The Apologists · AD 130–180
Biblis of Lyon
d. 177 · Confessor who recovered her faith · Martyr · Lugdunum, Gaul
The Apologists
Who Biblis of Lyon was
A woman who had at first denied under torture and was counted among the fallen — until, put on the rack again to force blasphemies from her, she “recovered herself as from a deep sleep,” and, reminded by the temporal torment of the eternal, contradicted the slanderers: “How could such as we eat children, when we are not permitted even to eat the blood of beasts?” From that moment she confessed herself a Christian and was added to the martyrs — the letter’s parable of repentance restored under suffering.
Also listed in martyrs, women and under marcus aurelius.
Common questions
When did Biblis die?
Biblis of Lyon is dated d. 177 in the archive, which places Biblis in the Apologists (AD 130–180).
Which early sources mention Biblis?
Biblis of Lyon is named in 2 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from The churches of Lyon & Vienne and The Hieronymian compilers. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Biblis from?
The archive associates Biblis of Lyon with Lugdunum, Gaul. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Who were Biblis’ contemporaries?
The archive links Biblis of Lyon to 3 other figures, including Blandina of Lyon, Ponticus of Lyon and Alexander of Lyon. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (2)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Letter of the Churches of Lyons, via Eusebius V.1
c. AD 177Biblis, one of those who had denied, the devil… wishing to condemn her as a blasphemer, brought her to the rack. But she recovered herself, and, as it were, awoke out of a deep sleep… and thenceforth confessed herself a Christian.The churches of Lyon & Vienne · 25 · source text
Martyrologium Hieronymianum (the Forty-Eight of Lyon, 2 June)
c. AD 450Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 112 · Pliny writes Trajan, AD 112
- AD 117 · Symeon and Ignatius martyred, AD 117
- AD 135 · Bar Kokhba crushed; Aelia Capitolina, AD 135
- AD 144 · Marcion expelled at Rome, AD 144
- AD 156 · The New Prophecy erupts, AD 156
- AD 177 · Persecution at Lyon and Vienne, AD 177
Place
Places served
The 2 places the sources put Biblis, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.