On July 17th, in the year 180 AD in Sicily, six men and six women were on trial for being Christians and the transcript of the proceedings has come down to us.  One of the women was called Vestia.  She only spoke very briefly.  When asked to renounce the Christian faith she said, “I am a Christian”.  When sentenced to death she said, “Thanks be to God”. (4)

There have been people who have spoken at greater length, but none so much to the point.

References

1. Evans, C.A. (2008) ‘The silence of burial’, In Miller, T.A. (ed) Jesus, the final days, London: SPCK, pp.39-73.

2. Church of England (1662) The Ministration of Public Baptism of Infants to be used in the church. Available from:
http://www.churchofengland.org/prayer-worship/worship/book-of-common-prayer/public-baptism-of-infants.aspx (Accessed 15 February 2011) (Internet).

3. ©The Archbishops’ Council (2006) Common Worship.  Baptism and Confirmation.  Available from: http://www.churchofengland.org/media/1190836/holy%20baptism.pdf (Accessed 15 February 2011) (Internet).

4. Kidd, B.J. (1920) Documents illustrative of the history of the Church, Vol. I to AD 313, No 67, London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.