Apostle Epaphroditus

Epaphroditus
Venerated in	Orthodox Church Catholic Church
Feast	22 March; 30 March (Orthodox)

Epaphroditus (Greek: Ἐπαφρόδιτος) is a New Testament figure appearing as an envoy of the Philippian and Colossian church to assist the Apostle Paul (Philippians 2:25-30). He is regarded as a saint of the Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church, first Bishop of Philippi, and of Andriaca (there are at least two ancient towns called Andriaca, one in Thrace and one in Asia Minor), and first Bishop of Terracina, Italy. There is little evidence that these were all the same man.

Epaphroditus appears in the New Testament in the letters to the Philippians (2.25-30, 4.18). This is a “common personal name”, being derived from Aphrodite meaning “lovely” or “charming”; moreover, the proper name is found in the papyri with alternative spelling (81-2 B.C.) – Epaphrodeitos, Epaphrodeiton. The name corresponds to the Latin Venustus (= handsome), and was very common in the Roman period. "The name occurs very frequently in inscriptions both Greek and Latin, whether at full length Epaphroditus, or in its contracted form Epaphras."Flavius Josephus describes a man by the name of Epaphroditus who was “a man who is a lover of all kind of learning”.

Its adjectival use is also evident in the papyrus from the late second century A.D., “during the delightful [te epaphrodeito] praefecture of Larcius Memor”.

Some link Epaphroditus with another proper name in the New Testament, Epaphras (Colossians 1.7, 4.12; Philemon 23), with the suggestion that the latter is a “contracted” or “pet form” for the Philippian envoy. However, this is a coincidence with no indication that it is the same person.

Epaphroditus was a fellow Christian missionary of St. Paul's and is mentioned only in Philippians and .

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Wikipedia