Thecla, a Lioness, and Women of Antioch Team Up to Stifle Misogynists.

"A sketch of an episode from the apocryphal 'Acts of Paul and Thecla'. Basically Thecla, a groupie of St Paul, is thrown into the arena in Antioch. [Because she wouldn't couple with Alexander.] A notoriously fierce lioness, rather than making a meal of the Christian virgin, behaves more like a kitten. The next day in the arena the lioness fights against the other beasties in defence of said Thecla, which is all rather miraculous. 
Thecla had a bit of a rough ride, really, earlier on her own mother tried to have her burned to death! And Paul refused to baptize her, the sod, because she was too good looking and might yet yield to temptation! Anyway, she lives to get her clothes back and praise the Lord another day, unlike most of the real life Christian martyrs. I'm not sure the lioness has quite such a happy ending, and according to conventional theology it wouldn't even have gone to heaven."

Thecla and the Lions by ~dashinvaine