Alfra
MARTYR.
The city of Augusta Vindelicorum (the present Augsburg) was situated in
the northern part of the Roman province of Rh(tia on the river Lech, not
far from its junction with the Danube. It was an important Roman
colony, invested with municipal rights (municipium) by the Emperor
Hadrian, into which Christianity had penetrated even before the time of
Constantine, as is proved beyond question by the martyrdom of St. Afra.
It is an indisputable historical fact that a Christian named Afra was
beheaded at Augsburg during the persecution of Diocletian (c. 304) for
her steadfast profession of faith, and that at an early period her grave
was the object of great veneration. The so-called "Martyrologium
Hieronymianum", a compilation from various calendars and lists of
martyrs, dating in its original form from the fourth century, mentions,
under date of 5 August (in some MSS., 6 or 7 August), St. Afra as having
suffered in the city of Augsburg, and as buried there (Martyrologium
Hieronym., ed. De Rossi and Duchesne; Acta SS., II, Nov., 1 sqq.). In
his poem on St. Martin, Venantius Fortunatus, Bishop of Poitiers in the
sixth century, also mentions Augsburg as her burial place (Vita S.
Martini, IV, 642 sq.; Pergis ad Augustam quam Virdo et Lica fluentant,
Illic ossa sacræ venerabere martyris Afræ). There are extant certain
Acts of the martyrdom of St. Afra (Acta SS., II, August, 39 sqq.; ed.
Krusch in Mon. Germ. Hist.; SS. RR. Merovingic., III, 56 sqq.), in the
opinion of most critics not a coherent whole, but a compilation of two
different accounts, the story of the conversion of St. Afra, and the
story of her martyrdom. The former is of later origin, and has not the
least claim to historical credibility, being merely a legendary
narrative of Carlovingian times, drawn up with the intention of
connecting with St. Afra the organization of the church of Augsburg
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