Onesiphorus (

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

: Ονησιφόρος; meaning "bringing profit" or "useful") was a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

referred to in the

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

letter of

Second Timothy The Second Epistle to Timothy is one of the three pastoral epistles traditionally attributed to Paul the Apostle.. Addressed to Saint Timothy, Timothy, a fellow missionary, it is traditionally considered to be the last epistle Paul wrote before ...

( and ). According to the letter sent by St. Paul, Onesiphorus sought out Paul who was imprisoned at the time in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Life

According to Orthodox tradition, Saint Onesiphorus was one of the

seventy disciples The seventy disciples (Greek language, Greek: ἑβδομήκοντα μαθητές, ''hebdomikonta mathetes''), known in the Eastern Christianity, Eastern Christian traditions as the seventy apostles (Greek language, Greek: ἑβδομήκον� ...

chosen and sent by Jesus to preach. They were chosen some time after the selection of the

Twelve Apostles In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minist ...

(Luke 10:1-24). St Onesiphorus was bishop at Colophon (Asia Minor), and later at Corinth. Both the Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches hold that he died a martyr in the city of Parium on the shores of the Hellespont.

2 Timothy

The persecution of Christians during

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68) was a Roman emperor and the final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 until his ...

’s reign made Rome a dangerous city for Christians. Paul praises Onesiphorus for his hospitality, kindness, and courage. Onesiphorus is contrasted with the other Christians in Asia who have deserted Paul at this time. In 2 Timothy 1:16-18, Paul sends a greeting to the man’s household in Ephesus and refers to the help he showed Paul earlier in

Ephesus Ephesus (; ; ; may ultimately derive from ) was an Ancient Greece, ancient Greek city on the coast of Ionia, in present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in the 10th century BC on the site of Apasa, the former Arzawan capital ...

. Timothy, who led the Ephesian church is familiar with these acts. Paul's praise of Onesiphorus is significant because it was written shortly before Paul's death as a final encouragement to Timothy. But now, at the time of correspondence, only "Luke alone is with (Paul)" (4:11). Because Paul speaks of Onesiphorus only in the past tense, wishes blessings upon his house (family), and mercy for him "in that

day A day is the time rotation period, period of a full Earth's rotation, rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours (86,400 seconds). As a day passes at a given location it experiences morning, afternoon, evening, ...

", some scholars believe that Onesiphorus had at this point died. Towards the end of the same letter, in , Paul sends greetings to "Priscilla and Aquila, and the house of Onesiphorus", again apparently distinguishing the situation of Onesiphorus from that of the still-living Priscilla and Aquila. Paul's reference to Onesiphorus, along with , is cited by Catholics as one of the early examples of

prayer for the dead Religions with the belief in a final judgment, a resurrection of the dead or an intermediate state (such as Hades or purgatory) often offer prayers on behalf of the dead to God. Buddhism For most funerals that follow the tradition of Chinese Bu ...

, while some Protestants opposing this practice reject such an interpretation. Remarkably, Onesiphorus made a 1000-mile journey, over three large bodies of water from one continent to another (from

(today: Turkey) to

(today: Italy)) — to specifically search for and find Paul in prison, so as to comfort him. He is commemorated on September 6 in Roman Catholic Church, and September 7 in Orthodox Church. He should not be confused with the Onesiphorus of Ephesus who was martyred with Porphyrius during the Diocletian persecution, and is commemorated on November 9.

References

External links

Sant' Onesiforo su santiebeati.it

St. Onesiphorus - Saints & Angels
Seventy disciples Saints from Roman Anatolia {{Christianity-bio-stub