Holy Apostle Aquila of the Seventy — July 14 / July 27 (Julian Calendar)

On this day, July 14 according to the Julian Calendar (July 27 civil calendar), the Georgian Orthodox Church commemorates Holy Apostle Aquila of the Seventy.

The Holy Apostle Aquila of the Seventy was, as the book of Acts describes him, ‘a Jew, a native of Pontus’ (Acts 18:2). He and his wife Priscilla (Prisca) had been living in Rome, but were expelled from the city when Emperor Claudius (41–54) banished all Jews from the capital.

The couple traveled to Corinth, where they met the Apostle Paul, who was himself a tentmaker by trade as they were. Paul stayed with them and worked alongside them. This encounter changed their lives — they became devoted disciples and co-workers of the great Apostle.

When Paul departed from Corinth, Aquila and Priscilla accompanied him as far as Ephesus, where they remained for a time. There they met the eloquent Alexandrian preacher Apollos, who knew only the baptism of John. They took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately (Acts 18:26), deepening his understanding of the Christian faith.

Aquila and Priscilla appear repeatedly in Paul’s letters as trusted co-workers. Paul calls them his ‘fellow workers in Christ Jesus, who risked their own necks for my life’ (Romans 16:3–4). A church met in their house (1 Corinthians 16:19).

After many years of missionary labor alongside Paul — in Corinth, Ephesus, Rome, and elsewhere — the holy Apostle Aquila was martyred for the faith. The Orthodox Church venerates him among the Seventy Apostles and commemorates his feast on July 14 according to the Julian Calendar.