Saint Paul
From persecutor of Christians in Tarsus to missionary to the Gentiles
- Rank
- Saint
- Kind
- Apostle, Martyr, Missionary
- Life
- ~5 – ~64
- Era
- 1st century
- Feast
- 29 June
- Countries
- Türkiye, Italy, Greece
Life story
Saul was born in Tarsus in Cilicia, in what is now southern Turkey, to a Greek-speaking Jewish family that held Roman citizenship. He trained as a Pharisee in Jerusalem, and his own letters admit that he had persecuted the early Church. On the road to Damascus he went through an experience that changed his life, and from then on he proclaimed Christ.
According to the Acts of the Apostles, he made three missionary journeys through Cyprus, Asia Minor, Macedonia and Greece, founding or strengthening communities at Philippi, Thessalonica, Corinth, Ephesus and elsewhere. He often worked as a tentmaker to support himself, and was flogged, imprisoned and shipwrecked. Seven letters are accepted by most scholars as his own, and they are the oldest Christian writings that survive, composed around the years 50 to 60.
After his arrest in Jerusalem, he appealed to be judged in Rome as a Roman citizen and was taken there by sea. According to tradition he was beheaded in Rome around 64 to 67, under Nero, and buried along the road to Ostia. The Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls stands over the site of that traditional tomb. The Church calls him the Apostle to the Gentiles. Because his letters were written to real communities facing real disputes, they give historians a rare firsthand view of Christian life in the middle of the first century, and the Church honours him together with Peter on 29 June.
Works and witness
- Made three missionary journeys around the Mediterranean, according to Acts
- Founded and strengthened communities at Philippi, Corinth, Ephesus and Thessalonica
- His letters are the oldest surviving Christian writings
- Supported himself as a tentmaker while preaching
- According to tradition, martyred in Rome around 64 to 67
Patron of
Missionaries, Malta
Saints from the same country
References
- Tân Ước: Công vụ Tông đồ và các thư của Phaolô (New Testament: Acts and the Pauline letters)
- Eusebius, Church History
- Martyrologium Romanum
Written by Anawim from documented history. Some details about ancient saints rest on tradition and are marked as such.