The Monastery of St Barnabas, Famagusta, North Cyprus
The monastery of St Barnabas was founded on the site of the apostle Barnabas, and is a reminder of the important role Cyprus played in the history of Christianity in the Mediterranean.

St Barnabas of Cyprus
Barnabas was born in Salamis, and joined the apostle Paul to spread the Gospel through Cyprus and Asia Minor. However, the two men split up over the objection to Barnabas's cousin Mark coming along too. In AD 75, the Jewish community in Salamis objected to his missionary work, and had Barnabas stoned to death. Mark rescued his cousin's body and buried it at a secret location.


St Barnabas Monastery Video
video by: TRNC Ministry of Tourism
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St Barnabas in North Cyprus; more influential dead than alive?
In the fifth century, the Church of Antioch tried to rule it over the church already established on Cyprus. The Cyprus church defended itself by claiming that since it was founded by a saint, it was equal in rank to the Church of Antioch, founded by Saint Paul. Problem was, there was no proof of this, until St Barnabas appeared in a vision to the Archbishop in AD477 and directed his to Barnabas' tomb. The Archbishop found the tomb exactly where the vision had indicated, complete with a skeleton clutching a copy of the Gospel of St Matthew, and so the Cyprus church was awarded special privileges.

The monastery of St Barnabas, North