Saint Apostle Rufus
of the Seventy.

Little is known of Apostle Rufus's origins or early life before his calling. Apostle Rufus was one of the Seventy Apostles who was commissioned by Christ himself to preach the news of Him and establish the early church. The Seventy Disciples, referred to as the Seventy Apostles in Eastern Orthodox tradition, were a group of early Christian emissaries appointed by Jesus Christ and dispatched in pairs to various towns and places ahead of his ministry. Their primary roles encompassed preaching the coming of the Kingdom of God, healing the sick, and casting out demons, thereby laying the groundwork for nascent Christian communities and facilitating the expansion of the faith beyond immediate Jewish circles.

Rufus is traditionally recognized as the first bishop of Thebes in Boeotia, Greece, appointed after his work among the Seventy Disciples. According to the list of apostles and disciples attributed to the 4th-century church historian Dorotheus of Tyre, Rufus—whom Paul mentions in his Epistle to the Romans (16:13)—served as bishop of Thebes. In this episcopal role, he undertook the demanding task of establishing Christian faith and worship in a major center of Greek pagan culture.

Paul's greetings to Rufus in Romans 16 testify to his apostolic standing. His episcopal authority drew from his prominence in the New Testament, where Paul greets him as "chosen in the Lord." This designation underscores Rufus's election by God for apostolic service and his distinguished place in the early Church's hierarchy.

As bishop in the late 1st century AD, Rufus led the nascent Christian community in Thebes, a city steeped in Greek pagan traditions, contributing to its organization through teaching, baptisms, and the institution of early liturgical observances amid local resistance to the faith. Eastern Orthodox hagiography links this biblical Rufus to the bishop of Thebes, portraying him as a dedicated evangelist who endured persecution for his faith, though specific details of his martyrdom or later life remain sparse in surviving records.

The veneration of Apostle Rufus is central to the Orthodox commemoration of the Seventy. The Synaxis was established by the Orthodox Church to indicate the equal honour of each of the Seventy. They were sent two by two by the Lord Jesus Christ to go before Him into the cities He would visit (Luke 10:1). He is commemorated on January 4 (The Synaxis of the Seventy Apostles), together with the entire company of these apostolic disciples.

Rufus remains a model of faithful episcopal leadership in the early Church. His labors in Thebes, a major city of antiquity, helped lay the foundation for Christian presence in Greece, contributing to the Christianization of the Hellenic world.

Saint Apostle Rufus of the Seventy is honored in the Eastern Orthodox Church as one of the chosen disciples commissioned directly by Christ to preach the Gospel. He is numbered among the Seventy Apostles, a group sent to prepare the way for Christ's earthly ministry, as recounted in the Gospel of Luke.

He was bishop of Thebes in Greece, and is referenced in Romans 16:13. In his epistles, St. Paul greets him as "chosen in the Lord," indicating the deep respect and affection the Apostle held for him. According to the list of apostles and disciples attributed to the 4th-century church historian Dorotheus of Tyre, Rufus—whom Paul mentions in his Epistle to the Romans (16:13)—served as bishop of Thebes, demonstrating his prominence in the early Church.

As bishop in the late 1st century AD, Rufus led the nascent Christian community in Thebes, a city steeped in Greek pagan traditions, contributing to its organization through teaching, baptisms, and the institution of early liturgical observances amid local resistance to the faith. Eastern Orthodox hagiography links this biblical Rufus to the bishop of Thebes, portraying him as a dedicated evangelist who endured persecution for his faith, though specific details of his martyrdom or later life remain sparse in surviving records.

His feast day is April 8. He is also commemorated on January 4 (The Synaxis of the Seventy Apostles), when the Church honors all the Seventy Disciples together for their essential role in the expansion of early Christianity.