Called and chosen for the glory of the Lord

Today, March 7, as our Church celebrates the Commemoration of Perpetua and Felicity, Martyrs, our Church invites us to first read and reflect on a passage from the book of Wisdom (3:1-15), entitled "The friends of God lie safe in his hands". Our treasure, which follows is from the story of death of the holy martyrs of Carthage. The Martyrs of Carthage include Saints Perpetua and Felicity, who were martyred in 203 and a group of Christians who were executed in 259 AD. Saint Vibia Perpetua, a noblewoman who was recently married and had an infant son, and Saint Felicity, a slave woman who was pregnant at the time were put to death in Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. They are venerated in the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Churches, Oriental Orthodox Churches, Anglican Communion, and Lutheran Church. The story of their martyrdom is told in The Passion of Saints Perpetua and Felicity. Their feast day is March 7.  The Martyrs of Carthage under Valerian include Montanus, Lucius, Flavian, Julian, Victoricus, Primolus, Rhenus, and Donatian. These Christians were executed during the persecutions of the Roman Emperor Valerian, The story of their martyrdom, and what they endured, is harrowing to read. They themselves wrote the account of their imprisonment, and eye-witnesses wrote the account of their deaths. Their feast day is February 24.  The Martyrs of Carthage include Saints Perpetua and Felicity, who were martyred in 203 and a group of Christians who were executed in 259 AD. Saint Vibia Perpetua, a noblewoman who was recently married and had an infant son, and Saint Felicity, a slave woman who was pregnant at the time were put to death in Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. They are venerated in the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Churches, Oriental Orthodox Churches, Anglican Communion, and Lutheran Church. The story of their martyrdom is told in The Passion of Saints Perpetua and Felicity. Their feast day is March 7.  The Martyrs of Carthage under Valerian include Montanus, Lucius, Flavian, Julian, Victoricus, Primolus, Rhenus, and Donatian. These Christians were executed during the persecutions of the Roman Emperor Valerian, The story of their martyrdom, and what they endured, is harrowing to read. They themselves wrote the account of their imprisonment, and eye-witnesses wrote the account of their deaths. Their feast day is February 24.  The Book of Wisdom was written about fifty years before the coming of Christ. Its author, whose name is not known to us, was probably a member of the Jewish community at Alexandria, in Egypt. He wrote in Greek, in a style patterned on that of Hebrew verse. At times he speaks in the person of Solomon, placing his teachings on the lips of the wise king of Hebrew tradition in order to emphasize their value. His profound knowledge of the earlier Old Testament writings is reflected in almost every line of the book, and marks him, like Ben Sira, as an outstanding representative of religious devotion and learning among the sages of postexilic Judaism. The primary purpose of the author was the edification of his co-religionists in a time when they had experienced suffering and oppression, in part at least at the hands of apostate fellow Jews. To convey his message he made use of the most popular religious themes of his time, namely the splendor and worth of divine wisdom, the glorious events of the exodus, God's mercy, the folly of idolatry, and the manner in which God's justice operates in rewarding or punishing the individual. The first ten chapters in particular provide background for the teaching of Jesus and for some New Testament theology about Jesus. Many passages from this section of the book, are used by the church in the liturgy.