Saint Prisca, Virgin & Martyr
S. Priscae Virginis et Martyris
Saint Prisca is an early Roman virgin and martyr, venerated from ancient times at the church on the Aventine Hill that bears her name.
Saint Prisca is among the early martyrs of Rome whose memory the Church has kept from very ancient days, even though the history of her life has not survived. Her veneration is anchored in the city of Rome itself, where a church on the Aventine Hill, the titulus Priscae, has borne her name since the first centuries of the Church.
What is reliably known
What is certain is that Prisca was honoured at Rome as a virgin who gave her life for Christ, and that a church was dedicated in her memory on the Aventine. The later accounts of her passion, which tell of a young maiden put to death for the faith, belong to a class of pious narratives whose particulars cannot be confirmed by history. The Church therefore venerates her for what is sure: her name, her city, her crown of virginity and martyrdom.
In the early centuries the names of such martyrs were carefully preserved and their tombs and churches became places of prayer, where the faithful gathered to honour those who had triumphed in Christ. Saint Prisca belongs to this great company, a witness from the age when to confess the name of Jesus could cost one’s life.
Her witness today
The feast of Saint Prisca on the eighteenth of January keeps alive the memory of one of Rome’s early holy women. The collect of her Mass asks that we who venerate her heavenly birthday may both rejoice in her yearly feast and profit by the example of so great a faith. In her the Church honours the courage of the martyrs and the beauty of a life given wholly to Christ.
The Collect
Grant, we beseech thee, O almighty God: that we, who keep the heavenly birthday of blessed Prisca thy Virgin and Martyr, may both rejoice in her yearly solemnity, and profit by the example of so great a faith.
Da, quæsumus, omnípotens Deus: ut, qui beátæ Príscæ Vírginis et Mártyris tuæ natalítia cólimus; et ánnua solemnitáte lætémur, et tantæ fídei proficiámus exémplo.
Patronage
She is venerated as an early virgin-martyr of Rome, honoured at the ancient church of Saint Prisca on the Aventine Hill.
In the Modern Calendar
In the modern calendar her feast is no longer kept on the universal calendar.
Common Questions
When is the feast of Saint Prisca?
Her feast is kept on 18 January in the calendar of the 1962 Roman Missal, as a Fourth Class feast.
Who was Saint Prisca?
She was an early Roman virgin and martyr, venerated since ancient times at the church bearing her name on the Aventine Hill in Rome. Little of her history survives, but her veneration as a martyr is very old.
How much do we really know about her?
With certainty, very little beyond her name, her veneration at Rome as a virgin and martyr, and the ancient church dedicated to her. The detailed legends of her passion cannot be confirmed by history, and the Church honours her without claiming more than is known.
See where this feast falls in the Church’s year on the liturgical calendar, or find a Traditional Latin Mass near you.
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