Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society.
THE LETTER OF
PAULA AND EUSTOCHIUM
TO MARCELLA,
ABOUT THE HOLY PLACES.
(386 A.D.)
Translated by
AUBREY STEWART, Esq., M.A.
And Annotated by
MAJOR-GENERAL SIR C. W. WILSON,
R.E., K.C.B., K.C.M.G., F.R.S., D.C.L., LL.D.
LONDON:
24, HANOVER SQUARE, W.
1896.
INTRODUCTION.
THE asceticism advocated with so much eloquence, by
Ambrose at Milan, and Jerome at Rome, during the last
quarter of the fourth century, captivated the minds of
Christians of all ranks. In Rome itself, where society was
at the time under the influence of strong religious excitement, the opinions of Jerome were adopted with enthusiasm. Partly from love of novelty, partly from the striking
contrast between the austere life of an ascetic and the
dissolute manners of the age, asceticism became the
fashion. Many ladies of noble birth, renouncing the pleasures of society, devoted their lives to religious observances,
and their wealth to good works; whilst others wandered off
to lead a life of seclusion in lands which had once been
hallowed by the presence of Christ, or performed long
weary pilgrimages to places which had been the scene of
some memorable event in sacred history.
Amongst those who had been deeply moved by the
preaching of Jerome, were two ladies who afterwards
became his most fervent disciples: Paula, a Roman matron
of ancient lineage, great wealth, and high social rank; and
Eustochium, her daughter, who, if we may believe her
spiritual guide, was the first Roman maiden to take upon
herself vows of virginity. During the synod held at Rome,
under Pope Damasus, Paula entertained as her guest
Epiphanius, the venerable Bishop of Salamis, in Cyprus,
and frequently received at her house Paulinus, Bishop of
Antioch. The presence of these holy men appears to
have turned Paula's thoughts towards the East; at any
rate, it was during their visit that she, a weak, fragile
woman, who had hitherto lived a life of luxurious ease
and been daintily borne from house to house by her
eunuchs, determined to face the dangers and hardships
of a journey to St. Paul and Anthony in the desert. When
spring arrived, and the Bishops returned to their churches,
Paula distributed her wealth to her family,1 and, taking
with her only Eustochium, accompanied them on their
voyage. Why she changed her mind and finally settled at
Bethlehem, we are not told; but the change was perhaps
not unconnected with the return of Jerome to Palestine on
the death of Damasus. Paula, after living twenty years in
Bethlehem, died there, at the age of fifty-six, in 404 A.D.,
and as she left Rome in the spring of 382 A.D., her pilgrimage must have lasted about two years.2
It seems probable, from the frequent use of the first
person, that Paula was accompanied by Jerome during a
certain portion of her pilgrimage3 and we may perhaps
infer, from its first occurrence in connection with Joppa,
that she met him at that place, or possibly at Cæsarea
Palæstina, on his return to Palestine.
The geographical value of the work is slight, but it
supplies us with many interesting particulars of the places
which a pilgrim of high social rank considered it necessary
to visit in the last quarter of the fourth century. Perhaps
the most important notice is that of the tomb of Helena,
Queen of the Adiabeni, which is now the 'Tombs of the
Kings,' to the north of Jerusalem.
From Rome Paula went down to the harbour, possibly
Ostia, and thence, after bidding farewell to her children and
relations, sailed for Cyprus. She stopped at Pontia (Ponza)
Methone (Modon), Rhodes, and perhaps at Patara, in
Lycia; and after reaching Cyprus, passed some time in
visiting the numerous monasteries on the island.
From Cyprus she crossed to Seleucia, near the mouth of
the Orontes, and then proceeded to Antioch, whence, after
a short stay, she travelled, in the depth of winter, through
Cœle-Syria to Berytus,and onwards by the usual coast road
to Ptolemais. Here Paula appears to have left the coast,
and to have followed the road across the plain of Esdraelon,
'the plains of Megiddo,' to Legio (Lejjûn), and thence to
have crossed the hills to Cæsarea Palæstina. She next
visited Antipatris; Lydda, near which were Arimathea
(Rantieh) and Nob (Beit Nûba); and Joppa. From this
last place she returned to Emmaus – Nicopolis; and thence
travelled by the Roman road through the Upper and
Nether Bethorons to Gabaa (Gibeah of Benjamin); here
she rested a short time before continuing her journey to
Jerusalem by the great north road which passes close to
the tomb of Helena (Tombs of the Kings) and enters the
city by the Damascus Gate.
At Jerusalem the Proconsul, who was a friend of Paula's
family, ordered the Prætorium to be prepared for her
recep-
tion: but, in true pilgrim spirit, she declined the proffered
hospitality, and preferred to live in a 'lowly cell' during
her stay in the Holy City. The only holy places and relics
mentioned in the narrative are the Cross, the Tomb, the
stone that was rolled away from the mouth of the Sepulchre,
the church on Mount Sion, the column of the flagellation
in the portico of the church, and the place where the Holy
Ghost descended on the disciples. It may perhaps be
inferred, from the allusion to the gates 'fallen into cinders
and ashes,' that, at the time of Paula's visit, the old wall
on Sion was still a heap of ruins, and had not been rebuilt.
From Jerusalem Paula proceeded, by Rachel's tomb, to
Bethlehem, where she visited the 'Grotto of the Saviour,'
and was shown the inn, the stable, and the manger; she
then went to the spot where the shepherds were keeping
watch by night, and afterwards passed by Philip's fountain, at Beit Sûr; Escol, and the oak of Abraham, to
Hebron. On her return journey to Jerusalem she visited
Caphar Barucha, whence she saw in the distance the
country of Sodom and Gomorrha, Zoar, and Engaddi,
and Thecua (Tekoa).
Paula next travelled by Bethany and Adomim to
Jericho, whence, after visiting Galgala and the fountain
of Elisha, she went to the Jordan, to the spot where our
Lord was baptized. From the Jordan she ascended to
Bethel, and then passing through Shiloh, Shechem, and
Samaria, came to Nazareth, whence she made an excursion to Cana and Capharnaum. On her return she
climbed Mount Tabor, and here there is a break in the
narrative of the journey, which is taken up again at
Sochot (Shuweikeh). Paula probably returned to Jerusalem by the north road, and thence proceeded to Sochot
by the Gaza road; and Jerome, possibly, did not think it
necessary to describe a second time well-known towns,
such as Samaria, Shechem, Bethel, and Bethlehem, which
he had already noticed.
From Sochot Paula went to Samson's fountain, near
Eleutheropolis, and the tomb of Micah at Morasthim;
and then travelled by Maresa, Lachis, and the desert, to
the Pelusiac branch of the Nile; she next passed through
the land of Gessen (Goshen), and over the plains of Tanis
on her way to Alexandria, whence she visited Nitria,
After a short stay with the monks and ascetics of Nitria,
she was seized with a longing to return to the holy places
in Palestine, and taking ship at Pelusium, crossed the sea
to Majuma, probably the Majuma of Gaza. From this
port she went to Bethlehem, and there, for the next
three years, she was busily occupied in building cells,
monasteries, and inns for pilgrims.
Paula's tact and patience, and her great capacity for
management, are praised by St. Jerome, who also states
that she was a good linguist, and had learned Hebrew
that she might sing the Psalms in the original. During
her residence at Bethlehem she spent all her fortune in
charity and in the erection of buildings for charitable
purposes; and before her death she became involved in
debt. When she died, the whole Church gathered together to bear her to her last resting-place in the 'Grotto
of the Nativity.'
The letter of Paula and Eustochium to Marcella appears
to have been written during the first six years of the
residence at Bethlehem. It invites Marcella in glowing
terms to join them in the Holy Land; contrasts the quiet
seclusion of Bethlehem with the bustle and crowd of
Jerusalem; and brings vividly before us the 'enthusiastic
delight with which these Roman ladies regarded every
place and association in the Holy Land.'
The letter indicates the route which it was considered
desirable that pilgrims should follow, and the Holy
Places that they should see, at the close of the fourth
century. The tour from Jerusalem over Olivet to the
Jordan, and thence to Bethlehem and Hebron, is that
usual at the present day. From the south the pilgrim is
apparently taken over the maritime plain to Samaria, and
thence, after visiting Nazareth and the Sea of Galilee, is
brought back by Shiloh and Bethel to Bethlehem. The
notice of the Holy Places is not quite so full as that in
the Pilgrimage of St. Paula; but allusion is made to the
'Tomb of David,' which, though noticed by the Bordeaux
Pilgrim, is not mentioned in the description of Paula's
journey.
Marcella, to whom the letter is addressed, was a
wealthy Roman lady of illustrious family. She had been
much impressed by the teaching of Athanasius, when he
was an exile in Rome, and in A.D. 374 had been confirmed in her ascetic tendencies by the Egyptian monk
Peter. She is said to have been the first lady in Rome
to make the monastic profession; and after the arrival
of Jerome, her palace became 'a kind of convent, dedicated to the study of the Scriptures, and to psalmody
and prayer.' Daily meetings were held, at which Jerome
expounded the Scriptures to a circle of noble ladies,
amongst whom Paula and Eustochium were prominent
for their zeal and desire for knowledge. Marcella4 resisted the efforts of her friends to draw her away from
her charitable labours amongst the poor at Rome; and
after a long life, devoted to good works, she died from
the effect of injuries received during the sack of Rome
by Alaric.
The known MSS. of the Perigrinatio Sanctæ Paulæ
belong to the eleventh century; and a list of these, as
well as of the principal printed editions, is given in the
preface to the Itinera Hierosolymitana et Descriptioncs Terræ
Sanctæ, vol. i., p. xvi., published by the Société de l'Orient
Latin.
The translations have been made by Aubrey Stewart,
Esq., M.A.
C. W. W.
Modern names are, as a rule, distinguished by italics. The references to the 'Bordeaux Pilgrim,' 'Antoninus,' etc., are to the English
editions.
THE LETTER OF PAULA AND EUSTOCHIUM
TO MARCELLA, ABOUT THE HOLY PLACES.
I. IF, after the Passion of our Lord, this place is accursed,
as the wicked say that it is, what did St. Paul mean by
hastening5 to Jerusalem, that he might keep the day of
Pentecost there? Why did he address those who would
have held him back, saying: 'What do ye, weeping and
breaking my heart? For I am ready not to be bound
only, but also to die at Jerusalem, for the name of the
Lord Jesus.' 6 What did all those other holy and illustrious men mean, whose alms and oblations, after the
preaching of Christ, were sent to the brethren who were
at Jerusalem? It would be a long task to mention, year
by year, from the ascension of our Lord to the present
day, how many bishops, how many martyrs, how many
men eloquent in ecclesiastical learning, have come to
Jerusalem, thinking themselves to be lacking in religion
and in learning, and not to have received, as the saying
is, a full handful of virtues, unless they had adored Christ
in those very places from which the Gospel first shone
forth from the Cross. Indeed, if even a distinguished
orator7 thought somebody worthy of blame because he
had learned Greek not at Athens but at Lilybæum,8 and
had learned Latin, not at Rome, but in Sicily, because of
course each province has something peculiar to itself, which
another cannot possess in the same degree; why should
we suppose that anyone can reach the highest pitch of
devotion without the help of our Athens? Yet we do
not say this because we deny that the kingdom of
God is within us, or that there are holy men in other
regions also, but because what we especially assert is this,
that those who are the foremost men of the whole earth
all alike flock hither together.
II. To these places we have come, not as persons of
importance, but as strangers, that we might see in them
the foremost men of all nations. Indeed, the company of
monks and nuns is a flower and a jewel of great price
among the ornaments of the Church. Whoever may be
the first men in Gaul hasten hither. The Briton, separated from our world,9 if he has made any progress in
religion, leaves the setting sun, and seeks a place known
to him only by fame and the narrative of the Scriptures.
Why need we mention the Armenians, the Persians, the
nations of India and Ethiopia, and the neighbouring
country of Egypt, abounding in monks, Pontus and Cappadocia,10 Cœle-Syria,11 and Mesopotamia, and all the multitudes of the East, who, fulfilling the words of our
Saviour, 'Wherever the carcase is, thither will the eagles
be gathered together,'12 flock into these places and display to us examples of diverse excellence?
III. Their speech differs, but their religion is one.
There are almost as many choirs of psalm-singers as
there are different nations.13 Among all this will be found
what is, perhaps, the greatest virtue among Christians –
no arrogance, no overweening pride in their chastity;
all of them vie with one another in humility. Whoever
is last is reckoned as first. In their dress there is
no distinction, no ostentation. The order in which
they walk in procession neither implies disgrace nor
confers honour. Fasts also fill no one with pride, abstinence is not commended, nor is modest repletion
condemned. Every man stands or falls by the judgment
of his own Lord; no one judges another, lest he should
be judged by the Lord. And here the practice of backbiting, so common in most countries, finds absolutely no
place. Far from hence is luxury and self-indulgence.
IV. There are so many places of prayer in the city
itself, that one day cannot suffice for visiting them all.
However, to come to the village of Christ14 and the inn of
Mary15 (for everyone praises most that which he possesses),
by what words, with what voice, can we describe to you
the grotto of the Saviour? That manger, too, wherein
the babe wailed, is better honoured by silence than by imperfect speech. Where are spacious porticos? Where
are gilded ceilings? Where are houses decorated by the
sufferings and labours of condemned wretches? Where
are halls16 built by the wealth of private men on the scale
of palaces, that the vile carcase of man may move among
more costly surroundings, and view his own roof rather than
the heavens, as if anything could be more beauteous than
creation?17 Behold, in this little nook of the earth the
Founder of the heavens was born; here He was
wrapped in swaddling clothes, beheld by the shepherds,
shown by the star, adored by the wise men.
This place, I conceive, is holier than the Tarpeian
Rock,18 which by its having been frequently struck by
lightning shows that it is displeasing to God.
V. Read the Revelation of John, and consider what he
says of the scarlet woman, and the blasphemies written
upon her brow, of the seven hills, of the many waters,
and of the fall of Babylon. 'Come out of her,' saith the
Lord; 'come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers
of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.'19
And turning back to Jeremiah, listen to a like Scripture.
'Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man
his soul. For Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is
become a habitation of devils and a hold of every unclean
spirit.'20 There is the Holy Church, there are the
triumphs of the Apostles and martyrs, there is the true
confession of Christ, the faith preached by the Apostle,
and despised by the Gentiles, there the name of 'Christian'
is daily exalted; but worldliness, authority, the life of a
great city, meetings and exchanges of salutations, praise
and blame of one another, listening to others or talking
to them, or even against one's will beholding so great a
congregation of people, is foreign to the ideal set before
monks and their quiet seclusion; for if we see those who
visit us we lose our quiet, and if we do not see them we
are accused of pride. Sometimes, also, that we may
return the calls of our visitors, we proceed to the doors of
proud houses, and amid the sneering remarks of the
servants enter their gilded portals.
VI. But in the village of Christ, as we said before, all
is rusticity, and except for psalms, silence. Whithersoever you turn yourself, the ploughman, holding the
plough-handle, sings Alleluia; the perspiring reaper
diverts himself with psalms, and the vine-dresser sings
some of the songs of David while he trims the vine with
his curved knife. These are the ballads of this country,
these are the love-songs, as they are commonly called;
these are whistled by the shepherds, and are the implements of the husbandman. Indeed, we do not think of
what we are doing or of how we look, but see only that
for which we are longing.
VII. Oh, when will that time come when a breathless
messenger shall bring us the news that our Marcella has
reached the shore of Palestine, and all the choirs of
monks, all the troops of nuns shall shout applause? We
already are eager to start, and though no vehicle is expected, yet we wish to run to meet it. We shall clasp
your hands, we shall behold your face, and shall scarcely
be able to leave your long-wished-for embrace. When
will that day come, when we shall be able to enter the grotto
of our Saviour?21 to weep with our sister, and with our
mother, in the Sepulchre of the Lord?22 Afterwards, to
kiss the wood of the Cross,23 and on the Mount of Olives,
together with our ascending Lord,24 to lift up our hearts
and fulfil our vows? to see Lazarus come forth bound
with grave clothes,25 and to see the waters of Jordan,26
made more pure by the baptism of the Lord? And
thence to go to the folds of the shepherds,27 and pray in
the tomb of David?28 To behold Amos the prophet29
even now lamenting on his rock with his shepherd's
bugle-horn? To hasten to the tabernacles or tombs of
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and their three noble wives?30
To behold the fountain wherein the eunuch was baptized
by Philip?31 To go to Samaria,32 and adore with equal
fervour the ashes of John the Baptist, of Elisha, and of
Abdia? To enter the caves,33 wherein, in time of persecution and famine, troops of prophets were fed.
VIII. We shall go to Nazareth, and, according to the
interpretation of its name, shall behold the flower34 of
Galilee. Not far from thence will be seen Cana, wherein
the waters were turned into wine. We shall go on to
Itabyrium,35 and shall see the tabernacles of the Saviour,
not, as Peter would have built them, with Moses and
Elias, but with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Thence
we shall come to the Sea of Gennesareth, and shall see
the five and four thousand men in the desert fed with five
and seven loaves.36 Before us will appear the city of
Naim,37 at whose gates the widow's son was raised from
the dead. We shall see, too, Hermoniim,38 and the brook
of Endor,39 whereat Sisera was overcome. We shall also
see Capharnaum, that familiar witness of the miracles of
our Lord, and likewise the whole of Galilee. And then,
accompanied by Christ, when we have returned to our
grotto, after passing Silo40 and Bethel,41 and the other
places in which the banners of the Church have been
raised, as though to celebrate the victories of the Lord,
we will sing constantly, we will often weep, we will pray
without ceasing, and, wounded by the dart of our Saviour,
we will repeat together, 'I have found Him whom my soul
sought for; I will hold Him fast and will not let Him
go.'42
THE END.
BILLING AND SONS, PRINTERS, GUILDFORD.
NOTES.
[Page ii]
1
The expression 'cuncta largita est,' in chapter ii., is not to be
taken too literally, for we afterwards find St. Paula subscribing towards
the expenses of the brethren in Cyprus (iii.); distributing alms at
Jerusalem (viii.); assisting the monks at Nitria (xviii.); and building
cells and monasteries, and founding inns in Palestine (xix.). Perhaps
the meaning is that Paula realized her property, and made suitable
provision for her children before leaving Rome on her pilgrimage.
2 Paula is a saint of the Latin Church, her day being January 26th.
A description of her life and parentage will be found in Smith's
'Dictionary of Christian Biography,' art. 'Paula.'
3 This was the opinion of Erasmus, and is the view still held by the
Latin Church.
[Page vi]
4 For further details of the life of Marcella, see Smith's 'Dictionary
of Christian Biography,' art. 'Marcella.'
[Page 9]
5 Acts xx. 16.
6 Acts xxi. 13.
7 Cicero, 'De Div. in Cæcil.,' xii. 17.
[Page 10]
8
Now Marsala, in Sicily. Cicero when one of the two quæstors
of Sicily resided at Lilybæum. The coins of the town are exclusively
Greek, a proof of the extent to which Greek civilization prevailed in
that part of the island.
9 Virgil, Ecl. i. 67.
10 Pontus and Cappadocia, two Roman provinces in Eastern Asia
Minor; the former on the Black Sea coast, the latter between Pontus
and Cilicia on the Mediterranean coast.
11 The valley between Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon. It is mentioned
by Jerome in the 'Pil. of St. Paula,' p. 3.
[Page 11]
12 Matt. xxiv. 28.
13
Compare Stanley's description of 'all nations, kindreds, and
languages worshipping, each with its peculiar rites, round what they
all believe to be the tomb of their common Lord.' – 'Sinai and Palestine,' p. 464.
14 Bethlehem.
15 Compare the curious description of the 'holy inn of the Virgin,'
the grotto, the stable and the manger, in the 'Pil. of St. Paula,' pp. 6-8.
The Bordeaux Pilgrim (333 A.D.) simply mentions a basilica built by
order of Constantine at Bethehem where 'Christ was born.'
[Page 12]
16 'Basilicæ.' A basilica was a pagan secular building used for
various purposes. Its special characteristics were the division into
nave and aisles, and the clerestory lighting. The allusion here is to
the large private halls in the mansions of the wealthy, which are
described by Vitruvius, 'De Arch.,' vi. 3, 9.
17 So I have ventured to translate mundus (A.S.).
18 The rupes Tarpeia on the south-east side of the Capitoline Hill at
Rome.
19
Rev. xviii. 4.
[Page 13]
20 A combination of Jer. li. 6 and Rev. xviii. 2. The comparison of
Jerusalem with the Babylon of Jeremiah and Revelation, in order to
contrast it strongly with Bethlehem, and the quiet, secluded life of
those who resided there, shows how bitter the antagonism must have
been between Jerome and the monastic party, and the Bishop of
Jerusalem and his clergy.
[Page 14]
21 The 'Grotto of the Nativity,' at Bethlehem.
22 At Jerusalem. According to the Bordeaux Pilgrim (p. 24), it was
a vault, a stone's throw from Golgotha. See also 'Pil. of St. Paula,'
pp. 5, 6.
23 The adoration of the Cross is mentioned in 'Pil. of St. Paula,'
p. 5.
24 The Bordeaux Pilgrim (pp. 24, 25) connects the Transfiguration
with the Mount of Olives, and does not allude to the Ascension. In
the 'Pil. of St. Paula,' p. 11, the Mount is said to have been the scene
of the Ascension, and of the annual sacrifice of the red heifer.
25 The tomb of Lazarus was shown to the Bordeaux Pilgrim at
Bethany (p. 25); and the tomb and house of Mary and Martha to St.
Paula ('Pil.,' p. 11.).
26 The spot alluded to is near the Kusr el Yehûd; it is mentioned
by the Bordeaux Pilgrim, and the site is discussed in 'Antoninus
Martyr,' App. I. – 'The Holy Places on and near the Jordan.' It is
connected by Jerome with the place at which the Israelites crossed
Jordan, and at which Elijah and Elisha passed over ('Pil. of St.
Paula,' p. 12).
27
The 'Tower Ader' of the Pilgrimage (pp. 8, 9), now Beit Sahûr,
near Bethlehem.
[Page 15]
28
According to the Bordeaux Pilgrim (p. 27), the Tomb of David
was not far from the basilica at Bethlehem; according to 'Antoninus
Martyr' (p. 23), it was half a mile from the town.
29
An allusion to Tekoa, Kh. Tekûa, the birthplace of Amos, and to
the prophet's shepherd origin.
30
At Hebron. Compare 'Bordeaux Pilgrim,' p. 27, and 'Pil. of
St. Paula,' p. 9.
31
The fountain is placed by the Bordeaux Pilgrim (p. 27) at
Bethasora, Bethzur, now Beit Sûr, between Bethlehem and Hebron.
32
Compare the notice in the 'Pil. of St. Paula,' p. 13.
33
According to the 'Pil. of St. Paula' (p. 14), Abdias, or Obadiah,
hid the prophets in two caves.
34 The proper Hebrew name of Nazareth was Nétzer, a shoot or
sprout. The comparison of Nazareth with a flower is not uncommon in the works of later pilgrims. Quaresmius compares it to a
rose.
35
Mount Tabor. The name occurs in the same form in the LXX.
and Josephus.
[Page 16]
36
The feeding of the 5,000 is mentioned in the 'Pil. of St. Paula,'
p. 14, but without any precise indication of the place at which the
miracle occurred.
37
Now Nein.
38 Psalm xlii. 6. Probably Jebel Dûhy. Compare 'Pil. of St.
Paula,' p. 14.
39
An error for Kishon. Psalm lxxxiii. 9, 10.
40
Shiloh, Seilûn.
41
Beitîn.
42
Song of Solomon, iii. 4.
About This Edition
Some modifications have been made to the text in preparing this online edition.
Footnotes have been renumbered and moved to the end of the book.