Commemoration of Saints (March 7)

Solemnities, Feasts, Obligatory and Optional Memorials, and Traditional Dates of Commemoration

• Perpetua & Felicity, martyrs (Obligatory Memorial)
• Paul the Simple
• Drausius, bishop
• Esterwine, abbot
• Ardo
• Theophylact, bishop [1]

Foremost among the Saints commemorated on this day are the martyrs Perpetua & Felicity. Both are recognized at the level of the universal Church and are thus commemorated as an Obligatory Memorial.

Sts. Perpetua & Felicity were North African Christians who were sentenced to die in the arena in 203 A.D. This was the time of the persecution of Christians under Septimus Severus. It was a time when the anti-Christian sentiment was heard as "Christians to the lions!"

The story of Perpetua and Felicity's martyrdom is well told in many sources. But in view of brevity, a short description will be given here. Just after giving birth to a son, Perpetua was arrested together with other catechumens. Her husband and her slave Felicity, who gave birth to a girl, were also arrested with her. On the day of the games in the Roman colosseum, as they were led into the arena, the men were attacked by the leopards and bears; the women on the other hand were attacked by a heifer. Perpetua did not die instantly. Instead, when a gladiator wanted to make her death certain, Perpetua herself guided the sword towards her.

If by chance you happen to find a CD entitled "Passion of the Saints" by Discovery Channel, the story of Perpetua and Felicity is featured in standard documentary style. Both the names of Sts. Perpetua and Felicity are in the Canon of the Roman Mass and in the General Roman Calendar [2].

Saints in the Byzantine Calendar [March 7]

• Sts. Priest-Martyrs at Chersonia: Basil, Ephrem, Capito, Eugene, Everius, Missionary Bishops
• Venerable Paul the Simple in Egypt, a Solitary

Sts. Basil, Ephrem or Ephraim, Capito or Caption, Eugene, Everius and other companions (Elpidius, Agathodorus, Aetherius) are hieromartyrs who evangelized the region in the North Black Sea, from the Danube to the Dniper River, including the Crimea in what is now modern-day Ukraine. Learn more at Byzantinela.com [3]

St. Paul the Simple (d. ca. 339 A.D.) is commemorated today, March 7, in both the Catholic Church and in the Byzantine Calendar. He was 60 years old when he left his unfaithful wife and sought St. Anthony of Egypt in the desert. At first St. Anthony did not want to accept him because of his advanced age. When Anthony was impressed by Paul's persistence, he took him in, but put him under a test in an attempt to discourage him. However, when Paul showed humility, eagerness and obedience, St. Anthony was convinced and gave a cell to him. From that moment, St. Paul the Simple performed miracles of healing, revealed his power to read men's minds, and impressed St. Anthony that he referred to Paul as the ideal of what a monk ought to be. Paul was named "the Simple" because of his childlike innocence [4].

References: Books, Websites & AI Search Results

• [1] Pocket Catholic Dictionary, John A. Hardon
• [2] Lives of the Saints, Richard P. McBrien
• [3] March 7 The Holy Martyrs and Bishops of Cherson, https://byzantinela.com/mar-07-2023/
• [4] Dictionary of Saints, John J. Delaney