Biography of Saint Paul of Tarsus Who was he? history

Saint Paul of Tarsus was a Christian apostle who spread the message of Jesus after he appeared to him and gave him a message, learn about the life and work of this interesting character through this article.

Saint Paul of Tarsus

He is considered one of the pioneers of Christianity for taking ideas to the highest levels during the first years of the first century, despite being a great critic of Christianity at the beginning of his life, later with the presence of Jesus, he passed to be one of the great preachers of the word of the Lord.

The appearance of Jesus to Saul of Tarsus allowed after his conversion to promote and develop Christianity beyond the Roman borders, he traveled through large regions such as Asia Minor, Palestine, Greece where he preached the para and published interesting epistles that later provided the basis for the creation of a stable Christianity.

Paul of Tarsus, was also called “The Apostle of the Gentiles”, “The Apostle of the Nations” and ” Saint Paul the Apostle ” founded countless Christian communities in regions where Roman governments prevailed, evangelized in large cities that had Jewish ideas and non-believing populations, such as Antioch, Corinth and Ephesus, wrote various canonical articles that laid the foundations for the foundations of Christianity.

He is one of the most influential spiritual figures in history, despite his Jewish roots, he was always linked to Hellenic culture and is closely related to human activities, this helped him form various Christian communities in cities where power was found. of the roman empire

The Pauline epistles are considered the most relevant texts that determine the life of a Christian and the creation of a spiritual movement that has lasted for centuries.

He was a great missionary who traveled large areas near the Mediterranean where he convinced many people to believe in the holy word of Jesus, but let’s see step by step how the life of this great Christian apostle was.

Where was he born?

Saint Paul was born between the year 5 and the year 10 of our era, in the region of Tarsus, current Turkey, which at the time was the capital of the province of Cilicia, on the southern coast of what is now Turkey, although not Specific records are obtained, however in the content of the Epistle Philemon, Paul declares himself old, by then it was the end of the year 50 AD in Asia Minor.

So that at that time old age was declared when a person was 50 years old or older, so it is estimated that Paul was born in the first century, approximately in the year 10 of our era, so that Jesus was contemporary.

Regarding the place of birth, it is known that it was in the city of Tarsus, so in his natural language it was Greek, however there are no records in his epistles that refer to that language, since for many he used the so-called la Septuagint, which was a Greek translation of biblical texts, widely used by Jewish communities

Curiosities of his name

He was given the name of Saul, which translated from the Jewish means Paulo or Pablo, he never tried to change the name with which his parents gave him at birth, this name has an interesting meaning, for the Jews it means “Invoked”, “called”, in some epistles you can see how he calls himself Paulus, which was his real Roman name, which translated means “Little” or “little”.

In Apostle, it can be seen how he appears called Pablos, which can also be seen in his letters written in Greek, likewise in the epistles of Peter and in the Acts of the apostles, that name is used, but before verse b of ” Acts” is called in its Greek form “Saoul” and “Saulos”, which in Hebrew means “Called” or “asked”.

In Hellenic historical times, people had the tradition of using up to two names related to the original, let us remember that despite being born in Tarsus, a region dominated by the Romans but with Jewish spiritual influence.

So the name Paulas used in many writings of the gens Emilia (group of Roman families that used the name of Emilio or Emilis that left many historical references).

There are many versions that seek to justify and describe why the variant ways of naming Paul of Tarsus in various ways, it is believed that due to his Jewish, Greek, Hellenic and even Hebrew Roman connections, only his name was used in order to describe who he had written some content, depending on the language and which cultural region he had elaborated.

Likewise, Paul of Tarsus himself in his Auto denominations, establishes his name according to the language and place where the epistles were written, also the translations have placed in the writings, the translation of the name Paul according to the characteristics of translation in the language.

With all this way of describing the name, it is important to mention that Pablo generally used his birth name Paulas, which had been assigned when he was born in Tarsus, and we clarify that everything related to the name is done in order to avoid historical doubts with with respect to other peoples that appear in Christianity.

That is why the allusion is made to the name of Paul of Tarsus, instead of the single and unique name, let us remember that at the beginning of our era, cultures have very varied traditions, the Jews had the power to change and duplicate their names, different from the Romans who used up to three names.

These differences for the granting of the name are totally different from how they are used at this time, Paul of Tarsus reflects the place where the apostle was born, so that each person was called by a name and a place or ‘region was assigned to him. place a reference and avoid duplicating them.

They make up a kind of surname that could even be changed when the person himself decided, but with the consent of the Roman or Jewish authorities, this topic of names was very extensive and large numbers of lines have been devoted to it in order to clarify some doubts and confusions that can be generated when translating certain important writings.

Biography

Knowing how was the way in which Paul of Tarsus acquired his Roman nationality, carries a relevant analysis, the information provided regarding this topic is found as a reference in the Acts of the Apostles.

That is where Paul’s problems are described, however no Roman citizen could be beaten or mistreated, so if Paul was beaten then he was not considered a Roman.

However, Paulus was a distinctly Roman name, however some historians claim that Paul was the son of descendants of freedmen, who had inherited Roman citizenship, therefore he was considered to belong to that nationality.

early years

The historical references about his first years of life are very limited and the few that are obtained contain somewhat imprecise data, it is only known that he was the son of Hebrew parents who belonged to the tribe of Benjamin, in the book of the Acts of the Apostles I, it is described that Paul was educated in Jerusalem and instructed under the care of Rabbi Gamaliel, who was considered one of the wise teachers of teaching, he was a Pharisee

Pupil of Gamaliel

Like the references regarding the first years of life, his educational process also does not present more information, the specialists point out that Pablo received his education in the same city of Tarsus.

Later he had moved to Jerusalem, which was a tradition and way of educating his children in many regions, in order that they could be instructed in everything related to the Law and regulations.

In Jerusalem he was at the “feet of Gamaliel I the Elder, open-minded authority”, textually from the book of Acts and the Pauline letters. Which indicates that Paul was surely training to be a rabbi, but there is no verification to show that this had to be true.

All the stories regarding the education of Saint Paul of Tarsus are established in different books, although with some inaccuracies, historians have concluded that he alternated his studies between Jerusalem and Tarsus.

how roman

In the book of Acts of the Apostles there are no precise details regarding the true nationality of Paul, however it is presumed that because he was not beaten or punished by the Roman authorities during his apprehension, it is believed that he may have had said nationality .

But in Corinthians, Paul himself describes that he was beaten but does not indicate by whom, while other historians suggest that after his arrest, he was transferred to Rome for trial, which is a clear demonstration that Paul was a Roman citizen, at Jews had Roman law applied to them in a different way.

Other historians allege that apart from being a Jew, Saint Paul of Tarsus also had Roman citizenship, since he was a descendant of some freedmen (slaves who have been granted freedom (manumission), especially to designate the gladiators led by the emperor, after coming out victorious in great battles in amphitheaters) his parents had relatives slaves and gladiators.

the pharisee

Like his doubts regarding Roman citizenship, the discussions regarding Saint Paul of Tarsus having allegiance to the Pharisees extends into various criteria, in the Epistle of the Philippians, there is a description regarding how Paul was received for the process during birth let’s see:

“Circumcised the eighth day; of the lineage of Israel; of the tribe of Benjamin; Hebrew and son of Hebrews; as for the Law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecutor of the Church; as for the justice of the Law, blameless.”

Some historians consider that this account is after the year 70 AD, which indicates that it would be impossible that it was referring to the circumcision of Paul, a large number of studies found after certain analyzes of the Bible, establish that it is impossible that Paul of Tarsus He was a Pharisee, since in his Pauline letters there was no resemblance to any trait related to rabbinic activities.

However, something interesting is reported in the book of Acts, let’s see:

“All Jews know my life from my youth, from when I was in the bosom of my nation, in Jerusalem. They have known me for a long time and if they want they can testify that I have lived as a Pharisee according to the strictest sect of our religion.”

With this it is proven that there is no doubt that Saint Paul of Tarsus was truly Jewish, but his status as a Pharisee remains questionable and in doubt, until we know or find another reference that says otherwise.

Emotional situation

The texts included in Corinthians establish that when Saint Paul of Tarsus wrote one of his first letters around the year 50 AD: it is evident that he was not married, but he does not verify if he had maintained a relationship or had been widowed, at that time the deaths of women during pregnancy they were very frequent, we know that due to the conditions and the lack of current medical advances.

There are two positions regarding the marital status of Paul of Tarsus, the first considers that Paul remained single all his life, but not necessarily because of his pilgrimage and religious activities. However, the other version establishes that he could have been married and later widowed.

This last position is based on various contents where a different position is observed with respect to the attitude of the rabbis, that is, it is stated in an existing account in Corinthians:

“I say to singles and widows, ‘it’s good that you stay as I am’”

What can be classified as widowed or single, but it is believed that he may have been married if we take into consideration his widowed or separated status, and that certain Italian historians established that Saint Paul of Tarsus may have been married and later separated.

In one of his epistles, Paul himself establishes the so-called “Pauline privilege” which is a right that any Christian person has to break the marriage bond, when one of the parties is unfaithful, and the living conditions together cease to be peaceful. 

Although not necessarily when describing this privilege, Paul is referring to a situation lived by himself, historians consider that from his own experience, Paul of Tarsus used this condition to establish that regulation towards all Christians.

The conversion

It is important to remember that Saint Paul of Mark was a persecutor of the followers of Jesus, and according to what is related in the Acts of the Apostles, a situation is established that totally changed the life of this important character.

According to the book, after the martyrdom of Stephen, Paul traveled to Damascus, in order to take the letters that he had requested from the High Priest in Jerusalem to arrest and lead the men and women followers of Jesus to Jerusalem.

On the way to, a very bright light came from the sky, and when he touched the ground, a voice was heard that said to him: “

“Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? He replied: “Who are you, Lord?” And he: I am Jesus, whom you persecute. But get up, he enters the city, and you will be told what you must do.”

The people who went with Saul were impressed, because they did not see anything but they heard the voice, Saul got up from the ground and although his eyes were wide open he could not see anything, the companions took him by the hand and had to help him get to his house, since he could not walk, where he spent three days and three nights without eating, drinking or being able to look at anything.

Paul details in his epistles the event as a vision, an appearance of the risen Jesus, he also describes it as a revelation of Jesus Christ and the gospel. But an important fact is that Saul never describes it as conversion, since the Jews establish this concept when someone abandoned pagan idols to worship a true God.

He will speak of conversion at that time was not relevant, since Christianity did not yet exist as such, so that getting the term conversion in the Bible is impossible, what is important are the details that Saul himself says regarding the revelation of Jesus.

After the event lived on the road to Damascus, one of his friends named Ananias, cured him of his blindness through the laying on of hands, later Paul was able to be baptized and remained in Damascus for several days.

Later when he had recovered his sight, Pablo retired to the desert in order to reflect on the thoughts that were going through his mind, he needed solitude and silence to give shape and meaning to what he had lived. On his return to Damascus he was attacked by radical Jews, so he had to flee hiding in a basket, and there he was found by some Christians who took him to Jerusalem,

There he contacted the heads of the Church, Peter and the rest of the followers of Jesus, however there was still the memory that many had about being the persecutor of those who believed in Jesus, Barnabas who was a relative of his received him and took him to the nearest Christian community

When he returned to tarsus again in the year 40 approximately, he began to preach the word of Jesus until in the year 43 he returned to Jerusalem in search of his relative Barnabas, and when he saw the devotion of Saint Paul, they decided through the first Christian communities send him to Antioch (current Syria), in order to work on the pilgrimage and preaching in that place.

The conversion of Saint Paul of Tarsus is described in the epistle of the Galafas in the following way, but it is not referred to as a conversion but rather as a revelation or event, let us see:

“[…] because I did not receive it or learn it from any man, but by revelation of Jesus Christ. For you are aware of my former conduct in Judaism, how fiercely I persecuted the Church of God and devastated it, and how I surpassed many of my contemporary countrymen in Judaism, surpassing in zeal for the traditions of my fathers.”

“But when He who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me by his grace, saw fit to reveal his Son in me, so that I might announce him among the Gentiles, immediately, without asking advice neither to the flesh nor to blood, without going up to Jerusalem where the apostles before me, I went to Arabia, from where I returned again to Damascus. Epistle to the Galatians 1, 12-17

The chapel of Saint Paul of Tarsus is located in the ancient city of Damascus and historians say that it was the place where Paul was rescued by the disciples of Jesus when the Jews were persecuted and tried to flee to Jerusalem

In the first Epistle of the Jews the following is described:

“And in the last term the risen Christ appeared to me also, as to an abortive one.”

There have been refutations and investigations regarding the physical problem and clinical picture that Saint Paul of Tarsus presented, after the appearance of Jesus, in the year 1950, some researchers suggested that the problem had really risen a picture of Epilepsy accompanied by temporary blindness.

Others explained that it was a diagnosis of central scotoma, a diagnosis that according to Pablo suffered for some years, several additional versions were presented such as occlusion of the vertebrobasilar artery, occipital contusion, secondary vitreous hemorrhage with retinal tear, Digitalis poisoning, or ulcerations (burns) of the cornea. And it was even said that the injury was caused by lightning.

The important thing is that the story is true according to many scriptures and that doubting the credibility of this conversion of a person who was an enemy of the nascent Christians to later be one of their spiritual leaders and the most influential for the evolution of this spiritual current.

his great ministry

After the conversion due to the appearance and revelation of Jesus, Saint Paul of Tarsus dedicated himself to establishing his ministry as a missionary and preacher of the word of Jesus Christ, he took his word and his message to all the regions of Damascus and Arabia, this activity He allowed her to start chasing him.

Then the escapes began, recounted in the Epistle of the Galatians where he visits Peter and Santiago, as you had said taken by Barnabas, there together with the other apostles he receives all the information regarding their experiences with respect to Jesus, Saint Paul of Tarsus, I tell you about what I experienced and began a truly beautiful story of pilgrimage and devotion.

His stay in Jerusalem was very short, since he was fleeing from the Jews who persecuted them for treason and for simply preaching his word of Jesus, he was taken to Caesarea Maritima, and later took refuge in Tarsus, his hometown, it is not known. In addition, how long did he stay in that city? Some say that he lasted there for several years.

His knowledge of Christianity began when Barnabas took him to Antioch after having talked with the Apostles, and it is believed that from that moment “Christianity” was born, so that Antioch was the center of conversion of the first Christians in the world.

His travels as a missionary

It was the year 46 AD when Saint Paul of Tarsus began his great pilgrimage to other regions, carrying the word of Jesus and convincing non-believers of the glory of the Lord, although there were several trips made by Paul, historians have assumed that really made three great trips.

importance of travel

The transfer of travelers at the time was generally done on foot, few used beasts, if anything to carry their goods and belongings, Saint Paul of Tarsus made long walks taking with him a series of pilgrims and helpers who followed them on their great journey .

Each trip was an adventure, where by sea and by land Paul had to face major difficulties, in a story described in Corinthians, Saint Paul of Tarsus himself explains everything he had to go through.

“I have been in danger of death many times. Five times I received from the Jews forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I suffered shipwreck; I spent a day and a night in the abyss.”

“Frequent trips; river hazards; highwayman hazards; dangers of those of my race; dangers from the Gentiles; dangers in the city; dangers in uninhabited; dangers at sea; dangers between false brothers; work and fatigue; sleepless nights, many times; Hunger and thirst; many days without eating; cold and nakedness.”

“And apart from other things, my daily responsibility: concern for all the Churches. Who faints without me fainting? Who suffers scandal without me embracing?

In these trips we observed that as he was a victim of the criminals that he found along the way, especially in rural areas, likewise the trips by sea applied all kinds of crossings facing the winds and waves that put his life at risk.

In regions like Ephesus, Saint Paul of Tarsus pretended to be a Jew, carrying a kind of bag on his shoulder, which was what identified the Jews of that region. It is interesting to describe that not only the physical effort that he made to take the word of Jesus to all the corners of the nascent Europe had as much value as the ideas that he carried in his mind to convince thousands of non-believers.

These trips represent a spiritual development and growth of Christianity in the world, beginning thanks to the perseverance of Saint Paul of Tarsus, a spiritual era that will mark the life and history of the human being.

The first trip

Antioquia had a religious and spiritual stability related to Christianity that allowed to establish conditions and plans to promote ideas in other regions, the Church of Antioquia represented the center of control and operation of the nascent Christian idea.

From there Saint Paul of Tarsus and Barnabas departed for the first time, accompanied by Juan Marco (Cousin of Barnabas), the story tells according to Acts of the Bible, that Barnabas directed the mission, they left from the region of Seleucia, port of Antioch towards the island of Cyprus, the birthplace of Barnabas, passed through the island from Salamis to Pafos on the west coast of Cyprus.

San Pablo de Marcos managed to establish contact with the Roman authorities in the Paphos region, specifically with Sergio Paulo, who was a believer in Jesus, but nevertheless one of his aides and magicians named Elymas tried to convince him that they did not profess those ideas.

Paul expressed himself about this magician in the following way: “Full of all deceit and all wickedness, son of the Devil and enemy of all justice”, so that he left Elymas blind. The proconsul Sergio Paulo, observing what happened, was impressed and his faith in Jesus grew enormously, promising him spiritual and material help in his crusade.

From there they left for the region of Perge, located in Pamphylia, a region near the coast of central Asia Minor, in this place an event occurred that is described in a story that is printed in “Acts of the Apostles”, where it is also Saul begins calling Paul.

However, the commitments of Juan Marcos made him have to return to Antioquia and San Pablo De Tarso would remain at the forefront of the mission. Together with Barnabas they continued forward, but this time by land, trying to reach Antioch, a region located in southern Galatia, which had important cities such as Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe in its surroundings.

Among the rules to impose the order that Paul had established during the trip, they highlighted preaching first to the Jews who he supposed were more prepared to receive the message.

In “Acts of the Apostles”, situations of denial and opposition are recounted that those of his race received, when Paul tried to give them the message of Jesus. This situation forced Paul to turn to the Gentiles and pagans, who received him with open arms.

Both then decided to embark towards Atalia, in Pergee where for a time he was preaching and convincing many towards the belief of Jesus.

The Epistles reveal very little about this first trip of Saint Paul of Tarsus and Barnabas, they do mention how he preached to the Gentiles, prior to the famous council of Jerusalem that would take place later.

After the first trip, the most important meeting that would lead to creating the foundations of Christianity, called the Jerusalem Council, took place, but let’s see what this meeting consisted of.

council of jerusalem

When Paul had finished his first mission called by then the “Pauline Mission”, in some regions there were differences in the way Paul and Barnabas were carrying out the preaching, so that a conflict arose with the so-called Judaizers, who were preachers who carried out their labor solely for the purpose of seeking salvation.

This led Paul and Barnabas, after their return from the first trip, to be sent to Jerusalem to file the criteria and establish a communion and unify the criteria. Several followers and preachers established in Antioch also traveled with them.

The idea was to consult the Apostles and elders regarding this issue, so that they could resolve the differences. For Paul it was his second visit to Jerusalem after his conversion, so it was the year 49 AD when this council of Jerusalem was held.

Paul’s intervention activated his own conversion in him and brought about in public debate how to instruct to admit circumcision.

In the Epistle to the Galatians and in the Book of Acts, this intervention is outlined, which allowed giving form and name to the so-called conciliabulum known as the Council of Jerusalem, where Paul’s position prevailed over the Jewish rites that applied in Christian religious traditions.

From that moment, the council began to take shape with the aim of liberating Christianity from the primitive traditions of Jewish origin, the movement began to be modern, as well as its ideas which were more credible by many people, it separated from the early and ancient Jewish ideas and traditions.

Solving the problem of differences, Paul insisted on the inability and ineffectiveness of Jewish cultural practices, which included other traditions apart from circumcision, such as observance, where a reflection is raised in which, man is not the one who achieves his own justification as a result of the observance of the divine Law, but it is the sacrifice of Christ that justifies him gratuitously.

Antioch dilemma

The salvation of man is a free gift given by God to all human beings, with this conclusion Paul ended his reflection to form the “Council of Jerusalem”, from where other meetings would later take place, however Paul’s approaches caused stir throughout the early Christian movement.

After their return to Antioch, Paul and Barnabas together with the new Christians began to practice actions unrelated to Judaism or rather to the Jews, an example of this was sitting down to eat with the Gentiles, which was a very uncomfortable practice for everyone. they.

Simón Pedro did not believe that traditionalism in customs should be modified, however in Galatians it is appreciated how the differences began to flourish: “Simón Pedro having eaten with the Gentiles, he abandoned this practice before the arrival of men from Santiago who presented objections to that praxis.”

Paul recognized the position of Peter, who was the pillar of the Jerusalem Church, so he resisted certain ideas raised by Paul, however, he warned Peter that he was violating the basic principles and did not agree with the foundations of the true gospel.

For many it was a rivalry of criteria rather than personal differences, for Paul, Peter’s attitude was considered to go against everything related to the gospel, minimizing the importance of faith and leaving aside his own teacher.

This conflict had enormous consequences, in The Epistles to the Galatians the following can be read:

“Barnabas also took a position in favor of the men of James, and this could be an additional reason for the separation of Paul and Barnabas, as well as the departure of Paul from Antioch in the company of Silas.”

As we can see, the differences were never reconciled and this allowed Saint Paul of Tarsus to continue separately with his pilgrimage task from the nascent Christianity, in which, as we will see later, many had to adopt due to the great influence of Paul.

the second trip

This second crossing of Saint Paul of Tarsus took place between the years 50 and 53 AD. He visited many Christian communities that were in Antioch, which had been formed years ago. On this trip he was accompanied by Silas, a devout and great apostle who helped the Christian cause alongside Paul.

Their objective was to reach Syria and Cilicia, and then pass through Derbe and Lystra, both French cities south of Galatia, in the region of Lystra Timothy joined them, and together with him they continued towards Phrygia where they finally reached the north of Galatia. and there they were able to found many Christian communities.

All this information is offered by the content established in the Epistle to the Galatians, where the illness that Paul suffered while crossing the northern region of Galatia is even described, however this did not stop the Apostle and he was able to found the first Christian communities of Galatians .

Later he left for Mysia and Tríade, where he was joined by Lucas, with whom he later decided to go to Europe in order to found the first Christian Church in that region, specifically in Macedonia, where various ecclesiastical communities were created that served to carry out the mission of evangelization in charge of the Philippi communities.

This earned him the apprehension by the Roman authorities who flogged him and took him to prison, however his sentence was short. Later he went to Thessalonica, where despite his short stay, he took the opportunity to evangelize almost every day, but could not form any Christian community, due to differences with the Jews.

In this region he received much opposition and obstruction from the Jewish community. On his way out of Thessalonica he diverted his way and headed for Greece, fleeing Jewish persecution, where he had even received death threats.

He passed through Berea and arrived in Athens, where he made great efforts to conquer the Greeks, who at the time were considered very intelligent and creative in all their actions of social and spiritual life. Paul gave a very interesting speech at the Areopagus, where he spoke about the gospel of the risen Jesus.

Once this stage was completed, he went to Corinth, where he remained for more than a year and a half, he was received by Aquila and Priscilla, a Christian Jewish couple who had been expelled from Rome for their spiritual revolutionary ideas, these two friends were very faithful to Paul during the rest of his life.

On his way through Ephesus, Paul was arrested and taken to the court of Galio, who was at that time the proconsul of that city, in addition to being the brother of the famous philosopher Seneca, it is believed that due to this arrest, Saint Paul of Tarsus wrote his first Epistle, is considered the oldest written document of the New Testament.

Saint Paul of Tarsus began his activities as a writer in that region, he sent the second Epistle together with the first to the Thessalonians, in them he describes to the faithful about the parousia or second coming of Christ, as well as the resurrection of the flesh, We can say then that Paul’s presence in the Greek regions meant great importance for European Christianity.

the third trip

This third trip of Saint Paul of Tarsus takes place between the years 53 and 54 AD, he began by visiting the most important communities of Asia Minor, later continuing with Macedonia and Achaia, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves and see the process step by step.

Considered the most complex and difficult of all, despite after everything that had happened, it meant the hardest and most suffered mission of this apostle, among his actions is having received the strongest opposition he has ever seen, so impressive were these aversions that Paul himself called “Fieras”.

All this overwhelmed him in a considerable way, where in addition the conflicts that occurred in the newly formed communities of Galatia and Corinth were joined, for which he had directly, appear in person and intervene directly in order to maintain equal criteria and eliminate differences. 

From Antioch Paul undertook his march towards the North of Galatia and Phrygia, in order to confirm his presence and demonstrate the loyalty and fidelity of Christian beliefs, later he continued to Ephesus, where he tried to establish the headquarters of his mission, there began a process immense mission of evangelization throughout Asia Minor, together with a team of faithful who always followed him.

His evangelization began with the Jews established in that area, he directed his sermons and words in the various synagogues where the Jews were, he used the “School of Tyrant” for the first time as a place of preaching.

One of the great schools of Jewish teaching and where Paul by his influence was able to enter and address many Jews. However, some historians consider that Saint Paul of Tarsus never used these schools, but that he was only in other schools created and directed by himself, and also near the theater in question.

These centers were small places called Pauline schools of theology, created by Paul himself. Daily between 11 in the morning and 4 in the afternoon, he taught the word of Jesus, which for many would be the beginning and beginning of Christian catechesis.

Ephesians, Paul dedicated himself to writing the Letters to the Churches of Galatia, specifically addressed to the Judaizers who opposed him, demanding the circumcision of the Galatian Christians of Gentile origin: The letter is really a manifesto of Christian freedom to oppose the claims of the Judaizers who were in those churches.

These letters were very successful in the Galatian communities. Later, news was heard of certain problems that arose in the Church of Corinth, where some of the faithful of the community opposed Saint Paul of Tarsus himself. The problems really were of doctrine and ideas.

This motivated Paul to write four Epistles, of which only two are preserved today, although historians consider that these two letters are the fusion of the four Epistles, their content is based on criteria and warnings to the Corinthian community, against the divisions created within it.

First letter to the Corinthians

In the first letter, the cases of scandals are criticized, such as the incest-type conjugal union and the practice of prostitution, however after the presence of these letters, the community continued with its problems, even reaching violence where certain entire groups called rebels oppose the Paulines.

Second and third letter to the corinthians

This gave rise to the elaboration of the second letter that for some is merged with the third and is currently one of the fragments that can be read in Corinthians, a description of the situation that Paul found when Corinth arrived, the Church was in revolt against the.

Although he tried to calm things down, the situation was quite complex, in this letter he shows his pain at the way things had been approached, the differences were abysmal and it was hard to reconcile between the adversaries.

Fourth card to the sets

Also called the letter of tears, Saint Paul of Tarsus writes this letter in order to send an apologetic message in his defense against his adversaries, the content is emotionally charged.

During his 3-year stay in Ephesus, they are narrated in Acts in some stories regarding the clashes between Paul and the exorcists, sons of Jewish priests who had some power and influence in the city, this situation was called “The revolt of the silversmiths”, which consisted of an uprising provoked by Demetrius, a recalcitrant Jew who had mixed with the Christians to cause problems.

For them, the goddess Artemis was the most revered and they based their religious ideas on her, which establishes a contraction with respect to the ideas raised by Paul. The preaching of the apostle would have irritated Demetrius, who made small silver shrines copying that of Artemis of Ephesus, with no small profit for himself.

Although there is no verification of the following where Paul was supposedly arrested and imprisoned in Ephesus due to these conflicts, some consider that the Epistles to the Philippians and the Epistle to Philemon were written during that time. Later Paul went to Corinth, being his third visit to that city, he stayed three months in the region of Arcaya.

There he wrote the last epistle or letter, which is preserved in the Vatican library, called Epistle to the Romans, it is dated in the year 55 AD, it expresses the clearest testimony about the presence of the Christian community in Rome, in addition It is considered as “Paul’s testament”, where the Apostle describes how he would undertake his journey to Rome, Hispania and the West.

However, one of his predominant ideas was to return to the holy land, among his proposals there was the one that he considered the beginning of the pastoral and merciful activities of Christians, the collection of money among all Christian churches in order to buy food and equipment for the poor of Jerusalem.

At the time of undertaking the march towards Corinth to have Syria as a goal, he discovered a move by the Jews who intended to trap and imprison him, for which he had to return by land accompanied by some disciples from Berea, Thessaloniki, Derbe and Ephesus.

There he headed towards Tróade, skirting the coast of Asia Minor, sailing from the island of Chios to the island of Samos to later reach Mileto. In the church of that city he gave a beautiful speech addressed to the elders of the Church of Ephesus, many people gathered who were amazed at his wisdom and teaching.

Later he set out for Cos and Rhodes in order to reach Jerusalem, where he was finally able to deliver the collection that he had so much proclaimed. Despite this arrival in the holy land was not the most pleasant for the apostle, he had the presumption that he would be persecuted once again by the Jews.

Paul was wondering what would be the reaction of the Christian communities established in Jerusalem after the various conflicts that occurred in Corinth. Another issue that concerned him was how the so-called collection would be distributed.

Let us remember that it was a titanic mission, mobilizing so many people in various places for the collection, which represented a fact of greater importance.

This lack of control and administration with respect to what was collected in the various Churches resulted in Paul not dissolving the misgivings that existed in the communities of Jerusalem, in addition to not participating or intervening directly in the preaching.

This third trip, despite being one of the most complicated for Paul, was the most beneficial for the future of Christianity. Firm criteria were established that would allow giving concepts and content to the faithful and the rest of the communities throughout Europe for many years. and Asia Minor.

the persecutions

From his conversion and until his last years of life, Saint Paul of Tarsus had to live with the situation of being persecuted, by different races and religious radicals, as well as by Roman politicians, he was imprisoned and harassed many times, his conviction and his ideas based on Jesus allowed him to keep him alive for many years.

He went from being a persecutor to being persecuted, when he met the first Apostles of Jesus, he had the ability to convince them about what he had received from the Lord, although Paul of Tarsus met Jesus very young (later we will describe this encounter), at that time he did not she represented a danger to the Christian cause, but history showed that she would become a martyr and a spiritual leader of the nascent Christianity.

first chase

Before being persecuted, Paul was a persecutor of the followers of Jesus, he considered himself staunch to fight, imprison and execute anyone who named the doctrine of Jesus, in Acts of the Bible the way in which Paul sought and sentenced Jesus is detailed. the faithful of Jesus Christ.

However, and a little before the first meeting with the followers of Jesus in Jerusalem, Paul led a movement against the Christians that led him to confront a Hellenic Jewish group led by Stephen, to whom a few months later he would be giving the sentence for his stoning.

This situation created a lot of controversy before and after his conversion, where even some historians justify Paul’s action against Stephen, Paul was very aggressive in the persecutions in Jerusalem against the followers of Jesus.

They did not respect women and children, in many of his Epistles he describes how the procedures were, some references are also detailed regarding the way in which he also received persecution from his own faithful who opposed him as well as from the enmity Jews and some Pharisees.

After the Conversion and the meeting with the Apostles, Paul would be persecuted by his adversaries, Jews and Romans. During his first stay in Jerusalem, persecution caused all the apostles to disperse throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria.

The persecution carried out by the Jews had as its goal to kill anyone who professed ideas related to Jesus or was linked to Paul.

The zeal towards Paul was enormous, but his firmness in preaching and speaking to bring the truth of the Lord forward were decisive in achieving the objective set by Jesus in that second meeting between the two.

encounter with jesus

During his apprenticeship and in the process of teaching next to “The feet of Gamaliel”, he had the privilege of knowing Jesus, he was present during his preaching and even in the process of crucifixion and death, although Paul does not mention in any of his Epistles have been in contact with or have seen Jesus throughout his ministry.

Many historians match both due to the historical date related to the birth of Paul and that of Jesus. If there had been an encounter in his youth there would be no doubt that Saint Paul of Tarsus would have revealed it, not once, but many times in several of his letters.

The constant presence of Paul in Jerusalem during his youth is questioned, and some wonder, if he visited the holy city several times, how is it possible that he had not had information or knowledge about the presence of Jesus Christ? Paul was also a Pharisee and also knew several languages.

This allows us to establish that somehow some Greeks and Hebrews had commented on Jesus and his presence in Jerusalem, so even out of curiosity, Paul would have made contact and looked for a way to even observe the teacher.

The conclusions affirm that there really was no such encounter, it could be the differences of ideas that allowed to gradually be born in Saint Paul de Marcos aversion towards the followers of Jesus, which causes no importance or spiritual relevance for him.

The Apostle to the Gentiles

His various apostolic and pilgrimage activities in various regions of Europe and Asia Minor allowed him to bestow this nickname, it is believed that it was in Cyprus where he began his direct activity with the Gentiles, receiving great achievements and supporting many followers who rejoiced every day. with your presence.

In that city he put aside his Roman name (Saul) to adopt the Latin name of Paulo, this would help him to carry out the mission of evangelizing in many regions inhabited by the Gentiles. Those who understood in a simpler and faster way the new message that Paulo brought them.

Paul’s constant failures during his preaching in the different Jewish synagogues allowed him to focus on other communities, however some Hebrews believed in his word and followed him because it represented spiritual renewal ideas.

In the same way, the gentiles and non-believers who were scattered in many European regions, listened very carefully to the message that Paul sent them, and when Paul noticed their attention, he began to look for regions in which there were more people with those characteristics. Paul concludes that by visiting Cyprus, Asia Minor, he would begin a great ministry.

The first communities of believers of Jesus were formed by Gentiles specifically in Perge, Debe de Licaonia, Antioch of Pisidia, Lystra and Iconium, many congregations were born and the success in their preaching was immense, but it also had tragic consequences.

In the region of Lystra he was about to die, after a beating that his enemies and persecutors had dealt him, and after believing that he had died they fled, however Paul was alive and was able to get out of this tragic situation.

During the first two trips, Paul was living for a long time in Antioch, when he attended the “Council of the Apostles” in Jerusalem, important conditions were established for the new movement, there issues such as how to baptize the pagans were discussed. , Gentiles and non-believers. Many opposed this proposal.

The obligation of the Jewish precepts for converts who came from paganism was also discussed. Due to this Pablo de Tarso obtained a resounding success especially in the faithful of the communities, imposing the thesis where the gentile Christians should have the same consideration as the Jews.

He also carried out the exposition of the Mosaic law and the importance they have in history, defended the redemption of Christ which is marked by the definitive decline of said law and rejected the obligation of numerous Jewish practices.

His influence on the Gentile Christian communities in Antioch was considerable, founding many congregations, taking his ideas to different cities such as Galatians, populations of Asia Minor, Macedonia and Achaia, this evangelization crystallized in a very forceful way, with the Gentiles of Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea and Corinth.

In Greece, after the famous Areopagus speech, he gained a large number of followers who did not know the ideas of Jesus. His stay in Corinth allowed him to establish contact with the authorities and allowed him to begin his activity as a writer.

The communities of Asia Minor welcomed Paul of Tarsus, there were many Gentiles who had not been able to be convinced by the Jews, and Paul with his message of the news of Jesus convinced and formed many early Christian communities.

With the writing of various Epistle, he manifests his projection of ideas and channeling of the creation and strengthening of Christianity, the Gentiles were the ones who most supported his ideas, hence his denomination, they consider Paul a great leader and teacher, they also understood that through his teachings, the importance that the word of Jesus is firm and full of faith.

Apprehension of Saint Paul

Saint Paul’s last activities were carried out in Jerusalem, where he received advice from Saint James who suggested that he should behave as a pious and practicing Jew, to which Paul accepted. This situation will include the performance of a seventy-day rite in which the Jews remain calm and avoid any kind of conflict or difference.

James had made the proposal to Paul because he knew that the Jews could not agree to his arrest while they were fulfilling this rite, at the end of the seventy days, some Jews who came from Asia Minor arrived, observed Paul in the temple and accused him of violating the law. law.

They also alleged that Paul had introduced some Greeks into the temple, they got on top of him and tried to assassinate him, however he was saved by the members of the tribune of the cohort, who despite saving him, captured him, taking him to Antonia’s fortress.

Presented before the Sanhedrin, Paul defended himself against all insults, his criteria were so firm and convincing that they created a dispute between Pharisees and Sadducees, where the latter do not believe in the resurrection while the Pharisees do respect and believe it.

The Jews were convinced of Paul’s sins and violation of the law and wanted to assassinate him, but the tribune did not allow it, so he was immediately sent to the procurator of the province of Judea, Marco Antonio Félix. There Pablo also knew how to defend himself against him and the attorney took the option of postponing the trial and imprisoning him for two years.

With the arrival of the new procurator ¨Porcio Festo”, who reviewed the case, but The actions the legal actions changed course When Paul appealed to Caesar in front of the procurator and was sent to Rome, carrying out this action was a kind of defense that every citizen Jew had a choice at that time and served as a last option to save himself from being stoned or killed.

He is taken to Rome as a prisoner, the journey lasted a long time and the roads they traveled were tortuous, so much so that a stopover on the island of Malta lasted approximately three months.

In the book of the Acts of the Apostles the arrival of Paul from Tarsus to Rome is described. For the followers, Christian faithful and Paul himself, this situation represented an important moment, since what Jesus had considered as the arrival of the gospel to all nations was being fulfilled.

Paul understood that his arrival in Rome meant enormous importance, allowing him to establish, regardless of his prisoner status, the culmination of the process of evangelization and expansion of Christianity.

The description in the book of Acts is as follows:

“Not by free will, as he had proposed a decade before without success, but as a prisoner subject to Caesar, with which the Romans became indirect agents of the consolidation of the gospel in the very center of their Empire.”

It is believed that in Rome he was released and continued to preach to other regions, others say that he was kept prisoner until his death, but there is really no certainty about it, only contradictions, what we are sure of is that it represented a peak moment for the future of Christianity.

Knowing with fidelity and certainty what happened to the apostle in Rome, is today a huge research task, some argue that after being released in the capital of the empire, he undertook an important evangelization towards Hispania.

Others allege that he simply died in Rome (Of which there is certainty), however in the Epistle of Clement and in one of the fragments of the Muratorian book, it can be read that Paul only died in prison in Rome.

The reflections consider that if Paul of Tarsus had been released in Rome, he would simply be outlined in one of his epistles and even in some other content where his life is recounted. The controversy with historians rages and spreads, Armand Puig i Tàrrech, professor of New Testament and dean of the Faculty of Theology of Catalonia, explains that:

“There are sufficient reasons to affirm as plausible and highly probable that Pablo carried out a mission in Tarragona after his release in Rome, in painful conditions due to his exile status.”

The tradition of the Christian Church establishes that Paul’s death occurred in Rome under the command of Nero and it was violent, but we are not going to get ahead of ourselves. Regarding his stay as a prisoner in Rome, some affirm that Paul received physical abuse.

This situation could have caused his death a few years later, in a way that contradicts some who consider that Saint Paul of Tarsus had been released, the important thing in all this is that the apostle represented a last straw of discomfort for the Romans, in his cell From prison Paul continued to preach and carry the message of Jesus.

death and burial

It is believed that Paul died the same year as Peter, 64 A.D. His letters to the Ephesians indicate all the suffering he received while he was in jail, some historians set Paul’s date of death around the year 67, so it happens during Nero’s rule.

Many historians have made various analyzes regarding the date of Paul’s birth, some claim that he died around the year 58 and others say that it occurred around the year 60, the death of Saint Paul of Tarsus was similar to that of John the Baptist, both were beheaded.

The historian of Jewish origin named Tertullian describes Paul’s death as follows:

“How happy is your church, in which the apostles shed all their doctrine together with their blood! Where Peter endured a passion like that of his Lord! Where Paul won the crown from him in a death like John’s.”

Peter and Paul were martyred by authorization of Nero who was a persecutor of Christians, relentless with them and directly gave the order to apply the death sentence to Peter and Saint Paul of Tarsus, the first crucified upside down and the second beheaded.

Tradition and worship

After his death, it is really unknown what happened to his remains, according to Roman information and traditions, the body must have been handed over to a relative or follower who would later carry out the holy burial.

It is known that Paul’s death was very tragic, so this situation could have created more fondness and loyalty on the part of his followers, who over the years grew considerably in the cult of Saint Paul of Tarsus.

Excavations were recently carried out in the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, where a group of archaeologists authorized by the Vatican discovered several graves with human remains in 2006, these were found in a marble sarcophagus located under the altar of the main temple.

This tomb is believed to date from the year 390 or 400, according to the information generated by the measurement process that is done through Carbon 14, the investigations and exhumations of the bones had a final result and analysis in the year 2009.

Pope Benedict XVI announced these results of the investigations, which yielded important references, such as the following: the remains could be of the apostle Saint Paul of Tarsus, because the references, background and location showed that they could be of the apostle.

With respect to the cult that is paid to this apostle, some consider that there may be a difference between Paulista and Christianity, although Paul defended and preached the word of Jesus in many regions, his criteria for the implementation and growth of Christianity make it clear as a figure with its own criteria within the religious current.

In Christianity, Paul displaces the entire figure of Jesus and even the rest of his disciples, the ideological authority of Christianity is really Paul, not even Jesus himself or Peter, being even the father of that movement and considered the father of all his ideology.

Some affirm that the movement should be called Paulism, instead of Christianity, but these considerations are being analyzed by many theologians and scholars of history, in order to determine if the role of Saint Paul of Tarsus is really stronger in Christianity than Jesus himself.

They are based on the fact that Paul in his epistles constantly speaks of the gospel as a way to obtain the truth and the way to eternal life, but really, was Paul’s gospel the same one that Jesus tried to carry out?

In many descriptions Paul establishes and says emphatically in his letters “My gospel” and even in Romans the following can be read:

“Paul claims that the gospel he is spreading among the Gentiles is his, not Heavenly Father’s.”

Which represents an ideological contradiction, for all Catholics and believers in Jesus the gospel is one, it is believed that Paul made this discrepancy in order to show authority to those who sought to disintegrate the nascent Christian movement in Antioch and Corinth.

In his writings, Paul never mentions any parable of Jesus, nor does he mention his crucifixion or the trial of the Jews and the Romans, it seems that his intentions were not to demonstrate or bring up his former activity as a persecutor of Jesus’ followers. .

However, it establishes everything related to the conversion and the message that Jesus entrusted to him, his task as a missionary of the Lord and what he had to do to take the word to all the ends of the world, even when he arrived in Rome, we saw previously how he described the objective of Jesus, to take the word to all the regions of the earth.

“For I received from the Lord what I have also taught you: That the Lord Jesus, the night he was betrayed, took bread; and having given thanks, he broke it, and said: Take, eat; this is my body that is broken for you; Do this in remembrance of me.”

This quote is found in Corinthians and represents a small part of what Jesus represented to Saint Paul of Tarsus. So Paulism is really a content of Paul De Tarso’s Idas in order to carry out a special mission entrusted by Jesus, where he takes the ideas and reflections of the Messiah himself and carries out a movement that allows growth through the years.

Christianity is subdivided today into many currents, always based on the main ideas of its creator Saint Paul of Tarsus, Catholicism receives him as a great apostle who represented a boost and great support for the birth of the Catholic Church.

Historical importance of the apostle

The figure and ideas of Saint Paul of Tarsus have been the subject of discussions for many generations, they have provoked various very contrasting value judgments, even creating contradictions and extreme confrontations, some even believe that the delivery of Paul to the Romans was caused by his own followers who opposed and envied him.

Just as he had detractors, he has also had countless followers and defenders, for example the three most important apostolic fathers of the 1st and 2nd century, Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch and Polycarp of Smyrna, refer to Paul in their own letters and pistols about Paul as a great sage, blessed and glorious son of god.

Polycarp refers to Paul as the following:

“For neither I nor any other like me can compete with the wisdom of the blessed and glorious Paul, who, dwelling among you, in the presence of the men of that time, promptly and firmly taught the word of truth; and absent later, he wrote you letters, with the reading of which, if you know how to delve into them, you will be able to build yourselves in order to the faith that has been given to you ”

Despite the nascent Christian Primitive Church, the ideas of Saint Paul of Tarsus were very reluctant, who also considered him a direct rival of Peter and James, The fathers of the Church at the end of the second century pointed to Paul as the foundations of the Church next to Peter.

Some established that Paul was even the Lord of the gospel and consider the following:

“We still have to add to the words of the Lord the words of Paul, examine his thought, expose the apostle, clarify all that he has received from other interpretations by heretics, who do not understand the least of what Paul said, show the stupidity of their madness and demonstrate, precisely from Paul, that they are liars, while the apostle, herald of the truth, taught all things fully in accordance with the preaching of the truth” Epistles of Irenaeus.

Others who never doubted the fidelity and dedication of Paul were Augustine of Hippo, Saint John Chrysostom, who at the beginning of the second century surrendered in admiration and praise for the apostle, and even considered him superior to certain Archangels and Angels.

For Martin Luther he represented a renowned spiritual leader, even saying that there was nothing in the world as bold and persistent as the preaching of Saint Paul of Tarsus. In the eighth century an Iberian heretic named Migetius said that thanks to Paul I, the Holy Spirit had become incarnate.

Likewise, many Catholic religious thinkers in the 20th century have considered Paul a brave man and even called him “The thirteenth apostle”, “The greatest missionary” and even “The vessel of election”.

The legacy of Saint Paul of Tarsus in the history of Christianity is very great, his influence on great spiritual and political leaders includes figures such as John Calvin and Martin Luther, who, thanks to the inspiration of his ideas, were able to carry out the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. . John Wesley in England proposed The Pauline Epistolary thanks to the ideas of Pablo,

However, in the 11th century a period of reaction began against the renewing ideas of the apostle, one of the pioneers being Friedrich Nietzsche, who describes accusations against Paul in his work:

“The “good news” was immediately followed by the worst of all: that of Paul, life, example, doctrine, death, meaning and law of the entire gospel, all of that ceased to exist when this falsifier out of hatred he realized that it was the only thing he could use. Not reality, not historical truth!”

“It simply erased yesterday, the day before yesterday of Christianity, a history of primitive Christianity was invented. Later the Church falsified even the history of humanity, turning it into prehistory of Christianity”

One of the propagators of the National Church of Germany, Paul de Lagarde considered the pilgrimage movement and the formation of new ideas regarding Jesus as “The disastrous revolution of Christianity”, directly calling Paul an incompetent person,

In Europe, the importance and influence of Saint Paul of Tarsus in the growth and development of Christianity is still discussed. Some consider that Paul’s ideas were anachronistic and foolish, but his gift of conviction and leadership allowed him to achieve important weight even above of the disciples of Jesus.

Concepts such as “Pauline Christianity” and “Judeo-Christianity” have recently been established, currents of thought that conceptualize the first, as modern and advanced Christianity carried out by Paul of Tarsus and the second a more orthodox and primitive Christianity, which does not It had as much influence as the first but it served to group together Christians who did not commune with Saint Paul of Tarsus.

Both currents maintained a common idea, faith in Jesus, and even Paul in his second letter mentions something interesting about this, he says that “The differences of opinion existing between the different basic currents of early Christianity did not suffocate their internal plurality, such as crystallized in the biblical canon.”

Paul’s Legacy   

It has been said many times that, as the founder of Christianity, he left the foundations that served many to allow them to know the truth of Jesus. Some believe that without his peregrinations, teachings and vocation, Christianity would have dispersed and even disappeared and not even have had a criterion. own self.

Accused of being a modifier of the word of Jesus, it can really be considered that Saint Paul of Tarsus helped to reconcile the ideas that the disciples of Jesus had not been able to question, although they carried the word of the Messiah to each region that they arrived, they had not been able to create a stronghold of ideas that would allow full momentum to be given to the movement.

Paul gave that strength and power when he proposed a modern Christianity, different from the one they proposed, leaving aside the traditional and cultural Jewish concepts, which continued to bind Christians to the Hebrew precepts.

This situation, as we have seen, generated a lot of controversy, the Orthodox that still exist maintain a Christianity with primitive procedures and ceremonies, which really belong to Judaism. Paul’s work was hard and if you can say more committed and responsible than the rest of the apostles.

He knew how to interpret in an understandable way all the ideas of Jesus, especially towards non-believers and Gentiles, he led his pilgrimage and reached regions that were even impossible to achieve with the attitude of the natural disciples of Jesus.

Separating Judaism into Christian traditions and rites was one of his greatest legacies, without the need to establish a different religion, respecting the actions of the Jews who converted to Christianity. Paul isolated Christianity from Greek and Hellenic ideas, establishing his own natural spiritual idealism, coming from Jesus.

Each journey of the apostle carried with it the theological conception of Christianity, where the main point was the universality of redemption and the new covenant established by Jesus, abolishing the old law of Moses and creating a new image of the human being based on the image of the body. and blood of Jesus.

The strength of his word and the vigor of his arguments convinced thousands of people. The references of these actions are reflected in his twelve letters or epistles, addressed to communities, groups and individuals with the aim of unifying and maintaining the union among all Christians.

These texts are a powerful base that over time allowed the foundations of Christianity to be established, the inspiration that Pablo de Tarso received to write each of his epistles is of enormous literary and narrative value, in them you can see songs, prayers, poems and descriptions of various situations and thoughts of the apostle.

The Greeks, who belonged to one of the most closed and expansive cultures of the time, received from Paul arguments that over time allowed them to modify their thoughts related to the divinities and religion…

Its influence reaches very high levels when more than 70% of the New Testament is made up of the Epistles of Paul, they are one of the most important legacies for the spiritual world of man.

Among the most important ideas left by Paul are, for example, how to manifest original sin, convince many non-believers that Jesus died on the cross to forgive the sins of men, as well as manifest how the suffering of Jesus Christ was to redeem The humanity.

Among other important criteria, the confusion regarding whether Jesus was God, also determined in a clear way that Jesus was the way to reach God. He maintained the view on Adam that the incorruptible body was inherited and where he was also part of God.

He rejected free and uncontrolled sexuality, the subordination of women, issues that were never touched by the messiah. He ended the differences between Jews and Gentiles, establishing for it the disconnection of the Mosaic Law.

According to Paul of Tarsus, the Biblical mandates are not those that save man from his sins but faith in Christ. These assertions are revolutionary ideas for the time and even for many they represent a blasphemy of the sacred word. According to many Judeo-Christians.

The consequences and controversies that arose when Paul established these thoughts made the disciples of Jesus oppose him, and even with respect to the Jewish cultural traditions with the elaboration of Jewish rites and feeding responsibilities. Saint Paul of Tarsus had many enemies who even tried to assassinate him because of his contrary ideas.

It is believed that Paul’s great legacy was the thousands of communities that he formed throughout Europe and Asia Minor, the letters or epistles and the message based on the thoughts of Jesus, today we continue to talk about the criteria and the way in which which Paul of Tarsus carried out his ministry, which meant for many the use of the figure of Jesus as part of their ideals.

All this range of concepts, ideas and reflections, always based on Jesus, allowed Saint Paul of Tarsus to become a renowned spiritual leader, convincing even Jewish and Roman rulers, also initiating a type of thought that for many It is called Paulismo.

Paulism

It forms a group of specific ideas and thoughts based on the form of pilgrimage and teachings of Saint Paul of Tarsus, during his apostolate to call him in some way, allowed him to give everything to establish the ideas of Jesus in the maximum known territories, despite being one of his staunchest opponents for many years.

This did not allow to influence the ideas that he later carried out, although he was often criticized by the disciples of Jesus, he had the strength and enough arguments to convince them, so much was the influence that he remained as the leader of the nascent Christian movement until his death.

 What are the Pauline themes?

They represent the form and the main influences that the apostle received in order to carry out the creation of the world Christian movement. These thoughts are considered in the various epistles that are the essential foundation of the Paulist doctrine, let’s see several Pauline themes.

the Epistles

They make up a series of texts originally written in Greek that make up the general and specific approaches of the whole idea, thought and form of pilgrimage with respect to the ideas of Jesus, they also provide advice, suggestions and recommendations to people and Christian communities.

They are the main base of Christianity, the most relevant reflections of Saint Paul of Tarsus, bringing together a large number of ideas and exhortations in order to teach the doctrine of Jesus to anyone. These literary works are made up of the following:

• First Epistle to the Thessalonians
• Epistle to the Philippians
• first epistle to the corinthians
• Second Epistle to the Corinthians
• Epistle to the Galatians
• Epistle to Philemon
• Epistle to the Romans.

First Epistle to the Thessalonians

It forms one of twenty-seven books of the New Testament included in the Bible, it is like one of the thirteen Epistles attributed directly to the Apostle, considered chronologically as the first to be written by Paul, it is specifically addressed to the entire Christian community in Thessaloniki.

It contains themes related to Christian eschatology (studying the human being and the universe before and after the extinction of life on earth or life after death), as well as encouraging regarding human morality and relating their memories with the message he preached.

Epistle to the Philippians

Also included in the New Testament of the Bible, it is a letter written by Paul addressed to the faithful Christians who lived in Philippi, dates between 54 and 61 BC and was written while he was in prison, contains four chapters.

It is specifically based on a thank you to all Christians for the offerings received, it also describes concepts and messages regarding kindness, humility, unity and the Christian way of life.

Let us remember that Philippi was a city belonging to the Greek empire located in Macedonia, and the Christian community had been founded approximately in 50 BC so that it was a very important congregation for the apostle.

first epistle to the corinthians

Written in a very simple way by the apostle around the year 54 BC, addressed to the entire Christian population of Corinthians, it was written in Ephesus during Paul’s third trip, prior to the trip to Macedonia, it contains 15 chapters and is based on a series of recommendations where the position of the apostle is expressed with respect to the renovating ideas.

The content is extensive but in simple language, since he was interested in it being read by many Christians, emphasizing faith, but above all the training that Gentiles and Christians must have to have access to heaven, as well as the description of Jewish traditions adapted to the Christian life, and gives as an example the way of eating meat from sacrifices made to idols.

It also raises teachings towards the Lord’s prophecy, enhances the strength of love and criticizes situations related to mysticism, which for many Gentile Christians were still within their traditions.

Second Epistle to the Corinthians

It is also a letter addressed to the Christians who lived in Corinth and some historians consider that it is a second part of the first epistle to the Corinthians, it was written in the year 57, it contains 2 chapters.

Its content is intended to emphasize the thought of the apostle and his ministry, Christians are treated with great affection by the apostle. Likewise, it defends itself from the false accusations of those who oppose it, it stimulates the necessary actions for mutual coexistence.

The apostle delves into human physical conditions and how certain diseases must be combated, he also discusses feeding processes in communities and exhorts leaders to use faith as a form of preaching.

Epistle to the Galatians

Also included in the New Testament, it is a letter addressed to the Christian inhabitants of the population of Galatia, in Asia Minor, it contains 6 chapters and dates from the year 55 AD. C. approximately, it was written after the second visit he made to that region with Barnabas.

The letter links the gospel of Jesus in opposition to Jewish ideological concepts, especially in the ceremonial act, let us remember that primitive Christianity continued to perform ceremonies and rites that came from Judaism.

This letter seeks to guide the path that Christians should follow, it is made with the aim of straightening the path of the Galatians, who had begun to take a different course, this appreciation was obtained by Paul after the second visit.

It is directly a way to make the so-called Judaizers reconsider, who strongly opposed the apostle, and had also been able to penetrate the bases of the first currents and primitive Christian communities.

Epistle to Philemon

Philemon was a leader of early Christianity who lived in the region of Colossae, being also one of the first founders of the Church in that region, the letter was written while Saint Paul of Tarsus was a prisoner. Its content includes topics related to forgiveness, kindness and reconciliation.

They call themselves a prisoner of Jesus Christ, establishes the status of collaborator with Filemon and treats Timothy as a brother, the curious case is that a slave of Filemon who had fled, was the one who later handed over the cut requesting his forgiveness.

Philemon was a wealthy Christian who had probably become a bishop before converting to Christianity. This epistle is one of the shortest of Saint Paul of Tarsus and contains only 25 short verses.

Epistle to the Romans.

It was written by Paul during his stay in the city of Corinth, in the Bible it stands out only as “Romans”, it is the sixth book of the New Testament, and it is considered one of the longest, despite not having chapters, it was written approximately in the year 57.

Its content explains in detail how salvation is offered to all men on earth by Jesus Christ, for many historians it is the most important letter of the Apostle being even called “Paul’s most important theological legacy”, or as they say in the Church Paul’s magnum opus.

The epistle or letter (which historians have not determined) consists of a series of suggestions by Paul to the Christians who lived in Rome, however he reflects on the moments in which he himself was separated from God.

It also tries to teach all those Romans who can read the letter, the security and strength that surrender to Jesus grants, with the aim of directing their lives towards the eternal life that God gives them.

Paul considers this letter to the Romans important since, as he himself says, he looks for some actions like these:

• Ask for prayers to protect him from his next trip to Jerusalem.
• Wait for the requested offering to be received and delivered in the capital of the Roman Empire.
• Get enough backing from the Christian Romans.
• He tries to clarify that his message is not the same as that of the “false teachers” who constantly appeared in Rome.
• In this letter he conciliates between the Gentile Christians and the Roman Church, expressing in a very moving way the concern that this situation causes him.

It is important to mention that the Roman Christian Church was founded by Judeo-Christians, who had a fairly strong support in the leadership, however and by the call of Paul, many Gentiles had joined that Roman Christian Church, at the request and conviction of the apostle himself.

With the persecution of the Jews by Emperor Claudius in the year 49, they fled exiled from the capital and the Gentile Christians had taken possession of the leadership of the Church, however the minority of Jews who had remained in Rome, tried to react and fight not to lose that leadership.

In conclusion, the Epistle to the Romans represents a highly relevant document in the history of Christianity, subsequently allowing Peter to establish his apostolate and subsequent sacrifice, always coinciding with the ideas of Paul.

This first group of epistles and letters make up the so-called “Authentic Epistles”, due to the fact that their authenticity is really known, verified and recognized by Christian authorities, who through the years have subjected them to scientific research and analysis.

The Epistles are recognized as authentic because their author has been verified, scientifically the authenticity was verified with specific processes of time and place, where the analysis of the constituent material of the papyri, the paper and the form of writing.

The writing date is older than the New Testament, it is established 25 years after the death of Jesus and before the gospels of the apostles, likewise there is no other similar documentation in the ancient scriptures that can be established as copies and simple versions. of some fact or idea of ​​Paul.

Paul spoke Hebrew and Greek fluently, this was an advantage over other Christian apostles and preachers who only spoke Hebrew, hence he was allowed to write the epistles in those two languages.

However, when Paul resorts to the basic Greek notions which were far from Judaism, he was not very well understood by Gentiles and non-believers, who found it uncomfortable to hear accelerations different from their traditions.

In these epistles there are some considerations that for many are difficult to understand, especially when translating them into another language. The epistles had a specific function at the time, they were addressed to the Christians of the existing communities in various regions, as well as to non-Christians and people related to the movement.

They are of important spiritual and historical value, because they not only serve to support the thoughts that Paul wanted to establish in the Christians, but they helped in historical and cultural references regarding the Jewish and Hellenic way of life of the first centuries of our era.

They serve as support to verify the way of thinking between the two currents that opened the field towards each of their sides, Judaism and Christianity. He really is one of the most important delegates left by Saint Paul of Tarsus.

E pseudepigraphical pistols

Apart from the authentic epistles, Saint Paul of Tarsus wrote a series of letters addressed to people and communities that served as criticism or solutions to problems, called Pseudo-epigraphic letters, which, according to many historians, were not written directly by Paul.

It is believed that they are a series of letters in which a literary technique from Greece and Asia Minor is used, where the author makes descriptive references that also represented stories and sometimes with a poetic style.

These cards named earlier in this article are classified as follows:

• Second Epistle to the Thessalonians
• Epistle to the Colossians
• Epistle to the Ephesians
• First Epistle to Timothy
• Second Epistle to Timothy
• Epistle to Titus.

Second Epistle to the Thessalonians

Attributed to the followers of Paulism by 50%, some also consider that it is entirely in the handwriting of Paul of Tarsus himself, it is the second letter that the apostle sent to the Christians who were in the communities of that city.

It is believed that it was written in Corinth or Greece some months after the first, and according to certain analyses, Paul rewrites it to clarify certain doubts that had remained regarding the content of the first.

The confusion was raised by the issue of the second coming of Jesus Christ, where many faithful were in doubt and did not really believe in a second coming of the redeemer, Paul had expressed “The day of Christ was coming quickly”, this full of doubts to many, and even outrage especially in the master’s disciples.

Paul corrects the error in this second epistle to the Thessalonians, where he clarifies that it was a situation posed in the future and that the arrival of Jesus would also come but in a spiritual way.

Epistle to the Colossians

Included in the New Testament and written approximately in the year 57 BC, this letter is addressed to the Christian inhabitants who were in the ancient Phrygian city of Colossae. Some believe that because it was addressed to the inhabitants of the Christian communities of Phrygia, which were close to Greece, it could have been written in the Greek language.

During the 19th century, it began to be questioned that this pistol was the apostle’s own authorship. This Christian community had not been founded by Paul, so its inhabitants had never personally seen the apostle, they only had knowledge through his disciple named Epaphras.

The content of the epistle is to clarify the conditions and ideas that were being formed and seemed contrary to the newly formed Christianity, in these communities many preachers came posing as Christians and believers of Jesus, in a way that created confusion among believers.

These preachers by trade said that between God and man there was another intermediate power that allows the connection with God, so the same Epistle differs from that criterion and rejects it, through the implementation of solid concepts, where it is explained that your only way to get to God is through the word of Jesus.

It raises situations of dark ideas related to thought not typical of believers, and establishes important concepts regarding the traditions of the followers of Jesus regarding customs and food.

Epistle to the Ephesians

It appears in the Bible as Ephesians, it is the tenth book found in the New Testament, it is considered that the apostle wrote it around the year 62 AD, while others attribute it almost to the year 70 AD when he was imprisoned in Rome.

For the year 1792 it was considered as a Deuteropaulinas document (Not written by the apostle), since some began to relate the content and observed that the verbigrace in the words was not the same as other original epistles.

However, the Church has determined its veracity and has established the epistle as real. On the other hand, this letter is somewhat controversial in the doctrinal aspect, where certain theosophical practices are refuted (Ideas related to the esoteric).

These somewhat empirical and ancient ideas had entered the Church of the Ephesians, however Paul does not refer directly to them, but establishes the terms of the ideas that he constantly preached, as well as the love and kindness towards all his followers of that region.

He also requests that they comply with the orders issued by him, as well as the comprehensive understanding of the gospel of Jesus, he also emphasizes laying the firm foundations of a new religious movement, defending its cause, the goal and ultimate objective of the future Church of Jesus. .

Above all, it requests the union of the true Church of Christ, for many Christians it is considered the most interesting and profound Epistle attributed to Pablo De Tarso, it specifically touches on points that will determine the future of Christianity.

First Epistle to Timothy

Timothy was a disciple of Paul, who himself was able to perform the circumcision and accompanied Paul on most of his travels. The letter has an important meaning, because Timothy represented the first generation of Christians who were to carry the movement forward. He was even the pastor of the Church of Ephesus for a long time.

The epistle is based on an ethical approach, the apostle himself makes simple recommendations for life as faithful Christians, criticizes the false doctors who use a lot of verbiage creating confusion among the followers. He literally says:

“They are blinded by pride and know nothing.”

It is believed that it is a kind of practical manual for all Christians, and the form of ecclesiastical order seems to be a way of leaving the precise guidelines to Timothy. This letter contains 4 chapters and is very extensive.

It even raises the role of false science, where a group of Christians were seduced by the nascent thinkers called the Gnostics. In the last chapter he condemns and criticizes the woman for having played the role of a sinner and having led Adam to the precipice:

 “Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. Because I do not allow a woman to teach, nor to exercise dominion over a man, but to be silent.”

Second Epistle to Timothy

It is included in the pastoral letters of the Bible, together with the first Epistle to Timothy and the Epistle to Titus, it is a kind of farewell that he sent to his disciple, where he raises the situation that he lives in prison, it says in one part: “They are already sacrificing me, and the time for my departure is near.”

Orders to keep faith in God: “a spirit of fear or cowardice is not received, but of strength, love and sobriety” he makes the consideration where he explains that those who want to live piously in Jesus will suffer terrible repercussions he also explains the desire they have for their enemies, which consists of conversion, which will allow them to know their truth in all its forms and will be able to free themselves from the hand of the devil.

He warns against the presence of selfish and miserly people, who will present themselves as lovers of pleasure above God, feigning piety but denying its effectiveness.

This epistle is called by many as the “spiritual testament” of Paul of Tarsus, and considers Timothy as the beloved son, also suggests that he fight to maintain the true doctrine, also raises the expectation that confidently, the crown that the just judge has you ready.

It is a very long and moving letter, where he also insists on the announcement of the promise of life that is found in the search for Christ, formulates certain thanks to God and to all the faithful of all Christian communities. Like the first epistle, it highlights the role that Timothy must assume within the movement.

“That is why I recommend that you enliven the gift of God that you have received through the imposition of my hands. Because the Spirit that God has given us is not a spirit of fear, but of strength, love and sobriety. Do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me, who am his prisoner.”

“On the contrary, share with me the sufferings that it is necessary to undergo for the Gospel, animated by the strength of God. He saved us and chose us with his holy calling, not because of our works, but by his own initiative and by grace: that grace that he granted us in Christ Jesus, from all eternity, and that has now been revealed in the Manifestation of our Savior Jesus Christ.”

This textual quote is only part of Pablo’s farewell proposal, and continues to explain a series of very detailed and extensive recommendations that give rise to thinking that his situation where he was was precarious, but the important thing is that it is not appreciated in the content of the letter, moments of despair but of tranquility.

Epistle to Titus

Titus was a Gentile who had converted to Christianity at a young age, accompanied Paul on his various missionary journeys, is named on other pistols, and had been appointed to be a leader in the Christian community in Crete. Where he had orders to form the Church in all that region.

It was written after the second letter to Timothy, that is to say after the year 60 AD so that he was in Rome serving his second sentence, although it is not as emotional and sensitive as the second Epistle of Timothy, this letter represents a valuable document for Christians and leader of the time.

In the epistle, the apostle speaks of the duties and behavior of all Christians, especially those who lead the Church, establishes the responsibilities that his disciple Titus must fulfill, and his role with respect to each member of the community and the Church.

Among the most important recommendations is the requirement to use authority to benefit the people of God, without neglecting any believer. He also raises some considerations regarding ethics and preaching, the way faith should be raised so that it can be understood by the faithful and thus be able to maintain it as a force that does not allow it to be diverted from their minds and hearts.

They are also considered deutero-Pauline since it is believed that they were not written by the apostle Paul, however these letters for many greatly helped the development of Christianity and its consolidation, they were developed by the various Christian schools that were under the order of the apostle Paul, according to some historians the apostle himself authorized its spread.

Redemption

Established as the Theology of Redemption, it consists of one of the basic principles that the apostle used to carry out the massification of Christianity, teaching Christians about the remission of the Mosaic law and the liberation of capital sins through the death of Jesus together with the resurrection.

Redemption explains the peace between man and God, where Jesus Christ is the bridge for that communication, from that moment the process began which would be the beginning for future sacramental processes, which officially govern the Church today, each action that Paul established as redemption, it is nothing other than the delivery of a Christian to God through Jesus Christ.

These criteria for the time were innovative and modern, hence many Jews and Pharisees will find aversion for these principles and in turn disappointment and hatred towards the ideas and person of the Apostle.

The role of women

It seems that Jesus did not directly focus on the problem of the Hebrew Jewish woman and especially the Christian woman, for his part Paul faced it directly, in the first epistle to Timothy, Paul briefly describes the role of women in the process with regarding the prohibition of women in the sacrament of orders.

This ceremonial act limits Christian women to assume leadership and present the option of a ministry within the communities, the epistle to Timothy is used by many Churches to support the denial of the vote to women in ecclesiastical affairs as well as assuming positions teaching leadership within the Christian community.

• In the Epistles, criteria and suggestions are raised, such as the following:
• The woman learns in silence and subjection.
• Not allowing the woman to teach or exercise dominion over the man, she must keep silent.
• Always remember that Adam was first before Eve
• Due to Eve’s transgression, Adam is not considered guilty of the acts, so the woman must always be behind the man.

It is clear that the role that women must assume in the church, leadership is not allowed. With regard to conduct outside the Church, no woman may single out another, nor proceed to instruct another woman.

The female priesthood is prohibited, not even interpretation is allowed in order to favor women, otherwise you would have to look for an interpretation in the scriptures to be able to settle with only the theological difficulties.

In the ancient Church and according to research carried out by the theologian Daniel Kirk, various positions of women in the Church are appreciated, an example of this is when Paul praised Phoebe for her work as a deaconess, likewise when he praised June’s actions, who for many is the only woman named in the New Testament.

Paul’s restriction towards Christian women is established mainly in Corinth, which during the conflicts generated in that city, limited women to ask questions or talk inside the chapels and temples.

However, the gift of poetry was granted to women, some historians consider that “there were women of the New Testament who taught and had authority in the ancient church and that these teachings and this authority were sanctioned by Paul and that the apostle himself offers a theological paradigm within which the overcoming of the subjugation of women is an expected result”.

Which shows a certain contradiction with the orders of Paul in the Timothy gun, however the role of women in the early Church was important but not relevant, it is said that they

Relationship with communities

One of the characteristics of the apostle’s preaching was the power of the word and conviction, which allowed him to visit many communities, receiving great praise and allowing him to form even great friendships.

The communities were for Paul a means to be able to communicate his truth and passionately teach his ideas, to the Thessalonians he wrote many times on topics related to the hope, the crown and the glory of God, to the Philippians he explained that God was the only witness of love towards people.

He told the Corinthians about the indulgence he could receive from them, without first telling him that the letters he had written were made with tears in his eyes, in order for them to know the great love he felt for them.

As we said at the beginning, Saint Paul of Tarsus developed the conversation and this helped him to obtain many friendships that even followed him during his travels, the loyalty shown by the apostle to many people allowed him to maintain respect and admiration among them.

San Pablo de Marcos had a team of people belonging to diverse communities, among which Timothy, Titus and Silas stood out, who belong to the apostle’s trust and travel group, they also sent letters and information to the various Christian communities.

Let us remember that the spouses Aquila and Prisca gave him lodging and accompanied him several times to Corinth and Antioch after being expelled from Rome. When this couple of Jews arrived in Ephesus they were the ones who prepared their welcome, Paul remembered them fondly in several epistles, in the epistles to the Romans d was expressed of them in the following way:

“Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus. They exposed their heads to save me. And not only I am grateful to them, but also all the Churches of the Gentile.”

It can also be said that Luke, the creator of the Gospel of Luke and appearance in the Acts of the Apostles, was accompanying Paul for a long time even until his death, his name appears in the second Epistle to Timothy.

These actions allow Paul to be described as a socially stable person, who through his good conversation was able to convince many people, especially Jews and Gentiles, who jointly professed their friendship and trust in him.

Relationship with Judaism

The school of Gamaliel, welcomed Paul of Tarsus as the beginning of his initiation as a Jew, later endorsed as a Pharisee, the apostle was proud of his race, in his message to the Philippians he exhorted many Gentiles that they did not need to be circumcised like the Jews did.

Paul’s teachings were directed mainly towards the Gentiles, who should fully understand the concept of Christianity, a new way for them and a way of life completely different from Jewish customs.

The Jews who were in those regions had to comply with the Jewish traditions and rites, so that the nascent Christianity in its beginnings had a great support in the primitive roots of Judaism. Some historians believe that when the faith of the Gentile Jews towards God is spoken of, faith in Christ is simply also being considered.

Faith must be something necessary that allows you to receive God in your heart, the message of Jesus Christ was understood very well by the apostle, I always try to take it to all human beings on the planet, so that for Paul, the followers of Jesus who they came from the Gentiles did not necessarily have to follow the commandments given and established in the Torah.

These precepts are only established for the children of Israel, and therefore Paul did not consider himself, nor did he consider any tribe or Christian community as children of Israel. During the famous “Jerusalem Council”, it was established in the Gentile group that only keeping the Jewish precepts for themselves simply became an option.

For the most part, these teachings were not well understood by the Gentiles, who misunderstood ideas and tended to confusion, thinking that evil would fall on them if they did not comply with Jewish laws.

Paul at no time tried to modify, reform or overcome the Jewish traditions, as many have tried to affirm, some historians have refuted these accusations with facts, this movement was called “New radical approach to Paul” and represented a contrast with respect to the movement that denigrated Paul called “New Perspective on Paul.”

This last current did not have much support, however they tried to involve great leaders of the Church to seek support, but the Church itself marked territory and remained neutral in all these discussions.

Paul’s Theology

It consists of all variety of thoughts and ideas that Paul experienced during his apostolic life, also called Pauline theology, the result of the first proposals given to Paul by Jesus, and he subsequently took them to all possible regions.

The way in which the Pauline ideas have been systematized in recent years has made it possible to consider the apostle’s own criteria that even some have not been able to differentiate it and have chosen to establish it as a Pauline idealism, rather than a simple theological idea.

The schools of theological religion have maintained for years summary discussions regarding the form and content of Pauline ideas, the Lutherans state that the basic theme of Paulism is faith, without the need to count on the works of the law, from that From this point of view, the São Paulo movement is considered to be the Christian spiritual center.

During the 20th century, various ideas have been growing regarding the ideological position of Paul of Tarsus, establishing that the position of the apostle was simply the principle of fidelity to God, some philosophers considered establishing various variables in thought, since they directly consider that the idea of ​​Jesus is established in the thoughts of Paul of Tarsus.

Catholicism has solved the problem in a simple way, they established Saint Paul of Tarsus as one more element in the creation and development of Christianity, but not, the fundamental idea in the development of Catholicism, where the Church would be above the ideas of Paul of Tarsus.

On the other hand, Protestants have tried to establish concepts and criteria in recent years, to carry out an idea that allows them to consolidate Pauline thought in all Christian movements of the faithful.

The gospel of Jesus Christ was established from the moment in which Jesus himself was alive, he directly recommended Peter in an allegorical way to raise up the Church of the Lord from his death, Peter obeying and tried to take his apostolate to all regions of the world. .

With the arrival of Paul, the unique criterion of Christianity is somewhat blurred, the disciples of Jesus had to relate and unite their ideas with those of the apostle Paul, who, due to his perseverance and tenacious struggle to impose the ideas that Jesus had given him, created a very strong movement that has continued to this day.

Paul’s theology, then, requires the main nourishment of concepts and ideas established by Jesus, the difference with the disciples of the Nazarene, (and that is where the point of the theology is dispersed), is with respect to the combination and adaptation of the Jewish and Hellenic traditions.

The disciples maintained rituals, ceremonies and cultural traditions based on Judaism until their death, while Paul of Tarsus tried to modify these traditions and adapt them to new trends, his belief was the predominance of faith and evangelization to promote new forms of preaching and Christian actions.

The epistles are a reflection of this criterion, they allowed ideas to evolve and traditions became primitive, the form of baptism, initiation ceremonies, among other spiritual actions carried out by Paul, allowed the movement to resume, which even after a few centuries they helped to consider them in the reforms made by Martin Luther.

It has even come to be called the “Theology of the Epistles”, where some thinkers consider that above the thoughts of Jesus established in them, are the guidelines of Paul, which allowed him to give the impetus throughout Europe and Asia to all Christian thoughts.

artistic references

The inspiration that Saint Paul of Tarsus Paul manifested towards many politicians, priests, popes and even kings, served to show his ministry in various places such as temples, churches, castles and museums, the artistic coverage that has been given to Paul of Tarsus is Awesome.

Although all the religious movement that began in the first century, was interpreted in an elegant way and with a very spectacular beauty during the following centuries, it was demonstrated that spirituality reformed the ideas of men between the second and fourteenth centuries.

After his death, not much was expected for his canonization, although Christianity was being born, it was in the year 67 when Saint Paul was declared an apostle and Christian saint, who together with Saint Peter celebrate his feast day on June 29, this date meant for many artists moments of religious creativity, where many humanist and religious movements began to flourish.

The artists inspired by these ideas represented the apostles and all those historical protagonists who could have marked the lives of the faithful. In the case of Pablo de Tarso, there are thousands of sculptures, paintings, frescoes and monuments displayed all over the world, there is no country where Catholic culture is manifested and there was no image or painting of this important Saint.

Among the famous artists who captured the figure of Saint Paul of Tarsus in art are Michelangelo, Parmigianino, Caravaggio, who interpreted the apostle’s preaching moments in many works.

In many paintings you can see a dispute between the disciple of Jesus Peter and the apostle of reform Paul, there is a fresco where Peter appears with the keys in his hand and behind Paul watching in a dissuasive way. These pictures have shaped the life and work of the apostle that has helped many thinkers in clarifying theological positions.

The figure of Saint Paul of Tarsus was associated in the fifteenth century with the so-called “experimental Christian mystical summit” which was a theological theory characterized by the apophatic search for a personal, unitive and loving experience with God.

Comprising a number of disciplines related to asceticism and the philosophical and meditative, which seek to direct the ideas of God towards a specific goal. It also came to be called “negative theology”, so that Pablo, being associated with that current of thought, served as an inspiration to many artists.

It was possible to observe how various artists developed works in the area of ​​sculpture, painting, music and literature that gave a humanistic and aesthetic impulse to an era in the history of humanity.

Final considerations

Some believe that because it was addressed to the inhabitants of the Christian communities of Phrygia, which were close to Greece, it could have been written in the Greek language.

Any number of investigative books, narratives, stories have been written about Saint Paul of Tarsus, to the point that important productions about his life and work have been brought to the big screen, as well as miniseries related to the life and work of this fascinating apostle.

We know of his differences with Peter, but when comparing the ideas of each one, the depth and similarity in the search for the same idea, to bring the message of the faith of Christ to humanity, is understood.

the creation of Christianity and later the development of Catholicism through the figure of Peter, does not isolate in any way in the ideological figure of Paul of Tarsus, much less in the projection of evangelization that the Catholic Church has maintained for many years .

Both criteria, Paulism and Christianity are intimately related, and it can be said that Paulism as such is only a concept that revives the burning embers of Christianity, giving it life and providing the necessary criteria so that the faithful can be sure of having With God.

For centuries there has been an attempt to separate Christianity from Catholicism, as well as to confront Peter and Paul, however the Church, in its position as the spiritual leader of the Catholic religion, has intelligently maintained the criterion of breadth and acceptance of both saints.

The differences that we have described in this article are only of criteria and principles between each one, they simply began when Paul tried to put aside the Jewish traditions, which he considered harmful to the new movement.

Christianity has various currents born from that premise, many have tried to maintain the traditionalism of Peter within Christianity, but the clash of generations and time, as well as Buddhist religious criteria, do not allow it to take shape and strength.

To understand a little the Christian sense of the faith manifested by Saint Paul of Tarsus and his philosophy regarding the ideas of Jesus, we leave some famous phrases of the apostle for your reflection:

“Bad company spoils useful habits. “}

“On this particular we have many things to say, although difficult to explain, because you have become slow to understand. “

“The love of money is the origin of all evil”

“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control”

“I do not live, but it is Christ who lives in me”

“For once you were darkness; but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of the light”

 “I see the good and I don’t do it, but I do the evil that I don’t want”

“For me life is Christ, and death, a gain”

“There is no power that does not come from God.”

“I see the dangers of the present life; danger in the sea, danger in the land and danger in the false brothers.”

“Let the husband give his wife her due; but let the wife do the same also to the husband. The wife does not exercise authority over her own body, but her husband does; likewise, too, the husband does not exercise authority over his own body, but his wife does. Do not deprive one another, except by mutual consent for an appointed time.”

“Faith is a guarantee of what is expected; the test of the realities that are not seen”

“If I spoke all the languages ​​of men and angels and lacked love, I would be nothing more than a resounding brass and a ringing bell”

“The sins of some men are publicly manifest, and lead directly to judgment, but as for other men, they also become manifest later. In the same way also excellent works are publicly manifest, and those that are not cannot be kept hidden.”

“Do not lose now your confidence, which carries with it a great reward.”