Saint Publius

Saint Publius (; ) is a first century Maltese Saint. He is venerated as the first Bishop of Malta and one of the first Bishops of Athens. St. Publius is Malta's first acknowledged saint, the prince of the island (). According to Maltese Christian tradition, Publius' conversion led to Malta being the first Christian nation in the West. His feast day is celebrated by the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, of which the traditions related and the day of celebration differ.
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.
Apart from being patron saint of Floriana, Publius is also one of the two patron saints of Malta beside Paul. He was martyred c. 125, during the persecution of Emperor Hadrian, and canonised in the year 1634.
His feast is celebrated on January 22, in the Roman Catholic Church, which places him as the successor of Dionysius the Areopagite (Denis the Areopagite), dating his martyrdom to c. 112 AD.
In the Orthodox Church, however, his feast day is observed on March 13, and according to an epistle of Saint Dionysius, Bishop of Corinth, he is placed as the successor of Saint Narcissus of Athens, dating his martyrdom to the period of the persecution under Marcus Aurelius ().
Contemporary historians, such as Professor Godfrey Wettinger, have made it clear, that in his opinion, there is no physical proof that Paul ever was in Malta, other than in pseudo-Maltese history dating from the 11th to the 18th centuries. It is also well established that the island was conquered by the Muslims between 870 and 1091, during which period it also spent years uninhabited; meaning Christianity in Malta is not rooted on Publius and Paul as it is not of continuous tradition. The Acts of the Apostles (Chapter 28) does specifically mention Malta in connection with Paul's voyage and shipwreck, however, the Pauline Mythology commonly presented as historical 'fact' in Malta, is rooted in religious views, specifically that of the Roman Catholic Church which is very powerful on the island. It is held that Publius converted to Christianity after his father was cured of fever and dysentery by Paul, however the Bible does not mention that Publius ever converted.