Ariston of Smyrna ( el, Άριστον, Latin: ''Aristo Smyrnaeus''), also known as Ariston the Elder ( hy, Արիստոն էրիցու.),
was an
Early Christian
Early Christianity (up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325) spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and beyond. Originally, this progression was closely connected to already established Jewish centers in the Holy Land and the Jewish d ...
,
Bishop of Smyrna
The Metropolis of Smyrna ( el, Μητρόπολη Σμύρνης) is an ecclesiastical territory (diocese) of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, modern Turkey. The Christian community of Smyrna was one of the Seven Churches of Asia, me ...
(modern
İzmir, Turkey), who allegedly was an eyewitness and disciple of
Jesus of Nazareth
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
and a companion of
John the Elder.
Personal Information
Ariston, or Aristion, is known from early traditions (preserved by
Papias of Hierapolis) as an elder from whom Papias learned apostolic traditions. Aristion is identified in
Ado of Vienne (874 CE) as "one of the seventy-two disciples of Christ."
Very little details are know about his life,
Papias, then, inquired of travelers passing through Hierapolis what the surviving disciples of Jesus and the elders—those who had personally known the
Twelve Apostles—were saying. One of these disciples was Aristion, and another was
John the Elder, usually identified (despite Eusebius' protest) with
John the Evangelist, residing in nearby
Ephesus
Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἔφεσος, Éphesos; tr, Efes; may ultimately derive from hit, 𒀀𒉺𒊭, Apaša) was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in t ...
, of whom Papias was a hearer;
[Irenaeus]
''Adv. Haer.'' 5.33
4. The original Greek is preserved apud Eusebius
1. Papias frequently cited both.
[Eusebius]
7, 14. From the daughters of
Philip
Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...
, who settled in
Hierapolis
Hierapolis (; grc, Ἱεράπολις, lit. "Holy City") was originally a Phrygian cult centre of the Anatolian mother goddess of Cybele and later a Greek city. Its location was centred upon the remarkable and copious hot springs in classica ...
, Papias learned still other traditions.
[Eusebius]
''Hist. Eccl.'' 3.39
9. This close association with John could mean that Ariston too was young during Jesus's ministry.
However his name is not mentioned in any later tradition of the
Seventy disciples.
Relation to the Gospel of Mark
One Armenian manuscript, Matenadaran 2374 (formerly known as Etchmiadsin 229), made in 989, features a note, written between Mark 16:8 and 16:9, ''Ariston eritzou,'' that is, "By Ariston the Elder/Priest". Implying that the authorship of the
long ending of Mark would be traditionally attributed to this first century Bishop. This would explain why Church Fathers like
Irenaeus of Lyon already received the longer ending as canonical part of the Gospel. Others contest this association and claim that this could well refer
Ariston of Pella
Ariston of Pella ( grc-gre, Ἀρίστων; la, Aristo Pellaeus; c. 100 – c. 160), was an apologist and chronicler, who is known only from a mention by Eusebius that "as Aristo relates" in connection with accounts of emperor Hadrian and Simon ...
another unknown Ariston instead.
References
{{reflist
Church Fathers
People from İzmir
1st-century bishops in Roman Anatolia
Ancient Smyrnaeans
1st-century Romans
Eastern Orthodox bishops of Smyrna