Perpetua's Passion

This is one of the most engaging biographies of a person living in ancient times that I have ever encountered. Prof. Salisbury did a thorough job researching the historical context for St. Perpetua. One can tell that she brought all her background and training to bear upon the task. The result is a highly readable and informative account driven by the words of Perpetua herself. Perpetua's death in the great theater at Carthage seems anticlimactic in one sense in that it was inevitable given the circumstances, but no less filled with pathos leading up to that day and after. Salisbury paints a picture of a sort that makes the reader feel like they are walking the path that Perpetua walked. For people of faith, especially, this a dramatic account that draws one in and holds one firmly in its grip until and beyond this young woman's martyrdom. This is a book that students of the early church will want to read again someday. I have recommended it to my students and colleagues.

THIS IS A WELL RESEARCHED HISTORY BOOK ABOUT THE ROMAN EMPIRE AND CHRISTIAN MARTYRDOM AROUND THE YEAR 200 AD. UNFORTUNATELY, PERPETUA'S DIARY IS SEGMENTED THROUGHOUT THE BOOK, MAKING THE SUBJECT MATTER MORE ABOUT THE HISTORY THAT SURROUNDED THE STORY THAN THE DIARY ITSELF. PERHAPS THE TITLE IS MISLEADING, THE BOOK IS EXPENSIVE AND NOT WHAT I WAS EXPECTING, BUT IT WILL BE A GOOD HISTORICAL REFERENCE .

This is one of the best historical reads ever. It paints a complete picture of early Christianity in what was then known as Carthage. Of course this is about the Christian martyrs Perpetua, Felicity and the 3 men that were all sacrificed

This is an excellent description of the earl Christian Martyrdom and the inspiration these brave people of faith gave to others. The church truly is "built on the blood of the martyrs'" Reading this book may help one to better appreciate the early martyrs as well as call us to stand with then many martyrs of our current time.

I really enjoyed this book. It was filled with a lot of useful information. It was in good condition. God bless

This wonderful work provides you with an immense amount of background material.

This is an excellent, well-written book but the author completely misses the point: Christianity was absolutely unique in that ancient Roman world. The author gives a detailed description of the ancient religious practices as well as the family relations within the Roman families and focuses somewhat deceptively on the Carthaginian tradition of sacrificial suicide, as if martyrdom was related to those older practices.Christianity was unique in the ancient world because of its egalitarian and nonviolent nature. Unlike the practices and cults that roiled the rest of ancient civilizations, Christianity stressed the equality of worth of all humans and when attacked, refused to fight back and exact revenge. No other faith adopted these values as their core.Perpetua and her fellow believers didn't commit suicide; they refused to abandon their faith even though they were faced with horrific and inhuman deaths. Just as we award - usually posthumously - the Medal of Honor to soldiers who perform heroically in the face of overwhelming danger, the early martyrs are revered because they held to their faith in the face of unimaginable cruelty.Perpetua and the others knew first hand about the barbarity that held Rome together and they knew precisely what the Romans did to Jesus and many, many others who fell into their hands. Nevertheless, Perpetua gave up her life in a display of heroism, not mere suicide because renouncing her faith was never an option.It's a shame that the author never caught on to that concept.

STAMPED ON MY MIND FOREVER-FABULOUS BOOK. TO KNOW OF SUCH STRONG HEROISM OF THESE 2 SAINTS OF GOD MOVED ME TO A MUCH DEEPER WALK WITH GOD. IT MAKES YOU THINK IF YOU HAD THE FAITH TO DIE LIKE THAT. I LOVED IT TOTALLY.

If you were raised a Catholic several decades ago, you would have heard tales of the early Christian martyrs being thrown to the lions and all sorts of horrible deaths. These early martyrs were held up as ideals that we would be unlikely to have to follow in our own ordinary lives. I found this book when I was looking on Amazon for something else and it re-ignited my curiosity about these early saints who were willing to sacrifice their lives to bear witness to Christ. I really enjoyed reading this book and found all the background information about Perpetua's social status, Carthage and its local culture within the Roman empire and the early Church fascinating. I'm not in a position to comment on how accurate the author is in all of her interpretations of the facts but I found it convincing enough and felt very moved by Perpetua's convictions and bravery. The book is based on the short "Passion" that was written by Perpetua in prison awaiting execution and finished by a fellow Christian who witnessed her death in the arena. If you are interested in Christianity's early history, do read this. My only criticism is that it's expensive for such a short book.