Saint Paula
Saint Paula (born May 5, 347 AD in Rome, Italy; died January 26, 404 AD in Bethlehem, Judea) was a Roman widow of the senatorial aristocracy who became the closest disciple and collaborator of Saint Jerome and founded two monasteries in Bethlehem — one for women and one for men. She sold her Roman properties, gave the proceeds to the poor, and devoted the rest of her life to Scripture study, care of pilgrims, and monastic governance. She is one of the most important women of the early Church. Her feast day is January 26.
Stored in Cargo: Saint Paula
| Saint Paula | |
|---|---|
| Feast Day | January 26 |
| Profession | Roman widow; foundress of monasteries in Bethlehem; intellectual collaborator of Saint Jerome; scholar of Hebrew; abbess |
| Rel. Affiliation | Catholic Church; Roman aristocratic Christianity; Bethlehem; collaboration with Jerome; Vulgate tradition; early monastic movement in the Holy Land |
| Patronage | Widows; those studying Scripture; the Holy Land; women scholars; Bethlehem; those who give up wealth for God; Hieronymites (Order of Saint Jerome) |
| Attributes | Roman widow's dress becoming monastic habit; Hebrew scrolls or the Vulgate Bible; Bethlehem; the Church of the Nativity; weeping (her tears for sinners); Jerome nearby (they are often depicted together in iconography) |
| Birthplace | Rome, Italy |
| Death Place | Bethlehem, Judea (modern Palestinian Territories) |
| Cause of Death | Natural death; died January 26, 404 AD, in Bethlehem; she had been in declining health for some years; she died in the monastery she had founded adjacent to the Church of the Nativity; Jerome described her death in a famous epitaph letter to her daughter Eustochium; she died quietly, lips moving in prayer, attended by Jerome and her daughter |
| Primary Shrine | Church of the Nativity complex, Bethlehem — the monastery she founded was adjacent to the Church of the Nativity; her tomb was in the church; no separately accessible shrine today; she is commemorated in the Latin Quarter of Bethlehem |
| Liturgical Class | Optional Memorial (Roman Rite); January 26 |
| Historic Class | Not in universal 1962 calendar; observed in the Hieronymite tradition |
Biography
Paula was born on May 5, 347, in Rome, of the ancient noble families of the Scipiones and Gracchi. She married Toxotius and had five children. Widowed in 379 at age 32, she turned to an intensely ascetic Christian life.
She met Saint Jerome in Rome c. 382, where he was secretary to Pope Damasus I. A deep bond of spiritual friendship and intellectual collaboration developed between them. In 385 she left Rome — selling her properties and giving the proceeds to the poor — and followed Jerome to the Holy Land, accompanied by her daughter Eustochium.
After extensive pilgrimages through Syria, the Holy Land, and Egypt (visiting the desert monks), she settled in Bethlehem c. 386 AD. She founded a monastery for women (which she governed) and one for men (governed by Jerome), and a hospice for pilgrims near the Church of the Nativity.
She learned Hebrew and Greek, collaborating with Jerome in his biblical translations and commentaries. The Vulgate — the standard Latin Bible of the Western Church — was produced in Bethlehem with her support.
She died on January 26, 404, in Bethlehem. Jerome wrote a great epitaph letter to her daughter Eustochium in her honor, one of the finest biographical tributes in Latin literature.
Significant locations
Legend
Birth location: Rome, Italy
Death location: Bethlehem, Judea (modern Palestinian Territories)
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Parishes
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Shrines
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Known shrines
- Church of the Nativity complex, Bethlehem — the site of her monastery and tomb; venerated on pilgrimage to Bethlehem.
Feast day
January 26
Veneration
Saint Paula is one of the great women of the early Church — a Roman widow who gave away her fortune, learned Hebrew, and spent 20 years in Bethlehem collaborating with Saint Jerome on the Vulgate Bible. Her feast is January 26.
Prayers
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