Saint Manahen was a teacher of the Church of Antioch and the foster brother (Gk

Greek language

Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...

. syntrophos, Vulg

Vulgate

The Vulgate is a late 4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. It was largely the work of St. Jerome, who was commissioned by Pope Damasus I in 382 to make a revision of the old Latin translations...

. collactaneus) of Herod Antipas

Herod Antipas

Herod Antipater , known by the nickname Antipas, was a 1st-century AD ruler of Galilee and Perea, who bore the title of tetrarch...

.

Little is known of Manahen's life. He is said to be one those who, under the influence of the Holy Spirit

Holy Spirit

Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...

, laid hands upon Saul

Saul

-People:Saul is a given/first name in English, the Anglicized form of the Hebrew name Shaul from the Hebrew Bible:* Saul , including people with this given namein the Bible:* Saul , a king of Edom...

 and Barnabas

Barnabas

Barnabas , born Joseph, was an Early Christian, one of the earliest Christian disciples in Jerusalem. In terms of culture and background, he was a Hellenised Jew, specifically a Levite. Named an apostle in , he and Saint Paul undertook missionary journeys together and defended Gentile converts...

 and sent the two Apostles on the first of St. Paul's missionary journeys (Acts

Acts of the Apostles

The Acts of the Apostles , usually referred to simply as Acts, is the fifth book of the New Testament; Acts outlines the history of the Apostolic Age...

 13:3). Since St. Luke was an Antiochene, it is not unlikely that Manahen was one of "the prophets and doctors" of the Church of Antioch was one of the "eyewitnesses and ministers of the word" (Luke 1

Luke 1

Luke 1 is the first chapter of the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It describes the events leading up to the birth of Jesus. It is written to Theophilus, who could be a real person or could simply mean a fellow Christian as theo philus is Greek for God lover...

:2), who delivered unto Luke the details which that sacred writer has in regard to Antipas and other members of the Herodian

Herodian

Herodian or Herodianus of Syria was a minor Roman civil servant who wrote a colourful history in Greek titled History of the Empire from the Death of Marcus in eight books covering the years 180 to 238. His work is not entirely reliable although his relatively unbiased account of Elagabalus is...

 family (Luke 3

Luke 3

Luke 3 is the third chapter of the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It contains an account of John the Baptist as well as a Genealogy of Jesus.- John the Baptist :...

:1, 19, 20; 8:3; 9:7-9; 13:31, 32; 23:8-12; Acts 12). He may have become a disciple of Jesus

Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...

 with "Joanna, the wife of Chusa, Herod's steward" (Luke

Gospel of Luke

The Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...

 8:3).

In A.D. 39, Antipas left for Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

 to gain the favor of Caligula

Caligula

Caligula , also known as Gaius, was Roman Emperor from 37 AD to 41 AD. Caligula was a member of the house of rulers conventionally known as the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Caligula's father Germanicus, the nephew and adopted son of Emperor Tiberius, was a very successful general and one of Rome's most...

, but instead received an order of perpetual exile. (Jos., "Ant.", XVIII, vii, 2). During this time, the Church of Antioch was founded by Jewish Christians

Jewish Christians

Jewish Christians is a term which appears in historical texts contrasting Christians of Jewish origin with Gentile Christians, both in discussion of the New Testament church and the second and following centuries....

, who "had been dispersed by the persecution that arose on the occasion of Stephen" and had taught the Gospel also to the Greeks

Greeks

The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

 of Antioch, (Acts 11:19-24). It is quite likely that St. Manahen was one of these founders of the Antiochene Church.

His feast day is celebrated on May 23

May 23 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

May 22 - Eastern Orthodox Church calendar - May 24All fixed commemorations below celebrated on June 5 by Old Calendarists-Saints:* Holy Myrrh-bearer Mary, the wife of Cleopas, aunt of Jesus...

 in the Orthodox Church and on May 24 in the Roman Catholic Church

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

.