Apostle of the Seventy Silas, Apostle of the Seventy, Bishop of Corinth

The Apostle Silas (Silvanus) of the Seventy, Bishop of Corinth, was one of the closest companions of the Apostle Paul during his missionary labors of the mid-first century. He first appears in the Acts of the Apostles as "a leading man among the brethren" in the Jerusalem church; together with Judas Barsabas he was sent by the Council of Jerusalem (c. 51 AD) to Antioch to deliver the council's decision that Gentile converts need not be circumcised. Silas then remained with Paul and accompanied him on his second missionary journey through Syria, Cilicia, and Macedonia. At Philippi the two apostles were seized, beaten, and imprisoned, from which they were miraculously freed by an earthquake, an event that led to the conversion of their jailer. Silas is also named as co-author with Paul of both Epistles to the Thessalonians. According to church tradition he was later consecrated bishop of Corinth, where he preached the word of God with great zeal, worked numerous signs and wonders, and peacefully departed to the Lord. The Apostle Silas is commemorated individually on 30 July / 12 August, and again on 4/17 January together with the Synaxis of the Seventy Apostles.