The Holy Apostles of 70 Aristarchus, Pud and Trophim.

In 67 AD, during the persecution of Christians by Emperor Nero, three of the seventy followers of Christ were executed — Aristarchus, Pud and Trophim. They shared the fate of the Apostle Paul.

All three belonged to the circle of the twelve apostles. Aristarchus, the future bishop of Syriac Apamea, accompanied Paul on missionary journeys and is mentioned in Acts and Epistles. Pood, a Roman senator, provided his home for gatherings of believers. There he erected a church known as the “Pastoral Church”; according to legend, the Apostle Peter served there. Trophim, a native of Edessa, was a disciple and a constant companion of Paul, sharing the persecution with him.

The execution took place simultaneously with the execution of the Apostle Paul. Their names are preserved in the texts of the New Testament: Pud and Trophim are mentioned in the Second Epistle to Timothy, Aristarchus in Acts and other books.