Syntyche

Greek slave. She flees her master Valerian, a Roman "cruel and disgusting" member of the Proconsul's entourage. She is taken in near Caesarea Maritima by Jesus. She knows Jesus: He had spoken to the galley slaves.

Character and appearance

Maria Valtorta says of her that she is not a genuine beauty: She has a more harmonious body than face.

"But it is the gaze that draws attention," she continues: "an intelligent, open, deep gaze that seems to absorb the world, sorting it, retaining what is good, useful, holy, and repelling what is evil. If it is true that the gaze allows one to know a person, I say that Sintica is a woman of sound judgment, of firm thoughts, and honest." 聽 聽

Apostolic journey

She becomes a disciple. Her culture and intelligence endow her with exceptional qualities:

"She is worth a hundred Disciples for holiness and her aptitude to understand the supernatural," says the Virgin Mary who instructs her. 聽 聽 聽 聽

Her culture and insight shine through when she describes her faith journey before the apostles, then in a letter she writes from Antioch in Syria where she had to exile. 聽 聽

Indeed, Judas Iscariot secretly denounced the outcasts of Jesus' entourage to the Sanhedrin: her, a fugitive slave, John of Endor, also a fugitive galley slave turned disciple, and Hermasteus the Philistine disciple who was not circumcised.聽

She was discreetly hosted with John of Endor at Mary's home in Nazareth. Torn-hearted, she had to take refuge with John of Endor in Antioch of Syria, in one of the houses Lazarus owned. 聽 聽

There they founded a Christian community. John becomes a tutor. Sintica uses her gifts in embroidery and a miraculous ointment that the Virgin Mary entrusted to her.

After the death of John of Endor, she finds refuge in the house of Zeno the Greek. Her apostolate becomes even more active, as Lazarus reports upon returning from a trip to his properties:

"She has a small school very frequented by girls of all backgrounds. But in the evening, she takes with her some poor mixed-blood girl who therefore belongs to no Religion, and she instructs them about You," he says to Jesus.
I said to her: 'Why don’t you proselytize? That would help you a lot.'
She replied: 'Because I do not want to devote myself to those of Israel, but to the empty altars waiting for a God. I prepare them to receive my Lord. Then, once His Reign is established, I will go to my Homeland, and under the sky of Hellas, I will spend my life preparing hearts for the masters. That is my dream. But if I die earlier of illness or by persecution, I will also go happily, for it will be a sign that I have accomplished my work and that He has called to Him His servant who loved Him from the very first encounter."'

She receives in Antioch the visit of the risen Jesus. She was preparing to return to Galilee to have a clear mind about the conflicting rumors on the Resurrection of Jesus.聽聽聽聽聽聽

Her name

Sintica (Syntiché) means "she who has luck, who is favored by fortune".

Where is she mentioned in the work?

GRM 154
GRM 254 GRM 255 GRM 282 GRM 283 GRM 285 GRM 286 GRM 287 GRM 289 GRM 290 GRM 292 GRM 293 GRM 294
GRM 302 GRM 303 GRM 304 GRM 306 GRM 307 GRM 310 GRM 311 GRM 312 GRM 313 GRM 314 GRM 315 GRM 316 GRM 318 GRM 319 GRM 320 GRM 321 GRM 322 GRM 323 GRM 324 GRM 366 GRM 384
GRM 425 GRM 427 GRM 437 GRM 440 GRM 440 GRM 441 GRM 461 GRM 492
GRM 515 GRM 566 GRM 579 GRM 596 GRM 598
GRM 632

Learn more about this character

Saint Syntyche is celebrated on July 22.

She is mentioned in the letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians as a distinguished Christian. He urges her to agree with Euodia (Felicity) on a matter the content of which is unknown. He testifies that both struggled with him for the proclamation of the gospel. 聽 聽

The recall Paul makes of their mutual agreement, says Benedict XVI, suggests that the two women held an important role within that community.

The letter to the Philippians is one of Saint Paul's most affectionate and tender letters. It was written either in Ephesus in 56, or in Rome in 63. 聽 聽 聽 聽

It is assumed that Paul met Syntyche during his stay in Antioch of Syria in 43/44. The third metropolis of the empire already had a flourishing Christian community when they arrived. It then grew considerably with Paul and Barnabas.

Syntyche would thus have followed Paul during the missionary journeys of the apostle in Greece, her homeland. This return is mentioned by Maria Valtorta. 聽

Similarly, the description of her role aligns with what hagiographers say: Like them, Saint Syntyche gave hospitality to the first Disciples. By supporting their preaching, she prepared a great number of people to receive baptism at the hands of Saint Paul. 聽 聽 聽

She died in Philippi in 78, in advanced old age. Her body would rest in Philippi, Macedonia.

Notes and references

Note: Quotations from the work of Maria Valtorta on this page currently use machine-translated text and will gradually be replaced by the official English translation. Until then, the official translation may be consulted through the reference link provided with each quotation.

Authors who write about the life and deeds of saints.