E06534: Aldhelm, in his prose On Virginity, notes how some consider the *martyrs (S00060) to occupy an equal (or superior?) rank to virgins. Written in Latin in southern Britain, for the nuns at the monastery at Barking (south-east Britain), c. 675/686.

Aldhelm, prose On Virginity, 19

Porro tripertitam humani generis distantiam orthodoxae fidei cultricem catholica recipit ecclesia, sicut in quodam volumine angelica relatione refertur, quomodo virginitas, castitas, iugalitas tripertitis gradibus separatim differant [...] His igitur tribus graduum ordinibus, quibus credentium multitudo in catholica florens ecclesia discernitur, evangelicum paradigma centesimum, sexagesimum et tricesimum fructum iuxta meritorum mercimonium spopondit, licet quidam centesimi fructus manipulos evangelicis novalibus ubertim pululantes et granigera spicarum glumula germinantes martiribus sacrum pro Christianae professionis titulo cruorem ritu rivi rorantibus deputare soleant [...]

'Moreover, the catholic Church accepts a three-fold distinction of the human race, which increases orthodox faith, as it is described by an angelic narrative in a certain volume, how 'virginity', 'chastity' and 'conjugality' differ the one from the other in three ranks [...] To these three levels of ranks, therefore, into which the flourishing multitude of believers in the catholic Church is divided, the gospel parable has promised hundred-fold, sixty-fold and thirty-fold fruit according to the outlay of their merits, even though certain (authorities) are accustomed to allot the sheaves of the hundred-fold harvest, sprouting abundantly in the fallow lands of the gospel and putting forth grain-bearing ears of corn, to the martyrs who pour out their holy blood in the manner of a stream for the glory of the Christian faith...'

Text: Ehwald 1919, 248-9. Translation: Lapidge and Herren 1979, 75-6.