Thecla

The companion of Paul the Apostle, Thecla seems in every way to have been a woman in her own right. Almost all that we know about her comes from a damaged apocryphal manuscript in Coptic known as The Acts of Paul, in which is recounted her seemingly miraculous deliverances from death in the Roman arenas of two cities. On the first occasion in the city of Iconium, while being tied to the stake with the pyre beneath her feet having been already set to the torch, a deluge of rain poured out of a clear sky and extinguished the flames. The following apparently miraculous deliverance found place in the arena of the city of Antioch, when a group of lionesses formed a protective circle around her and fought off the aggressive male lions.

How to unravel these more legendary aspects of her life from the Thecla of history? What these stories about her express – and the apparent esteem in which she was held by her followers – reveal to us a beautiful, charismatic and principled woman who enjoyed the respect and loyalty of her community. Copies in Greek of the damaged text of the Acts indicate that in later years she became a recluse, dedicating herself to a life of prayer and meditation, and living into her 90’s. Perhaps somewhere between the miracles and the meditations is the true Thecla, the Thecla of the spirit: a Thecla who still can touch us with her grace if we open ourselves to her.

You can read more about Thecla and her times in my post: Thecla: A Woman between Rain and Fire.

My painting of Thecla also features in my video: Invocation.