The Passion of Montanus and Lucius · §2 · Acts of the Martyrs

Fire Quenched and Dark Prison Made Bright

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The imprisoned confessors writing together report how the plan to burn them alive was turned aside and how their dark prison became bright.

Once we had been seized and placed in custody under guard, we heard soldiers announce the governor's sentence, that yesterday he threatened to burn our bodies. For as we later learned with complete certainty, he had meant to burn us alive. But the Lord, who alone can rescue his servants from the fire (Daniel 3), in whose hand are the words and the hearts of the king, turned the governor's raging cruelty away from us. We gave ourselves to constant prayer with total faith, and we received at once what we asked: the fire kindled almost to destroy our flesh was extinguished, and the flame of the burning furnaces was lulled to sleep by the dew of the Lord. To believers it was not hard to trust that new wonders could reach back to the ancient examples, since the Lord promises through the Spirit that he who worked this wonder in the three young men would win his victory in us too.

Then, broken as the Lord stood against his purpose, he ordered us to be sent to prison. Soldiers led us there, and we did not fear the foul darkness of that place. Soon the dark prison shone bright as the Spirit shone through it, and against the ugliness of the gloom and the blind night wrapped around us, faithful devotion clothed us in white light like day. We were climbing to the highest place of punishment as if we were climbing into heaven. What days we spent there, what nights we endured, no words can describe. No account can capture the torments of prison, yet we do not hesitate to call that place cruel as it truly is. For where trial is great, greater still is he who conquers it in us. There is no battle, because with the Lord protecting us there is victory. Even to be killed is a light thing for the servants of God, and so death is nothing, for the Lord crushed its stings and defeated its assault and triumphed through the trophy of the cross. There is also no call for arms except when a soldier must be armed, and he is armed only when an encounter comes. So too our crowns hold reward because struggle came first, and no palm is given unless the encounter is fought to the end. After a few days we were refreshed by a visit from the brothers, for the comfort and joy of daytime took away every hardship of the night.

Greek

III. Igitur apprehensis nobis et apud [regionantes — sense unclear: local officials?] in custodia constitutis, sententiam praesidis milites nuntiare audivimus, quod heri corpus nostrum minaretur urere. nam, ut postea quoque verissime cognovimus, exurere nos vivos cogitavit. sed dominus, qui solus de incendio servos suos potest liberare, in cuius manu sermones et corda sunt regis, furentem a nobis saevitiam praesidis avertit. et incumbentes precibus assiduis tota fide statim quod petivimus accepimus: accensus paene in exitum nostrae carnis ignis extinctus est et flamma [caminorum — scan cammorum] ardentium dominico rore sopita est. nec difficile credentibus fuit nova posse ad vetera exempla pertingere, domino per spiritum pollicente quia qui gloriam istam operatus est in tribus pueris, vincebat et in nobis. IV. Tunc a proposito suo domino repugnante confractus, mitti nos in carcerem iussit. quo deducti a militibus sumus, nec expavimus foedam loci illius caliginem; moxque carcer tenebrosus spiritu perlucente resplenduit, et contra obscuritatis deformia et caeca nocte contecta instar diei fidei devotio candida luce nos vestiit. et ad summum ascendebamus locum poenarum quasi ascenderemus in caelum. quales illic dies duximus, quales transegimus noctes, exponi nullis sermonibus possunt; tormenta carceris nulla affirmatione capiuntur, nec veremur atrocitatem loci illius ut est dicere. quo enim temptatio grandis est, eo maior est ille qui eam vincit in nobis. et non est pugna, quia est domino protegente victoria. nam et occidi servis dei leve est, et ideo mors nihil est, cuius aculeos comminuens contentionemque devincens dominus per trophaeum crucis triumphavit. sed et nulla causa armorum est nisi quando miles armandus est, nec armatur nisi quando congressio est; et in coronis nostris ideo praemium est quia certamen ante praecessit, nec datur palma nisi congressione perfecta. sed paucis diebus visitatione fratrum refrigeravimus; nam omnem noctis laborem diei solatium laetitiaque abstulit.

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About this text

Lucius, Montanus, Flavian and their companions write from prison at Carthage of their arrest, hunger and visions. A fellow Christian then tells how they died and what Flavian taught the church on his last day.

Montanus, Lucius and their fellow prisoners wrote this in prison at Carthage about 259, to fellow Christians they call dearest brothers, including brothers still to come. After arrest and imprisonment at Carthage they write to leave testimony of the greatness of God and of their suffering and endurance for the Lord for brothers who will come after.

Its argument is that God protects his servants in prison where threatened burning is extinguished by prayer and darkness becomes light and hunger and thirst are relieved through help brought by fellow Christians, and visions of lamps and a guiding child and milk filled bowls and white garments and promise of a more glorious crown assure them that Christ is with them, so they must hold unity and love and peace and unanimity since division forfeits sonship and inheritance. The reader meets fellow confessors Flavian and Julian and Victoricus and Primolus and Renus and Donatian and Victor the presbyter and Quartillosia and her martyred son and Cyprian who taught the faith and Leucius seen with him and Lucian and Herennian and Januarius who bring food. Their own words are quoted for Renus on lamps and Victor with the shining boy and the Lord in his vision and Quartillosia with her son and the youth with bowls and Montanus on his vision and Lucius at execution, and an editor completes the account in which Montanus preaches against idols and schism and hasty reconciliation of those who gave in under pressure and disrespect for leaders.

Here struggle means the whole trial of arrest and prison and execution and crown means heavenly reward and testimony means open declaration of faith and suffering means suffering and execution for Christ and hardship means affliction of prison want and endurance means patient endurance and unity means united love and peace means reconciliation after quarrel and leaders means appointed church leaders and those who gave in under pressure means Christians who failed under persecution and breakaway Christians means Christians outside the church and person preparing for baptism means one under instruction not yet baptized. The author uses Old Latin wording with LXX style book names and Psalm numbering, so Psalms give the LXX number alongside the modern number and quotations are woven in without modern references including Daniel 3 for the three youths in the fire and Psalm 119:105 LXX 118:105 and Psalm 50:15 LXX 49:15 and Matthew 18:19 and Matthew 5:9 and Romans 8:16 to 17 and Exodus 22:20. Primolus is an arrested Christian whose earlier declaration served as baptism and Renus is a fellow prisoner who dreams of lamps and Herennian is a subdeacon who carries food and Cyprian is the church teacher and Leucius is the figure seen with him.

Printed text used

Translated from Oscar von Gebhardt, Acta martyrum selecta (Berlin: A. Duncker, 1902) (Latin)

This work has passed our source check. We made this study translation with AI help. No scholar has yet certified it as faithful and complete. Open Greek on any section to see the source text. It is not a critical edition.

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