"Paul and Silas bound in jail, all night long.
 Paul and Silas bound in jail, all night long.
 Paul and Silas bound in jail, all night long.
 Who shall deliver poor me?"

It was an old spiritual I learned years ago at a guitar workshop. It came to mind as I was checking out the website of St Paul's on K Street, a well-renowned Anglo-Catholic parish here in Washington. It seems that today is the feast of Saint Silvanus -- better known as Silas -- on the Anglican calendar. (He appears elsewhere on both the classical and reformed Roman calendars.) A companion of St Paul, Silas is mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles (15:22) as being one of the "leading men among the brethren" in Jerusalem. He is also believed to be one and the same with "Silvanus" mentioned in the second epistle to the Corinthians, both epistles to the Thessalonians, and the first epistle of Peter.

For what it's worth, "Silvanus" was also the name of the Roman god of the forests and fields.