Celebrating Friendship with Aquila and Prisca  

“After these things Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.  And he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, having recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. He came to them, and because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and they were working, for by trade they were tent-makers.  And he was reasoning in the synagogue every Sabbath and trying to persuade Jews and Greeks.”
 —Acts 18:1-4

Today we celebrate the lives of Aquila and Prisca, whose profession as tentmakers brought them in contact with the Apostle Paul. When Paul arrived in Corinth, he befriended this Jewish couple, and for a period of time, they worked together creating tents. Tent making at this time required a particular variety of mountain goat with long black hair. The weaving of this goat hair/cilicium and the use of goat hides provided a type of black tent that would create coverage in winter and shade from the penetrating summer sun. The trade of tentmaking required materials, location, tools, and buyers. Tent makers found business in the cities bustling with energy, commerce, and the needs of those in caravans-merchants and Roman soldiers.  

There is a shared geographical place of origin between Paul and Aquila. Aquila was from Pontus, a region in Turkey. Paul was a native of Tarsus, another region in Turkey. Their kinship is linked not only in their Jewishness and traditions, but as members of the Jewish diaspora living outside of Israel. They likely spoke Hebrew and Greek.  

It is from this passage in the Acts of the Apostles that the modern colloquialism of “tentmaking” has its beginning. When present-day ministry workers ask the question, “How am I going to make a living?”, often the Church responds by paying for salaried ministerial professionals. But ministry workers may also have a secular employer to make ends meet. These ministry workers, because of their “tent making,” are said to be bi-vocational.  

When Silas and Timothy arrive in Corinth to meet with Paul, they find that he has relocated to a place closer to the synagogue where he can dedicate his time to teaching and preaching exclusively. His friendship with Aqulia and Prisca will continue, even when Paul begins his expansive missionary journeys. Aquila and Prisca are mentioned six times in the New Testament (Acts 18:2, 18, 26; Romans 16:3; 1 Corinthians 16:19; 2 Timothy 4:19). It is in his letter to the Corinthians that Paul writes the iconic verses “Love is patient, love is kind” and “Love never ends.” It is with warmth and feeling that he shares this passage on what true love and devotion are. 

If you have ever lived in another country as an expatriate, you know how comforting it is to share foods and traditions from your home country. There is something very familiar about connecting with people from your homeland when abroad. There isn’t a language barrier to overcome, and in a sense, life becomes easier and more relaxed. Aquila and Prisca are Jewish, and Paul shares this commonality with them. They will all understand the calendar of High Holy Days and Feast Days, perhaps even celebrating some of them together. Aquila and Prisca would have been mindful of the Sabbath.  Unlike the Gentiles, Paul moves easily through their kosher home. 

Formational ministry and Sainthood, for that matter, in my opinion, do not occur in a vacuum. Paul left his sister and nephew in Jerusalem, as well as his respected life as a Pharisee. While on his new life in ministry, God’s greater family circle includes Aquila and Prisca. He has said of them, Greet Prisca and Aquila, my coworkers in Christ Jesus, who risked their necks for my life, to whom not only I give thanks but also all the churches of the Gentiles (Romans 16:3-4).

Paul could rest in their hospitality as the familiar touchstones were shared with him. Granted, Paul testifies that he has been “sent to the Gentiles” to share the message of salvation. As a well-trained rhetorician, he was adept at engaging in highly sophisticated forms of scriptural debate and demonstrating through several languages that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. But he is still a man who has the basic human needs of food, shelter, companionship, and a trusting environment without fear or betrayal. Paul needs emotional support and rest. I believe Aquila and Prisca, when in Corinth, Ephesus, and Rome, were there for him.  

Do you have friends’ or relatives’ homes that provide emotional support and safety?

Take time to thank them today.

For further reading, The Apostle: The Life of Paul by John Pollock, particularly Chapter One “From the Land of Black Tents.”