St. Barnabas the Apostle

Joseph, a Levite of Cyprus, whom the Apostles called Barnabas, son of encouragement. He sold a field and laid the money at their feet, and when Paul came to Jerusalem a convert no one trusted, it was Barnabas who took him by the hand to the Apostles. He fetched Paul to Antioch, and the two of them sailed to Cyprus on the first journey, where the proconsul believed. They parted over John Mark, and Barnabas took Mark home to Cyprus. By tradition he was stoned at Salamis. In 478 his tomb was found with a copy of Matthew’s Gospel on his breast, and on the strength of it the emperor confirmed that the Church of Cyprus, founded by an Apostle, owed nothing to Antioch: its autocephaly rests on this grave. Feast: June 11.