Saint Publius History and tradition
According to Christian tradition , it was Publius who received Paul the Apostle during his shipwreck on the island as recounted in the Acts of the Apostles . According to the Acts of the Apostles, Paul cured Publius' dysentery -afflicted father.
"In the vicinity of that place were lands belonging to a man named Publius, the chief of the island. He welcomed us and received us cordially as his guests for three days. It so happened that the father of Publius was sick with a fever and dysentery. Paul visited him and, after praying, laid his hands on him and healed him. After this had taken place, the rest of the sick on the island came to Paul and were cured. They paid us great honor and when we eventually set sail they brought us the provisions we needed." — Acts 28:7–10, New American BibleHe was martyred around 125, during the persecution of Emperor Hadrian .[ 2]
Legacy
Veneration
His feast is celebrated on 22 January in the Catholic Church , which places him as the successor of Dionysius the Areopagite , dating his martyrdom to c. 112[ note 2]
Apart from being patron saint of Floriana , Publius is also one of the three patron saints of Malta, along with St. Paul the Apostle and St. Agatha of Sicily .
In the Eastern Orthodox Church , however, his feast day is observed on 13 March , and according to an epistle of Dionysius, Bishop of Corinth , he is placed as the successor of Narcissus of Athens , dating his martyrdom to the period of the persecution under Marcus Aurelius (r. 161–180[ 3]
Cultural Reemergence
In a 2025 article, James Aaron Ellul quoted historian Giovanni Bonello who highlighted how Gregorio Xerri’s post-1565 poem Inno della Vittoria elevates Saint Publius as a distinctly Maltese symbol of victory, bypassing the traditional emphasis on foreign religious figures. Bonello argues that this literary recognition initiated a cultural reclamation of Saint Publius, previously underrepresented in devotional and liturgical contexts. The article further notes contemporary calls—particularly marking ~1900 years since his martyrdom—to re-embed him in Malta’s national and ecclesiastical memory.[ 14]
Notes
↑ "+ c 112. Tradition identifies this saint with Publius, 'chief man of the island of Malta', who befriended St Paul after his shipwreck (Acts 28:7). He became the first Bishop of Malta and later Bishop of Athens , being martyred under Trajan."[ 1] ↑ "At Athens, the birthday of St. Publius, bishop, who, as successor of St. Denis the Areopagite , nobly governed the Church of Athens. No less celebrated for the lustre of his virtues than for the brilliancy of his learning, he was gloriously crowned for having borne testimony to Christ."[ 5]
References
↑ Publius 21 Jan .1 2 "Publius of Malta" . Catholic Online. Retrieved April 22, 2011 .1 2 3 Great Synaxaristes (in Greek) Ὁ Ἅγιος Πούπλιος ὁ Ἱερομάρτυρας Ἐπίσκοπος Ἀθηνῶν . ↑ Fr. Andrew Anglorus. Orthodox Europe: Orthodox Malta . 1 2 The Roman Martyrology . 21.↑ Malta, Times of (2007-06-22). "St Publius of Malta (1)" . Times of Malta . Retrieved 2025-03-09 . ↑ AnaStpaul (2024-01-21). "Saint of the Day – 21 January – St Publius of Athens (2nd Century) Bishop and Martyr" . AnaStpaul . Retrieved 2025-03-09 . ↑ "28 FLAT 2, TRIQ SAN PUBLIJU, SLIEMA | ICIJ Offshore Leaks Database" . offshoreleaks.icij.org . Retrieved 2025-03-16 .↑ "Category:Triq San Publiju (Rabat) - Wikimedia Commons" . commons.wikimedia.org . Retrieved 2025-03-16 .↑ "Triq San Publiju, Malta" . mt.geoview.info . Retrieved 2025-03-16 .↑ "How to get to Triq San Publiju, St Paul's Bay by bus?" . moovitapp.com . 2025-02-21. Retrieved 2025-03-16 .↑ "Triq San Publiju, In-Naxxar, Malta" . mt.geoview.info . Retrieved 2025-03-16 .↑ "Way: Saint Publius Street (22883201)" . OpenStreetMap . 2024-05-09. Retrieved 2025-03-16 .↑ Ellul, James Aaron (2025-05-04). "San Publju: Simbolu ta' Identità Maltija" . NETnews . Retrieved 2026-05-03 .
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