Fabiola; Or, The Church of the Catacombs (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. A Historical Romance of Early Christian Rome, Martyrdom, and Conversion Under DiocletianBy Nicholas Patrick Wiseman
Length15h 28m
About this audiobook
Fabiola; Or, The Church of the Catacombs is a learned historical romance set in fourth-century Rome during the persecutions of Diocletian. Through the spiritual awakening of the aristocratic Fabiola and the witness of martyrs, confessors, slaves, and converts, the novel reconstructs the hidden life of the early Church in the catacombs. Its style combines antiquarian detail, melodramatic plotting, devotional rhetoric, and Catholic apologetic, placing it within the Victorian vogue for historical fiction while answering Protestant accounts of Christian origins. Nicholas Patrick Wiseman, later Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, was one of nineteenth-century England's most influential Catholic intellectuals. Educated in Rome and deeply versed in patristics, archaeology, and ecclesiastical history, he wrote the novel amid the Catholic revival following the restoration of the English hierarchy in 1850. His Roman training and pastoral desire to present Catholicism as ancient, heroic, and intellectually serious clearly shaped the book's imaginative world. Readers interested in Christian antiquity, Victorian religious culture, or the literature of Catholic identity will find Fabiola rewarding. Though its sentiment and moral clarity belong to its age, its vivid evocation of persecution, conversion, and communal courage remains compelling, especially as a window into how nineteenth-century Catholics interpreted the primitive Church.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
GenreChristian & Inspirational, Historical Fiction
Length15 hrs 28 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateDec 9, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
2Introduction
3Synopsis
4Historical Context
5PREFACE.
Show all chaptersShow less
6Part First.—Peace.
7CHAPTER I. THE CHRISTIAN HOUSE.
8CHAPTER II. THE MARTYR’S BOY.
9CHAPTER IV. THE HEATHEN HOUSEHOLD.
10CHAPTER V. THE VISIT.
11CHAPTER VI. THE BANQUET.
12CHAPTER VII. POOR AND RICH.
13CHAPTER VIII. THE FIRST DAY’S CONCLUSION.
14CHAPTER IX. MEETINGS.
15CHAPTER X. OTHER MEETINGS.
16CHAPTER XI. A TALK WITH THE READER.
17CHAPTER XII. THE WOLF AND THE FOX.
18CHAPTER XIII. CHARITY.
19CHAPTER XIV. EXTREMES MEET.
20CHAPTER XV. CHARITY RETURNS.
21CHAPTER XVI. THE MONTH OF OCTOBER.
22CHAPTER XVII. THE CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY.
23CHAPTER XVIII. TEMPTATION.
24CHAPTER XIX. THE FALL.
25Part Second.—Conflict.
26CHAPTER I. DIOGENES.
27CHAPTER II. THE CEMETERIES.
28CHAPTER III. WHAT DIOGENES COULD NOT TELL ABOUT THE CATACOMBS.
29CHAPTER IV. WHAT DIOGENES DID TELL ABOUT THE CATACOMBS.
30CHAPTER V. ABOVE GROUND.
31CHAPTER VI. DELIBERATIONS.
32CHAPTER VII. DARK DEATH.
33CHAPTER VIII. DARKER STILL.
34CHAPTER IX. THE FALSE BROTHER.
35CHAPTER X. THE ORDINATION IN DECEMBER.
36CHAPTER XI. THE VIRGINS.
37CHAPTER XII. THE NOMENTAN VILLA.
38CHAPTER XIII. THE EDICT.
39CHAPTER XIV. THE DISCOVERY.
40CHAPTER XV. EXPLANATIONS.
41CHAPTER XVI. THE WOLF IN THE FOLD.
42CHAPTER XVII. THE FIRST FLOWER.
43CHAPTER XVIII. RETRIBUTION.
44CHAPTER XIX. TWOFOLD REVENGE.
45CHAPTER XX. THE PUBLIC WORKS.
46CHAPTER XXI. THE PRISON.
47CHAPTER XXII. THE VIATICUM.
48CHAPTER XXIII. THE FIGHT.
49CHAPTER XXIV. THE CHRISTIAN SOLDIER.
50CHAPTER XXV. THE RESCUE.
The Search (Annotated)Grace Livingston Hill7h 29m$2 · $0.00
Dark RisingJeffrey Wilson, Brian Andrews13h 47m$27
Sniffing Out JusticeCarol J. Post6h 28m$12 · $0.00
Blizzard ShowdownShirlee McCoy5h 16m5.0 (1)$12 · $0.00
Love Inspired Suspense October 2025 - Box Set 2 of 2Laura Scott, Carrie Stuart Parks, Jennifer Pierce17h 34m$35 · $0.00
Arctic WitnessHeather Woodhaven5h 46m$12 · $0.00
Following the TrailLynette Eason6h 35m$12 · $0.00
Her Duty Bound DefenderSharee Stover6h 30m$12 · $0.00
Defending from DangerJodie Bailey5h 46m$24 · $0.00
Harvest of BlessingsCharlotte Hubbard9h 58m$20
Explosive RevengeMaggie K. Black6h 18m5.0 (1)$12 · $0.00
Martyr of the Catacombs (Annotated)James De Mille3h 55m$2 · $0.00
Search And DetectTerri Reed5h 51m$24 · $0.00
Danger in the WildernessDarlene L. Turner6h 54m$12 · $0.00
SHERLOCK HOLMES: Complete Novels & 48 Short Stories (Illustrated)Arthur Conan Doyle68h 26m$2 · $0.00
Yukon JusticeDana Mentink6h 15m$12 · $0.00
The Rogue WarriorCindy Roland Anderson5h 44m5.0 (1)$17 · $0.00
Christmas K-9 Patrol/Deadly Christmas Trap/Dangerous Holiday ManhuntLenora Worth, Lynette Eason6h 40m$24 · $0.00
Pacific Northwest K-9 Unit books 4-6/Olympic Mountain Pursuit/Threat Detection/Cold Case RevengeSharon Dunn, Jodie Bailey, Jessica R. Patch18h 19m$40 · $0.00
Faith AloneBo Giertz9h 29m$15 · $0.00
War LordBernard Cornwell13h 21m$33 · $0.00
Ivanhoe (Annotated)Walter Scott22h 52m$2 · $0.00
The Complete Jaipur TrilogyAlka Joshi33h 44m$53 · $0.00
The Count of Monte Cristo (With Original Illustrations)Alexandre Dumas54h$1 · $0.00
Scaramouche (Annotated)Rafael Sabatini15h 24m$2 · $0.00
Northern ShadowsDaniel Greene12h 52m$23
The Ghost by the Billabong (The Matilda Saga, #5)Jackie French14h 58m$33 · $0.00
With Fire and Sword (Annotated)Henryk Sienkiewicz36h 6m$2 · $0.00
The Labyrinth of the SpiritsCarlos Ruiz Zafon27h 55m$53 · $0.00
MusashiEiji Yoshikawa53h 20m$30
The Eighth Life (for Brilka)Nino Haratischwili41h 10m$53 · $0.00
War and Peace - The Unabridged Maude Translation (Annotated)Leo Tolstoy64h 48m$2 · $0.00
The Things We Cannot SayKelly Rimmer13h 48m$33 · $0.00
Their Castilian OrphanAnna Belfrage14h 45m$27
Lieutenant Hornblower (Annotated)C. S. Forester11h 41m$2 · $0.00
The Complete 13 Novels & longer fiction: Treasure Island, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Black Arrow, Kidnapped, The Master of Ballantrae, The Wrong Box and more...Robert Louis Stevenson106h 29m$1 · $0.00
Eagles over BritainLee Jackson12h 26m$23
Rilla of InglesideLucy Maud Montgomery11h 44m$2 · $0.00
The Viennese DressmakerKathryn Gauci11h 46m$23 · $0.00
The Man in the Brown Suit & They Came to BaghdadAgatha Christie15h 43m$33 · $0.00
You may also like
Our Churches and Chapels: Their Parsons, Priests, & CongregationsAtticus11h 32m$2 · $0.00
Folks from DixiePaul Laurence Dunbar4h 55m$2 · $0.00
Ruth (Summarized Edition)Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell4h 13m$2
Spindle CityJotham Burrello11h 21m$20
Adam BedeGeorge Eliot22h 17m$3.50 · $0.00
More BywordsCharlotte M. Yonge5h 24m$1 · $0.00
At His Gates (Annotated)Mrs. Oliphant20h 26m$2 · $0.00
Old New York (Annotated)Edith Wharton10h 20m$2 · $0.00
The Hunchback of Notre-DameVictor Hugo21h 32m$12 · $0.00
Charles Dickens: The Complete Novels (The Greatest Novelists of All Time – Book 1) (Annotated)Charles Dickens447h 4m$2 · $0.00
A Tale of Two CitiesCharles Dickens15h 1m$5 · $0.00
Love's labor wonEmma Dorothy Eliza Nevitte Southworth11h 44m$2 · $0.00
The Tenant of Wildfell HallAnne Brontë18h 52m$4 · $0.00
An Orkney MaidAmelia E. Barr3h 56m$1 · $0.00
Mademoiselle Olympe ZabriskiThomas Bailey Aldrich0m$2 · $0.00
Dickensian Inns & TavernsB. W. Matz5h 3m$2 · $0.00
TrumpsGeorge William Curtis17h 34m$2 · $0.00
Benjamin Franklin's BastardSally Cabot12h 25m$29 · $0.00
The Lost OrphanStacey Halls9h 51m$29 · $0.00
The BirthrightJoseph Hocking10h 17m$2 · $0.00