Saints Timothy and Titus, Bishops – Readings

Commentary on 2 Timothy 1:1-8 or Titus 1:1-5; Luke 10:1-9

The Gospel reading speaks of the instructions that Jesus gives to 72 disciples as he sends them out on a mission to do the same work that he himself is doing. His opening words are as true now as they were in the days of Timothy and Titus:

The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.

Further instructions gave warnings of the dangers that disciples would encounter in spreading a message of love and peace and fellowship. They were also to travel with the very minimum of bag and baggage, and not to be choosy about the places where they were offered hospitality.

Their message was to be one of healing. Not just physical healing but healing of all kinds, a making whole of people’s lives and of relationships. In doing this, they were bringing the Reign of God into the places where they visited. For it is love and peace and an ability to live together in mutual care and support that are the marks of God’s Reign in our lives.

This was what Timothy and Titus devoted their lives to doing. We—whatever our status in the Christian community—are called on to do exactly the same.

There is a choice of First Readings: the first is from the Second Letter to Timothy and the other from the Letter to Titus.

As mentioned above, these two letters are purported to come from the hand of Paul, but recent studies suggest that they are from a later hand, although they surely reflect Paul’s thoughts and feelings.

In the passage from the Letter to Timothy, Paul expresses his deep affection for Timothy, his companion on many missions, and a strong desire to see him. He thanks God for Timothy’s faith, which he owes to his Jewish mother Eunice and grandmother Lois. At the same time, he reminds Timothy of the gift he received when Paul laid his hands on him. That gift, says Paul, was not one of timidity but one of power, love and self-control, bringing with it the courage of witnessing to the gospel even when, as in Paul’s case, it involved persecution and suffering. Like Paul, Timothy was to rely:

…on the power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling.

In the alternative reading from the Letter to Titus, Paul reminds his fellow missionary of the duties of an apostolic person. It is:

…to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness…

In the case of Titus, Paul reminds him that he has been sent to Crete to set up the Christian communities in each town, appointing an elder or presbyter as a leader in each one. Titus’ role was one of episcopus or ‘overseer’, to coordinate the Christian witness of these communities, making of them a community of communities, united with Christ and with each other.

In a way that is highly relevant for Church life today, the three readings suggest both the dynamic and essentially apostolic nature of Christian witness, and how it is to be exercised in a community setting.

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Saints Timothy and Titus, Bishops

Timothy was born at Lystra, in the province of Pisidia (modern Turkey). He was the son of a Greek father and his mother, Eunice, was a convert from Judaism. When Paul preached at Lystra during his first missionary journey in the area, Timothy joined him and replaced Barnabas, with whom Paul had some differences over Barnabas’ cousin,  John Mark.

Timothy soon became a close friend, confidant and partner of Paul in his missionary apostolate. In order to placate the Jewish Christians, Paul agreed to Timothy’s being circumcised. This was because Timothy’s mother had been Jewish and, for the Jews, it was the religion of the mother which was decisive. Timothy then accompanied Paul on his second missionary journey (Acts 16:1—18:22).

When Paul was forced to flee Berea, in northern Greece, because of the hostility of the local Jews, Timothy stayed on (Acts 17:13), but soon after he was sent to nearby Thessalonica to report on the condition of the Christians there, and to encourage them under persecution. This report led to Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians when he joined Timothy at Corinth in southern Greece.

In 58 AD, Timothy was sent with Erastus north to Macedonia, but then went south to Corinth to remind the Corinthians of Paul’s teaching. He then accompanied Paul into Macedonia and Achaia. They were probably together when Paul was imprisoned at Caesarea and later in Rome. He was himself also imprisoned, but then freed.

According to tradition, Timothy went to Ephesus in western Turkey, became its first bishop, and was stoned to death there when he opposed the pagan festival of Katagogian in honour of the goddess Diana.

There are two letters reputedly written by Paul to Timothy, one written about 65 AD from Macedonia and the second from Rome, while Paul was in prison awaiting execution. Commentators today doubt (on the basis of style and content) that Paul could have written these letters. Nevertheless, they do reflect his teaching.

Titus was a disciple and companion of Paul, and one of Paul’s letters is addressed to him. Again, modern commentators doubt if Paul was really the writer, as it was common in those days for writings to carry the name of a well-known person as the author.

In the letter, Paul refers to Titus as “my true child in the faith we share”. Although not mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles, Titus is mentioned in the Letter to the Galatians (2:1-3), where Paul writes of going to Jerusalem with Barnabas and Titus.

Titus was then sent off to Corinth in southern Greece, where he successfully restored harmony between that Christian community and Paul, its founder, who had some differences with them. Titus was later left on the island of Crete to help organize the Church there, although he soon went to Dalmatia, in Croatia.

According to Eusebius of Caesarea in the Ecclesiastical History, Titus served as the first Bishop of Crete. He was buried in Cortyna (Gortyna), Crete. His head was later transferred to Venice at the time of the Saracen invasion of Crete in year 832 and enshrined there in St. Mark’s Church.

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