veni.” Et tenuit mihi manum et coepimus ire per aspera loca et flexuosa.Vix tandem pervenimus anhelantes ad amphitheatrum et induxit me in media arena et dixit mihi: “Noli pavere. Hic sum tecum et conlaboro tecum.” Et abiit.

Et aspicio populum ingentem adtonitum; et quia sciebam me ad bestias damnatam esse, mirabar quod non mitterentur mihi bestiae. Et exivit quidam contra me Aegyptius foedus specie cum adiutoribus suis pugnaturus mecum. Veniunt et ad me adolescentes decori, adiutores et fautores mei. Et expoliata sum et facta sum masculus; et coeperunt me favisores mei oleo defricare, quomodo solent in agone. Et illum contra Aegyptium video in afa volutantem. Et exivit vir quidam mirae magnitudinis ut etiam excederet fastigium amphitheatri, discinctatus, purpuram inter duos clavos per medium pectus habens, et galliculas multiformes ex auro et argento factas, et ferens virgam quasi lanista, et ramum viridem in quo erant mala aurea. Et petiit silentium et dixit: “Hic Aegyptius, si hanc vicerit, occidet illam gladio; haec, si hunc vicerit, accipiet ramum istum.” Et recessit.

 Et accessimus ad invicem et coepimus mittere pugnos. Ille mihi pedes adprehendere volebat; ego autem illi calcibus faciem caedebam. Et sublata sum in aere et coepi eum sic caedere quasi terram non calcans. At ubi vidi moram fieri, iunxi manus ut digitos in digitos mitterem et apprehendi illi caput; et cecidit in faciem et calcavi illi caput. Et coepit populus clamare et fautores mei psallere. Et accessi ad lanistam et accepi ramum.Et osculatus est me et dixit mihi: “Filia, pax tecum.” Et coepi ire cum gloria ad portam Sanavivariam [1]. Et experrecta sum. Et intellexi me non ad bestias, sed contra diabolum esse pugnaturam; sed sciebam mihi esse victoriam. Hoc usque in pridie muneris egi; ipsius autem muneris actum, si quis voluerit, scribat.

---

[1] Sani et vivi, literally, “the healthy and living” gate.

Saint Perpetua [Vibia Perpetua; 203 CE, modern Algeria] was a Christian woman who was imprisoned and executed for her faith in 203 CE. In the Passion of Saints Perpetua and Felicity, she tells of her arrest, imprisonment, and execution.