Women's Patronage in the Early Catholic Church
Early Roman Christian Community Women's Charitable Roles
Oct 23, 2009
The martyr’s role is central to understanding patronage on the vast scale encouraged by the Catholic faith.
Saints and Martyrs
A patron may carry many roles, from the volunteer who embroiders the vestments to donating land and money. In the Roman era, simply providing a space to preach and exchanging favors creating societal reciprocity standards for the benefit of the church set its foundations. These are all support mechanisms limited to those with the power and / or means to provide them.
In the Catholic list of saints, great value is placed on a person of means who was martyred for their efforts to promote the faith. The death of individuals of means for a belief promoted the integrity of the teachings of Jesus in a manner that the masses could relate to. Martyrdom is personal and its message is easy to understand.
During the climate of persecution when Roman emperors such as Diocletian (ca. 244 – 311) reigned, suffering and martyrdom was integrated into the newly formed religion. The trauma of martyrdom – the frightening arrest, the public trial, and the gruesome executions – was glorified into the honor and riches of sainthood.
This history of patronage in Christianity runs deep, accentuating the ultimate martyrdom of devoted women of wealth. Women who ran the house churches, preachers, deaconesses and public supporters of the faith who held a higher social status were also more visible members of the early church.
The example made by the Roman government of Saint Perpetua is worth consideration. The daughter of a wealthy merchant, Perpetua embraced the faith, becoming a catechumen under her teacher Saturus.
Bringing her servants and slaves into the fold despite the threats against Christians, she endured family’s torture and loss of her child while remaining steadfast to the faith. Her servants, Felicita in particular, shared her imprisonment and brutal public death in approximately 209 ce. Her story of privilege lost and undying faith in the face of brutality is repeated in the story of many saints, both male and female.
Power without Position
“Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them; otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.” Jesus; Matthew Ch. 6: 1-34
For women, who’s social standing had great limitations placed upon their public actions, patronage to causes outside of the household required extreme discretion (Torjesen 103). Restricted from political activities from the Greco-Roman period well into the modern era, the Christian church both accepted and promoted their patronage. A woman did not have to be thrown to the beasts to earn her place among the saints.
The Acts of Paul and Thecla (ca. 200 ce) states the financial support provided by Queen Tryphaena to the persistent noble virgin follower of Paul of Tarsus, Thecla, had long lasting results. Her financial support allowed Thecla to keep up with Paul’s multiple ministries and earn his respect. Enough so that she was given permission to preach and baptize. Thecla passed onto Paul the Queen’s funds supporting his ministries.
All of these along with many other duty bound women of great generosity were venerated as saints for their efforts. Sometimes these efforts cost them their lives. But the message was clear, that giving to the faith could put one a few rungs higher on the ladder to heaven, and social standing.
The Cult of Saint Jerome
During the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, the rise of scholasticism led to the study of Saint Jerome’s (ca. 340 - 420) vast writings and, inevitably to Saint Paula (347 - 404) and women who supported his work. As Jerome’s cult spread far afield from his reliquary in Rome, the story of St. Paula and her example of devotion and piety, along with patronage, spread across Europe.
Paula was a woman of noble birth who was widowed by her equally noble husband, Toxotius, after baring five children. She met Jerome in 382 and followed him to Bethlehem in 384. Using her wealth and intellect for the benefit of Jerome’s cause, Paula and her daughter, Eustochium (unknown - 419), founded several churches, a monastery complex, and hospital, in addition to supporting Jerome’s vast literary works.
As St. Paula was a woman of letters, her acts of devotion could be studied by those in the Renaissance. A legacy of the fourth century female followers of Saint Jerome provided acceptance of women’s patronage for the benefit of capitol projects. Building hospitals, convents, churches and confraternities were highly visible and well appreciated avenues of patronage that benefit the holy authorities, citizenry and patron.
Cause and Effect
Patronage for the Christian cause by women of wealth extends back to the faith’s very inception. Consider Mary Magdalene or the many women of Paul’s acquaintance who placed their own homes, finances and hospitality to the benefit of the faith. One wonders if the faith would have spread as quickly had it not been for the charitable acts of women, particularly women of wealth.
If it were not for the patronage of devoted women such as Constantine’s mother Theodora and deaconess Olympias along with generous men to the faith, we may not know of some of Christianities most compelling characters. Just as it took the patronage of a knight and his Dauphin to put Joan of Arc at the head of an army, it has taken the faith centuries of women to support and promote their beliefs through philanthropy.
Sources
King, Catherine E. Renaissance Women Patrons: Wives and Widows in Italy, c. 1300-1550. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1998.
MacHaffie, Barbara J. Her Story: Women in Christian Tradition. 2 ed. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 2006.
Seller, Edward. "An Inclination of the Heart: Jerome and His Female Friendships" Spiritual Life Fall issue of 2001
Torjesen, Karen Jo. When Women Were Priests. New York: Harper One, 1995.
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