two faithful women
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Two Faithful Women. Mary Jones and her Bible. Mary Jones and Her Bible. Born 16 th Dec 1784, daughter of a weaver - Calvinistic Methodist family. Calvinistic belief: the election (predestination) to grace of some. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Two Faithful Women
Mary Jones and Her Bible
Mary Jones and her Bible
Born 16th Dec 1784, daughter of a weaver - Calvinistic Methodist family
Calvinistic belief: the election (predestination) to grace of some.
Some unpredestined, but this is no injustice because they remain in the state they would be in if there were no election - in which circumstance none would be saved (better some saved than none!)
Educated in the Welsh circulating schools run by Revd Thomas Charles
Thomas Charles
Important figure in the history of modern Wales
Circulating schools:
Sunday teaching controversial – some believed it broke the Sabbath commandment!
A school would stay in a district for a few months, then move on
Held in winter months on Sundays (pupils worked on weekdays)
When she was 8 Mary became a Christian
Mary loved the bible (in Welsh)
The nearest bible was on a farm two miles away
At age 9 she started to save for her own bible
In 1800, when Mary was 15, she had saved enough money
Mary wanted a bible of her own
Available only from Revd Thomas Charles at Bala -
25 miles from Mary’s home in LLanfihangel-y-Pennant
Bibles hard to come by
Imagine walking from Worcester to Hereford
– but over Welsh hills!
Mary set off to walk to Bala
Look at Mary’s feet!
All the bibles for sale by Revd Thomas Charles were spoken for
Mary was so distressed that he sold her one of the bibles – a 1799 Welsh bible
In 1799 10,000 Welsh bibles were printed at Oxford under the Society for the Propagation of Christian Knowledge (SPCK)
Mary Jones’ own bible1799 edition
Mary Jones was born 16th of December 1784.
I Bought this in the 16th year of my age. I am Daughter of Jacob Jones and Mary Jones His wife. the Lord may give me grace. Amen.
Mary Jones His The True Onour of the Bible. Bought In the Year 1800 Aged 16th.
Inscription by Mary Jones in her bible, bought 1800
Thomas Charles was inspired to propose to the Council of the Religious Tract Society to form a new society to supply Wales with bibles
This led, in 1804, to the establishment in London of the British and Foreign Bible Society
Welsh New Testament
1806
Memorial in Llanfihangel-y-Pennant, erected over the ruin of the cottage where Mary Jones lived as a young girl
Mary married a weaver
In later life she became blind and learned Braille
Mary died in December 1864 aged 80
The devotion of one poor Welsh girl inspired the taking of the Scriptures to every corner of the world
Two Faithful Women
PerpetuaTurn of the 3rd
century - 200 AD
Perpetua lived in Carthage – Phoenician city-state linked to Tyre
Founded 814 BC
Carthage today - Tunisia
Noblewoman in her 20s
Married with an infant son, and pregnant
Perpetua:
Nothing is known of her husband
Perpetua:
Christian convert preparing for baptism
North Africa had a vibrant Christian community
Emperor Septimius Severus resolved to cripple Christianity
Focused on North Africa
Perpetua was imprisoned with her servant Felicity – but allowed to keep her infant son
This is said to be Perpetua’s prison cell
Perpetua’s pagan father tried to persuade her to renounce her faith – to no avail
Perpetua then beaten severely by her father
In prison Perpetua kept a diary
- the earliest known surviving text by a Christian woman
Perpetua was baptised, along with other Christian captives
Perpetua brought before the Roman pro-consol Minutius
Ordered to sacrifice to idols
Perpetua refused
Thrown into a dungeon
Her infant son was taken away
Perpetua was soon sentenced to die in the arena
Perpetua’s father again tried to persuade her – again to no avail
“God’s will be done”
She replied simply:
The day before her execution Perpetua gave birth – a girl
The child was adopted by a Christian family
Perpetua thrown to wild cows(normal practice for women)
Gored badly – then killed by sword
Perpetua (and Felicity) martyred March 7th 203 AD
Declared saints by the Roman Catholic church
Perpetua never wavered
It is said that through her example some of her guards were converted
Perpetua forsook all:
position, family, even her children
for Christ’s sake