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Saint Barnabas was a Jewish Levite of Cyprus who became one of the earliest Christian disciples at Jerusalem. His original name was Joseph, but he was surnamed ‘Barnabas’ by the Apostles, which means ‘son of consolation’ (Acts 4:36). Barnabas introduced Saint Paul to the Apostles after Paul’s conversion (Acts 9:27). After inquiring into the situation at Antioch, where Christianity was being preached to Gentles on a new scale, Barnabas sent for Paul from Tarsus to accompany him on the ‘first missionary journey’ (Acts 13 and 14) which began with Cyprus. Although Saint Barnabas was originally the leader of the mission, Saint Paul soon overshadowed him and became the undisputed leader of the mission to the Gentiles. At the Council of Jerusalem, Saint Barnabas defended the claims of the Gentile Christians (Acts 15). Later, owing to a dispute over John Mark, Barnabas and Paul parted company, and Barnabas sailed for Cyprus. Saint Barnabas probably continued to travel widely throughout the region, since Saint Paul refers to him as one who was know to the Galatians, the Corinthians and the Colossians. Saint Barnabas is the traditional leader of the Cypriot Church. Legend has it that he was martyred at Salamis in AD 61. According to another tradition, he was one of the ‘seventy’ described in Luke 10. Still another tradition claims that he was the founder of the church in Milan and its first bishop. Tertullian, a Doctor of the Church, attributes to Saint Barnabas the authorship of the Epistle to the Hebrews, but that is unlikely. Thus, as we celebrate the life of our Patron, Saint Barnabas, we give thanks to God for the life and witness of this early Christian missionary to the Gentiles who has inspired mission work in the church throughout the centuries. - The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church |
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