Leap of Faith
Oil on canvas 7' x 7'
This story is based on the details for the August 24th entry in Martyrologium Romanum, from which the quotes that follow were taken. The events mentioned took place near Carthage, Tunisia, outside the city of Utica.
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St. Augustine, a native and resident of this same province of North Africa, referred to the subjects of this story as "the White Mass of Utica". Their memory was kept alive by the 4th century Spanish poet and hymnwriter, Prudentius, who honored their faith and testimony in the thirteenth hymn of his Peri Stephanon collection.
In the year 258 A.D., the Roman Magistrate responsible for the governing of North Africa arrived in Utica, Tunisia, and began rounding up a particular type of "criminal": those who had been arrested for being Christians. Carrying out his responsibility to enforce the will of imperial Rome, he had come to address what he saw as a threat to Roman Sovereignty: faith in Jesus Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Rome required more than political obedience from it's subjects; the supreme leaders of the empire saw themselves as "gods" and jealously demanded the worship due deity. For a long time, the worship they demanded had been given without question. But that was changing. When the news of Yeshua the Messiah reached the shores of Tunisia, many turned to give this new name their trust and devotion. Attention was turning from submission to Roman military power and leadership to the love of this man, Yeshua, who said He had come to reconcile all men with His Father, said to be the Most High God. As news of this message spread, attendance at some of the local pagan temples dwindled; worship of the Roman emperor and the many pagan deities he followed was being ignored by many. The visiting magistrate felt strongly that he could not allow this shift in loyalties to grow. So he arrested any who would no longer offer worship to the emperor and his gods. After filling Tunisia's prisons with these religious rebels, he set out to reprogram their hearts. This is how he attempted to do so: he arranged for a huge pit to be filled with strips of wood, interlaced with chunks of broken limestone. This pile he set on fire, a fire that would burn for several days. Limestone was burned in order to make from the stones a fine, white powder that was used as mortar in masonry. Anyone working with limestone knew that the converting of limestone into powder was a dangerous process: as the intense flames broke up the stone, they gave off poisonous fumes, lethal to any who inhaled them. The Magistrate must have felt that he held in his hand all the available power to re-shape society; in order to deal with these prisoners, he took up a common weapon of those who try to eliminate faith–he took up the weapon of intimidation and fear. Surely the people would be afraid of the heat and deadly fumes of this great fire; surely no one would continue to claim allegiance to Yeshua in the presence of such a threat. Against the backdrop of this inferno, the magistrate arranged a simple, public opportunity for the prisoners to recommit themselves to pagan Rome: he set up an altar to Jupiter, placed a hog's liver on it, and simply explained to the crowd of 300 prisoners he had brought before him that day: "Choose whether you will offer incense to Jupiter or be thrown down into burning lime." Whatever may have been the expectations of the magistrate, it is likely that he had not anticipated the effect that Divine love had already had on them. The perfect love of God had come and driven fear away from the hearts and minds of these common people who claimed God as their father, Yeshua as their King and Friend, and the Holy Spirit as their constant Comfort, Guide, and Teacher. And so, in the face of such a test, enabled by faith to see to the very heart and waiting embrace of God beyond the terror of the flames, these 300, "armed with faith, confessing Christ, the Son of God, with one swift impulse, hurled themselves into the fire, where in the flames of the burning lime, they were reduced to a white powder." |
As an artist, what captured my imagination and inspired me most in this story was the statement that these 300, "armed with faith . . .with one swift impulse, hurled themselves into the fire . . ." More than simply trying to recreate this scene, I have tried to represent the inspiration of those few syllables: a holy passion; a fervent, joyful enthusiasm; a bold, courageous unity that refused to compromise in the face of doom, choosing rather to see danger as a portal to eternity. It is my prayer that our lives, lived out in the context of our being living sacrifices, would be marked with these same characteristics.
Peculiar Graces: Leap of Faith. A corporate grace from God is peculiar to this story. These 300 people had become a true corporate family in the Lord. Their hearts were one with Messiah as individuals in their private walks with Him, and also their hearts were one with each other. Because they were all aligned with Him and with each other in the places of unified faithfulness, corporate grace, faith, and courage were poured out upon them in this moment of their quite literal “fiery trial”.