Roman Background and Family
Paula was born in Rome on May 5, 347, to her parents Blesilla and Rogatus. Her family, the Furii Camilli, was among the wealthiest of the Roman senatorial aristocracy and claimed an illustrious ancestry; her mother's lineage was connected to the Gracchi and Scipio families. The OCA synaxarion describes her heritage as both Greek and Roman.
At about age 16 she married the nobleman Toxotius, with whom she had five children: four daughters — Blaesilla, Paulina, Eustochium, and Rufina — and a son, Toxotius the Younger. Several of her children are themselves venerated, and her family became closely bound to the ascetic movement of the late fourth century.
Conversion and Ascetic Life in Rome
Paula was widowed at about age 32–33. The OCA account relates that the death of her husband brought her profound grief, through which she 'realized the vanity of all earthly things and submitted herself to God's will,' adopting plain food and modest dress.
Through the influence of St. Marcella she joined a semi-monastic group of devout women in Rome and pursued a serious study of Scripture. She studied under the bishops Paulinus of Antioch and Epiphanius of Salamis, and in 382, when Jerome came to Rome in the company of Epiphanius and Paulinus, she met the scholar who would become her lifelong spiritual mentor.
Pilgrimage to the Holy Land
When Jerome departed for the Holy Land — about 385 by the OCA account — Paula followed with her daughter Eustochium. Together they undertook an extensive pilgrimage, visiting the holy sites of Jerusalem, including the True Cross, the Via Dolorosa, and the tomb of Christ, as well as sites in Egypt.
Along the way they encountered prominent ascetics of the age, among them Paulinus of Nola, Melania the Elder, and Rufinus of Aquileia. Around 386 Paula settled in Bethlehem.
The Bethlehem Foundations
At Bethlehem, Paula and Jerome established a substantial monastic complex. It comprised a convent for women, which Paula governed as abbess and which was organized into three communities of nuns; a monastery for men, where Jerome kept a cell and carried out his scholarly work; a hostel for pilgrims; and a church. By the OCA account the foundations also included a hospital for pilgrims. The complex drew visitors from as far as Ethiopia, Persia, and India.
Paula maintained rigorous ascetic discipline: strict fasting and abstinence, a deliberately destitute manner of life, and intensive study of the Old and New Testaments under Jerome's guidance. She personally managed the communities, taught the nuns, and performed manual labor. She learned Hebrew so as to chant the Psalms in their original language, and required all the nuns to memorize the entire Psalter.
Her lavish charity and hospitality consumed her whole fortune. At her death she left her daughter burdened with debts, and Jerome afterward sold family property in Italy and Dalmatia to relieve the financial strain on the community.
Death and Legacy
Paula died at Bethlehem on January 26, 404, at the age of 56. Her funeral drew a great portion of the population of Palestine, and she was recognized as a saint within a year of her repose.
Jerome honored her in writing: he composed a Latin epitaph for her tomb, preserved in his Epistle 86, and wrote Epistle 108 — addressed to Eustochium — as a full biographical memorial, declaring that he had 'built a monument more lasting than bronze.' He dedicated to her his work on numerous biblical books, among them Job, Isaiah, 1–2 Samuel, 1–2 Kings, and Esther.
Her daughter Eustochium succeeded her as abbess and died in 419. Jerome was later buried in the Church of the Nativity near Paula and Eustochium.
Relics & Shrines
Paula was buried near the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem; her tomb there is now empty. Jerome was afterward buried in the north aisle of the same church, near Paula and Eustochium.
She is venerated as co-patroness of the Order of Saint Jerome (the Hieronymites). Among the shrines associated with her in Rome are the Church of Saint Jerome of the Charity and the Church of Santa Paola Romana.
