The guides of the Apostle Paul:
Timothy came from Lystra in Lycaonia (now part of Turkey). His father, who died early, was of Greek origin. His mother, Eunice, was Hebrew, and the family lived together with his grandmother, Lois. Timothy was intelligent and received a good education. He probably met the Apostle Paul when he visited Lystra during his first missionary journey to Asia Minor. They became better acquainted about three years later, in 50–52, when the apostle Paul reached Lystra again, as the Bible tells us: ‘The brothers in Lystra and Iconium spoke highly of Timothy, and Paul wanted to take him with him. Because of the Jews who were there, he had Timothy circumcised, for they all knew that Timothy’s father was a Gentile” (Acts 16:2–5).
Then he accompanied the Apostle Paul and carried out the tasks assigned to him. Paul names him at the beginning of some of his letters (as if they were written together – 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, 2 Corinthians, Col, Philippians, Philippians). Around the year 55, he was sent by Paul as a deacon to Corinth with the 1st letter. Paul also sent him with Erastus first to Macedonia, but he decided to go there later. Timothy then accompanied Paul to Achaia (in today’s southern Greece). After returning to Jerusalem together, Paul was imprisoned, taken to Caesarea and finally to Rome. Timothy helped Paul there and cared for him when he was sick. After Paul’s first Roman imprisonment, around 61-63, they undertook an apostolic journey together to Ephesus, where Timothy was tasked with leading the local church, where the dangerous spread of heretical teachings was growing.
Paul knew he could rely on him. How close he was to his heart is evident in his calling him his beloved son (see 1 Tim. 1:2). Their relationship is a beautiful example of fatherly guidance and trust that sustains the zeal of God’s servants.
During Paul’s second imprisonment in R,ome, Timothy was called to him again, but after Paul’s death he returned to Ephesus as bishop. According to some biographical accounts, which mention his martyrdom, he was beaten with rods and stoned to death around 97 AD. The reason was the spread of Christian doctrine and from pagan practices in honor of the god Dionysus.
Titus was a Greek born to pagan parents in the Syrian city of Antioch. He was probably baptised by the Apostle Paul, who became a close friend of his. Together with Barnabas, he accompanied Paul to the Apostolic Council in Jerusalem. On his third apostolic journey, Paul sent him from Ephesus to Corinth to restore order. In his second letter to the Corinthians, he wrote: ‘We urged Titus, who had begun this work of love, to complete it among you as well. But thanks be to God, who inspired Titus with the same earnest care for you!” (2 Cor. 8:6; 8:16).
The Apostle Paul appointed Titus as the first bishop of Crete, where morality was in decline and many were holding to the Gnostic heresy. In 65 CE, Paul sent him a letter in which he wrote about the qualities necessary for future priests and bishops, and how to lead the different groups of believers. During Paul’s second imprisonment, Titus worked as the first missionary in Dalmatia. In his letter to Titus, Paul refers to him as his son in the faith. The Greek Fathers praise Titus for his zeal, pure love, efforts to settle everything peacefully and his attitude towards poverty. He returned to Crete, where he died at the age of 94.
The two bishops celebrated together, Timothy and Titus, complete the work of the Apostle Paul as his faithful disciples. Timothy’s remains are kept in Rome and Titus’s in Crete.
RESOLUTION, PRAYER, Timothy and Titus, completed
