ABSTRACT
In contrast to the writings of Tertullian, the writings of Cyprian (lived ca. 200-258 ce) contain little mention of the cult of the dead in mid third century Carthage as practiced in non-Christian circles. Saxer argues that this signied “without doubt that pagan rites no longer exercised the same attraction as in the time of Tertullian …” (1980: 112). Cyprian’s lack of attention to non-Christian funerary rites, however, may be due more to the role Cyprian adopted in contrast to Tertullian. Whereas Tertullian was occupied often with thoroughly apologetic concerns (defending Christianity against the outside world), Cyprian took on a decidedly more pastoral role and thus focused more on internal concerns. Considering the tumultuous period in which Cyprian served as bishop (from ca. 248-258 ce when he died a martyr’s death), such a focus on internal affairs seems only natural. At the same time, Cyprian had experienced his own visions of paradise, a source of comfort and hope to himself and others facing the prospect of their own demise. Like Cyprian, Perpetua, and Saturus, the imprisoned martyrs of Cyprian’s day also made visionary otherworld journeys to paradisal garden realms, where they were reunited with those who had died before, and participated in banquets of divine refreshment. During a period of persecution, loss, and uncertainty, the entire Christian community could nd hope and meaning in the face of death through a shared vision of paradise dened and made real by the otherworld journeys of the martyrs.
