By Lambros Skontzos
On February 13, our Church celebrates the holy memory of two important saints of the apostolic era, Aquila and Priscilla. These two sacred spouses constitute for our Orthodox Church the true version of what the commercialized “Saint Valentine” is said to offer on February 14. The late Archbishop Christodoulos had proposed to replace Valentine's Day as a “festival of lovers” brought from the cacodox “Christian” West with the feast of Saints Aquila and Priscilla.
This sacred couple is mentioned many times in the epistles of the Apostle Paul, who contributed greatly to the missionary work of the Apostle to the Gentiles. They were of Jewish origin and initially lived in Rome. They practiced the profession of tentmaker, manufacturing special fabrics for tents. However, in 49 AD Emperor Claudius (41-54 AD) expelled the Jews from Rome on the grounds that they were arguing about a certain “Christ.” This testimony, which is important for the early Church, clearly shows the persecution that the Jews had proclaimed against the Christians. It also seems that Aquila and Priscilla had heard about the new faith, which they liked. From Rome they found themselves in Corinth, the great multinational city of Achaia, which rivaled Rome in moral corruption, practicing the lucrative profession of tentmaker.
In 51 AD, the Apostle Paul came to Corinth, during his 2nd apostolic tour, where he met the pious couple in the synagogue. This meeting is mentioned in the 18th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles. They were apparently the first to believe and be baptized by Paul, whom they hosted for 18 months in their home. Paul also worked with them, who was, as is known, also a tentmaker. Aquila and Priscilla became Paul’s valuable collaborators in Corinth. Through them, he met and catechized the Jews of the city, as well as many Gentiles, creating one of the most powerful churches of the apostolic era.
After Paul’s departure, they decided to migrate to Ephesus, the most famous city in Asia Minor, which was a center of letters and arts, but also steeped in much idolatry, due to the worship of Artemis, in the magnificent sanctuary there. They considered it their duty to become preachers of the gospel, as they were taught by the Apostle Paul. But the obstacles were great in the idolatrous city, where the pagan priests reacted with particular ferocity against the new faith, which deprived them of income from the Temple of Artemis. They incited the superstitious masses to attack Christians and especially preachers and teachers. From a testimony of the Apostle Paul (Rom. 16:3) it appears that in Ephesus the sacred couple suffered from the fury of the pagans and the Jews. In Ephesus they also met the fiery preacher from Alexandria, the philosopher Apollos, who had a distorted perception of Christianity. The sacred couple helped Apollos come to know the true faith.
In 68 AD, Aquila and Priscilla returned to Rome, where they joined the Church to serve it. They did not cease to preach with fervor and zeal wherever they were. A multitude of Jews and Gentiles believed in Christ and were added to the Church. The early Christian text Apostolic Constitutions states that Aquila was ordained by Paul as Bishop "of the provinces of Asia,” without specifying the exact city. Ancient tradition states that both Aquila and Priscilla met with martyrdom and were added to the myriad of Martyrs of the ancient Church. With their honorable blood they sealed their devotion to Christ and their attachment to His holy Church. For this reason they were included in Her list of saints, to be honored forever for their holy lives and the valuable work they offered during that difficult time for the spread and consolidation of the new faith.
The Apostle Paul speaks in his letters with great tenderness and love about this sacred couple. This shows that they were two wonderful and beloved spouses, who had a complete awareness of marital faith and love. He asks the Christians of Rome to greet the sacred couple in a special way: “Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their own necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles and the church in their house” (Rom. 16:3-4). That is why our Church has distinguished in their persons the ideal spouses. The sacred couple Aquila and Priscilla are a model of an ideal and blessed marital union, to which modern spouses can aspire.
The Westernized Valentine as a “Saint of Lovers” is a caricature of commercial consumption, a non-existent saint, a fabrication of unscrupulous merchants, to deceive naive romantics. On the contrary, Saint Aquila and Saint Priscilla are real and living saints of our Church, who protect pious, honest, devoted and loving spouses. We should honor them as Orthodox Christians and not the ridiculous so-called Valentine, the supposed patron of erotic sexism and hypocrisy, without meaningless material gifts and flowers, which quickly wither, to our loved ones, but with practical and unadulterated love, which never withers!
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
