Apostle and Martyr Aquila, and Priscilla
Commemorated on February 13
Aquila and his wife Priscilla (or Prisca) were Jews from
Pontus who settled in Rome, where they worked as tent-makers. When the Emperor
Claudius expelled all Jews from Rome in 49-50, they moved to Corinth. (They may
already have been Christians; at that time the Empire made no distinction
between Christians and Jews.) In Corinth they hosted the Apostle Paul, who lived
and worked with them for awhile (Acts 18:1-3). They worked diligently with the
Apostle, traveled with him, and were considered worthy to bring Apollos
(December 8) to a full knowledge of the Faith (Acts 18:26)
Priscilla and Aquila returned to Rome around 58, and later went to Ephesus;
they were living there when St Paul asked his disciple Timothy, Bishop of
Ephesus, to greet them (2 Tim. 4:19). It was probably in Ephesus that they were
martyred by the pagans.