APOSTLE PHILIP OF THE SEVENTY

Holy Philip the Deacon should be distinguished from another Philip, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus, especially mentioned in the first chapter of the Gospel of John. Philip was one of the seven deacons mentioned in the Book of Acts and the Epistles. In the Orthodox understanding, Philip was one of the Seventy Apostles. It was he who baptized the “servant of the Queen of Ethiopia”—the event from which the Ethiopian Church traces its origins. Philip, a deacon and evangelist, is commemorated on October 24 (11).

1 The event of the election and ordination of seven deacons is described in the book of Acts, chapter 6, verses 1 through 6. As if continuing the symbolism of the number seven, this story about the seven deacons takes up exactly seven verses. The purpose of their appointment was “to provide for the daily distribution of necessities” (6:1), that is, in modern language, charity and social service.

2 The decision on the election was made by the Twelve Apostles themselves (6:2). The criteria for election were as follows: 1) Experience; 2) The gift of the Holy Spirit; 3) Wisdom. When Scripture says that candidates for election must be “filled with the Holy Spirit,” it refers to personal holiness, not the objective sanctification that is conferred later through the laying on of hands when ordaining to the sacred orders of the Church.

3 The word “deacon” in Greek means servant. The Church Fathers were not unanimous in their opinion as to whether this diaconate was the beginning of the diaconate as a sacred degree, which subsequently spread throughout the Church, or whether it was a unique and unrepeatable appointment that took place only in the Acts. Be that as it may, some ancient Churches for a long time elected only seven deacons, from whom the future bishop was chosen.

4 According to the Book of Acts, the names of those chosen were: 1. Stephen; 2. Philip; 3. Prochorus; 4. Nicanor; 5. Timon; 6. Parmenas; 7. Nicolas. In this list, Stephen is first and Philip is second, which is very significant because it reproduces the traditional apostolic dyad of evangelism: James and John during the Lord’s earthly life, Peter and Paul after Pentecost. The deacons were chosen by the Apostles, among whom was Philip, one of the Twelve. It turns out that, by the will of the Holy Spirit, he chose his namesake.

5 Stephen was destined to become the prototype of Christian holiness as a martyr-preacher. Philip became a model of a family evangelist. “The next day Paul and we who were with him went out and came to Caesarea and entered the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the seven deacons, and stayed with him. He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied,” Luke writes in Acts (Acts 21:8–9). This was the end of Paul’s third missionary journey, as he was then heading to Jerusalem.

6 It was in Philip’s house that a Christian prophet named Agabus prophesied that the Holy Spirit had foretold that in Jerusalem Paul would be bound by the Jews and handed over to the Gentiles (Acts 21:21). Tradition has preserved the names of Philip’s daughters: Hermione, Caritina, Iraida, and Eutychiana. They are also mentioned as saints in the Orthodox liturgical calendar. On the day of remembrance of the evangelist, those who bear these names can remember in whose honor they are named and, together with the Church, honor their memory.

7 According to ancient church tradition, Saint Philip ended his days peacefully, like the ancient biblical righteous men. According to Jerome, the “House of Philip” with windows for each of his virgin daughters was preserved as a place of pilgrimage in Caesarea in Palestine. Another tradition says that he was also bishop of the city of Tralles, now Aydın in Turkey, where four centuries later the famous Anthemius of Tralles (474-558), a great mathematician and architect, was born, who, together with Isidore of Miletus, built the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. Being a native of such an ancient ecclesiastical metropolis, it is obvious that he also revered Saint Philip and was inspired by his image.