Looking for Paul

- According to Paul of Tarsus, the new sect of Christians threatened the faith of Israel. By hunting down these dangerous renegades, he wanted to protect his compatriots. It seemed clear to him that the crucifixion of Jesus proved that the Nazarene was a false messiah and that the brotherhood between the Jews and members of other races, as preached by Stephen, would do away with the "single election" of the people of Israel. We need to remember these considerations in order to appreciate the true value of the irruption of Christ into the life of Saint Paul.
- It is therefore above all the event of the road to Damascus which illuminates the life of St. Paul with an intensity that will never weaken. His great knowledge of the Scriptures will then provide him with the necessary lights to find meaning in this momentous encounter. The Scriptures will enable him to understand and harmonize the revelation of Jesus, Son of God, with the suffering Messiah of the prophets.
- “The gospel of Paul” therefore did not fall to him from heaven perfectly finished. It will be the fruit of divine illumination, followed by meditative prayer and constant Bible study. His letters reflect this triple character.
- It is important to emphasize that Paul's conversion did not end on the road to Damascus. This is where it begins. It will take him a lifetime, until his death sentence in the capital of the Empire, to complete this conversion.
- The life of a Christian is a path that he must follow and lead to the end!
- There is no question of taking breaks or being a Christian when it suits us!
- One must be a Christian at every moment of his life!

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10- On the road to Damascus




The risen Christ appears to Paul

Paul is deeply gripped, in his heart and in his intelligence, by this Jesus who came to reveal God's infinite love for us.
He is overthrown by the merciful and free love of God, at a time when nothing prepared him for this revelation.
According to Paul of Tarsus, the new sect of Christians threatened the faith of Israel. By hunting down these dangerous renegades, he wanted to protect his compatriots. It seemed clear to him that the crucifixion of Jesus proved that the Nazarene was a false messiah and that the brotherhood between the Jews and members of other races, as preached by Stephen, would do away with the "single election" of the people of Israel. We need to remember these considerations in order to appreciate the true value of the irruption of Christ into the life of Saint Paul.
In Christian iconography, particularly in the Middle Ages, we see Paul who, on the road to Damascus, falls from his horse. In the first century, horses were rare and they were used mainly by the military and by high Roman officials. Paul was probably traveling on foot, in the middle of a "caravan". Suddenly, this convinced Pharisee finds himself face to face with the one he wants to eliminate. Twice he hears his name pronounced: “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?” Christ identifies himself with the Christians of his Church. Paul becomes blind and it will be one of the disciples of the Lord, Ananias, who will restore his sight. (Acts 9, 10-19)




Theatrical scene of the conversion of Saul (often repeated in Christian iconography)... which falsely suggests that Paul faces an all-powerful, authoritarian and wrathful God, who stops him in the middle of a ride

The Apostle will never have the slightest doubt about what he experienced during those few moments on the road to Damascus. His conviction will remain unshakable: he really met Jesus, the Risen One, who challenged him and turned his life upside down. When he comes to, like a real man of action, he asks: "Lord, what do you want me to do?" (Acts 22, 10)

Without this appearance of the risen Christ, Paul would never have been able to overcome the “scandal of the cross”. Only the resurrection could remove this obstacle, as it did for the other apostles.

Throughout his life, Paul will remember this meeting. The Lord appeared to him, not in the guise of one who chastises and avenges, but with a countenance full of mercy and kindness:

"The day when the goodness of God our Savior appeared and his love for men, he did not concern himself with the works that we had been able to accomplish, but, moved by his mercy alone, he saved us by bathing in the regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3, 4-5)

The wrath of God against men had been transformed into love full of tenderness. The epistles of Paul, unique documents in world literature, will proclaim this fundamental truth:

"But mercy has been shown to me!" (1 Timothy 1, 13)

Paul is deeply gripped, in his heart and in his intelligence, by this Jesus who came to reveal God's infinite love for us. He then discovers the mystery of the God-incarnate, who places himself on the side of the weak, who identifies himself with each of them: “I am the one you are persecuting”. He is overthrown by the merciful and free love of God, at a time when nothing prepared him for this revelation. It is to the sudden nature of this encounter that the strange words allude: “After all the disciples, he appeared to me too, as to an abortion. (1 Corinthians 15:8).

At the beginning of the 5th century, Saint Augustine, who will also live a great experience of conversion, will say, speaking of the fight for grace in Saint Paul: “She threw him to the ground to raise him immediately” (Sermon 14).

"Paul's Gospel" will be the fruit of divine illumination, followed by meditative prayer

and constant Bible study.

It is therefore above all the event of the road to Damascus which illuminates the life of St. Paul with an intensity that will never weaken. His great knowledge of the Scriptures will then provide him with the necessary lights to find meaning in this momentous encounter. The Scriptures will enable him to understand and harmonize the revelation of Jesus, Son of God, with the suffering Messiah of the prophets.

“The gospel of Paul” therefore did not fall from heaven to him perfectly finished. It will be the fruit of divine illumination, followed by meditative prayer and constant Bible study. His letters reflect this triple character. If we read them in the chronological sequence of their writing, it is possible to recognize quite clearly the development of the thought of the apostle of the nations.

For Paul, this encounter with Christ can be summed up in one word: gratuitousness! This is the key to reading his experience on the road to Damascus. This gratuitousness renewed her relationship with God from within. From now on, it will guide his whole life and support him in the crises that will come. It is the new source of spirituality which makes a "powerful energy" (Colossians 1:29) spring up in him, much more demanding than his will to practice the Law and to acquire his own justification.

Free from God!

This is the key to reading his experience on the road to Damascus.

Joy and thanksgiving will be the characteristics of his spirituality.

It is important to point out that Paul's conversion did not end on the road to Damascus. This is where it begins. It will take him a lifetime, until his death sentence in the capital of the Empire, to complete this conversion.

When Paul takes a look at his life, he sees it divided into two parts, “life without Christ” and “life in Christ”. What happened on the road to Damascus is the great event that separates them. After this meeting, the tumultuous life of Paul experiences a turnaround that invites him not to destroy those who are different from him but to preach to them hope, reconciliation and freedom in God-Savior.

Paul is like the merchant of whom Matthew speaks in chapter 13 of his Gospel: having found a precious pearl, he realizes that all the rest is worthless. He is like the man who discovers a treasure hidden in a field and gives up everything to acquire it.

“Because of him, I accepted to lose everything, I consider everything as waste, in order to win Christ.” (Philippians 3, 7-8).

The encounter on the road to Damascus will produce a true transfiguration in Paul, and will bring him great inner joy:

“I am filled with consolation; I overflow with joy in the midst of all our trials” (2 Colossians 7, 4).

It will invite him to recognition. (cf. Colossians 1:12). Joy and thanksgiving will be the characteristics of his spirituality. And the experience of Damascus will invite him to praise his Lord:

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who from heaven has showered us with all spiritual blessings in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3). (See 2 Colossians 1, 3-4).

Meeting Christ on the road to Damascus is the most precious moment in Paul's life. Three times, Luke tells us about it (Acts 9, 1-19; 22, 4-16; 26, 9-18), because this event is an example and a model of all true encounters with Christ.

- At the time of his encounter with Christ, Paul is not an unbeliever who discovers God, nor a sinner who wants to free himself from his faults, his negligence or his indifference. Before this incident, he had an exemplary conduct. He does not hesitate to say himself that he was "blameless with regard to the justice of the law" (Philippians 3, 5). Paul's conversion and calling did not bring about a dramatic change in his Jewish religion. Paul was born and lived his whole life as a "son of Israel", but with the encounter with Christ he discovered in Jesus the awaited Messiah. What is called his conversion was not the change from one religion to another, but a new understanding of the Scriptures, thanks to the revelation of Damascus.

- For Paul, it is a rupture in his life and he assumes all the consequences. He accepts to pass for a madman in the eyes of Greek culture and to be a scandal for the Jewish religion, the religion of his fathers! "While the Jews ask for signs and the Greeks seek wisdom, we proclaim a crucified Christ, scandal to the Jews and folly to the Gentiles" (1 Corinthians 1, 22-23)

- Breaking with the world he knows, Paul undertakes to rebuild it on new bases where the relations of domination based on race, religion, social class or sex will be overcome. The community of faith must be the seed of this new society. In it is born the "new Adam" and the "new Eve", the new man and the new woman: "What matters is the new creation." (Galatians 6, 15). "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature." (2 Corinthians 5:17).

- Paul found here the meaning of his life and, according to him, nothing can separate him from this infinite love: “Tribulation, anguish, persecution, hunger, nudity, perils, the sword?.. .death, life, angels, principalities, present, future, powers, height or depth, nor any other creature can separate us from the love of God manifested in Christ Jesus our Lord »

- He will learn to lose his smugness as an irreproachable Pharisee and to expect everything from Christ: "The Lord has judged me trustworthy by taking me into his service, I who had previously been a blasphemer, persecutor and violent." (1 Timothy, 12-13)

- Paul is an example for us!

- It's up to us to follow his path!

- And not to stop on the way or stay on the side of the road!

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11- Break in the life of Paul




Paul is very secretive about what happened on the road to Damascus and gives little information about his encounter with Christ. However, he asserts that God revealed his Son to him, and that is what is important to him. He speaks of this event in terms of "revelation" (Galatians 2, 2) or "appearance of the risen Lord" (1 Corinthians 9, 1; 15, 8). It thus indicates the whole interior aspect of this contact with God.

The book of Acts of the Apostles gives us much more detail on the subject. Chapter 9, 1-19 relates the conversion of Paul and the same story comes back to chapter 22, 6-16 and chapter 26, 12-18. In each of these texts, the details are slightly different, but the essential plot of the story remains the same.

At the time of his encounter with Christ, Paul is not an unbeliever who discovers God, nor a sinner who wants to free himself from his faults, his negligence or his indifference. Before this incident, he had an exemplary conduct. He does not hesitate to say himself that he was "blameless with regard to the justice of the law" (Philippians 3, 5). Paul's conversion and calling did not bring about a dramatic change in his Jewish religion. Paul was born and lived his whole life as a "son of Israel", but with the encounter with Christ he discovered in Jesus the awaited Messiah. What is called his conversion was not the change from one religion to another, but a new understanding of the Scriptures, thanks to the revelation of Damascus.

Paul's conversion has its source in the discovery of the gratuitous love that God has for him.

For Paul, it is a rupture in his life and he assumes all the consequences. He accepts to pass for a madman in the eyes of Greek culture and to be a scandal for the Jewish religion, the religion of his fathers! “While the Jews ask for signs and the Greeks seek wisdom, we proclaim a crucified Christ, a scandal for the Jews and folly for the Gentiles” (1 Corinthians 1, 22-23),

Breaking with the world he knows, Paul undertakes to rebuild it on new bases where the relations of domination based on race, religion, social class or sex will be overcome. The community of faith must be the seed of this new society. In her is born the "new Adam" and the "new Eve", the new man and the new woman: "What matters is the new creation." (Galatians 6, 15). "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature." (2 Corinthians 5:17).




Before this meeting in Damascus, Paul considered himself master of his life. Now someone else is directing it and calling it into action. The Roman citizen, the free man, the convinced Pharisee makes himself "the slave of Christ" (Romans 1, 1; Galatians 1, 10). Paul no longer belongs to himself. "In life and in death, we belong to the Lord." (Romans 14.8). However, this change of orientation does not take away his freedom. On the contrary! “It is so that we remain free, he says, that Christ has freed us!” (Galatians 5, 1; 2, 4). Incredible paradox!

Paul found here the meaning of his life and, according to him, nothing can separate him from this infinite love: “Tribulation, anguish, persecution, hunger, nudity, perils, the sword?... death, life, angels, principalities, present, future, powers, height or depth, nor any other creature can separate us from the love of God manifested in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Paul's conversion has its source in the discovery of the gratuitous love that God has for him. The merciful face of Jesus eclipses the image he had made of a demanding God to whom we owe obedience and submission above all.

From that day on, Paul will no longer rely on his own strength, nor on his “good works”.

He will learn to lose his smugness as an irreproachable Pharisee and to everything

expect from Christ.

After this revelation on the road to Damascus, reading the texts of Isaiah and other texts of the Old Testament, Paul discovers the true nature of God. This God loves us to the point of offering his life for us. The cross which was the object of scandal becomes the proof of his great love. God did not choose the cross, it was the wickedness of men who condemned him to this atrocious death, but he accepted this infamous torture out of love for us. He died because of human injustice and, like millions of others, He went to the end of our humanity.

From that day on, Paul will no longer rely on his own strength, nor on his “good works”. His assurance and his confidence, he will henceforth put them in God, and in God alone. He will understand that salvation is not the result of his efforts, but that it is freely offered to him in Jesus Christ: "For my present life... I live it in faith in the Son of God who gave me loved and gave himself up for me.” (Galatians 2, 20).

He will learn to lose his smugness as an irreproachable Pharisee and to expect everything from Christ: "The Lord has judged me trustworthy by taking me into his service, I who had previously been a blasphemer, persecutor and violent person." (1 Timothy, 12-13)

Paul discovers himself a sinner, but Jesus does not stop at his past. He looks to the future and thinks only of what it can become. He declares to Ananias all the confidence he places in this persecuting Pharisee: “This man is for me an instrument of choice to carry my name before the pagan nations, the kings and the Israelites”. (Acts 9, 15)

Paul will devote his whole life to responding in an extraordinary way to this invitation of Christ. Driven by the unconditional love of God, he will go to the end of the world and to the end of life. Christ had said "It is a fire that I have come to bring to earth". Paul now shares this same desire and he will now be able to say: "...and how I wish it were already lit" (Luke 12, 49)

• We have little information about the three years Paul spent in Arabia after his encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus. Fortunately, he was forced later, because of the attacks of his adversaries, to lift the veil a little on this period of his life.
• For three years, Paul deepened the new orientation of his life.
• “In Arabia,” did he go down to Petra, the capital of the Nabataeans, or did he head for Palmira? One can only speculate on Paul's movements during these three years of reflection. The term "Arabia" then applied to the entire Arabian Peninsula, but its core was the kingdom of the Nabatheans, with its capital Petra, a real eagle's nest in the desert, which controlled the caravan route. The Greco-Roman ruins of this capital-fortress are impressive. Arabia also included Basra, Homs (Emesa), Amman, and a very large territory extending to the rivers of Mesopotamia, the Tigris and the Euphrates. The sheik of the Nabataeans, Aretas, king of Damascus and a large part of the territory of Arabia, was at war with king Herod Antipas, because the latter had divorced his daughter to marry Herodias, the wife of his brother, the one who asked for the head of John the Baptist. In Arabia, Paul felt protected against Jewish emissaries, and this may be the reason why he traveled to this desert region.
• During this period, a spiritual and intellectual transformation continued in him, which revealed Pauline theology more and more. Paul will then speak of “his gospel”: “The gospel that I announced is not on a human scale: neither did I receive it or learn it from a man, but by a revelation of Jesus Christ.” (Galatians 1, 11-12).
• During his stay in Arabia, from the Scriptures he knows by heart, Paul develops a new conception of Christ and faith. He then understands that the universal plan of God is addressed not only to the Jews but to all nations. He also discovers the mystery of God's infinite love for us through the rejection of his people and the scandal of the cross.
• His gospel is the same as that of the other apostles, but Paul will know how to make it accessible not only to the Jews of the Diaspora but to the Greco-Roman world.
• Paul thus became aware of Christ's will to remove the barrier and the wall that separated Judaism from other nations.
• For Paul, to be a Christian is to be conquered by Christ and to be released from the narrow framework of a single culture, a single religion, a single nation. Christ is the New Adam, the new prototype of humanity. Paul's conception of Christ is not the product of religious speculation, but of revelation by the Spirit. In Arabia, his new theology found its bases.
• After three years, Paul returned to Damascus and appeared in the synagogue. To the great astonishment of the Jews, he asked to speak to demonstrate, based on the texts of the Prophets, that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah and that he was alive. Among the Orthodox Jews, anger began to growl and Paul was threatened with death.
• Is it possible to add something?

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12- The Arabian Desert and the Flight from Damascus​

Arabian Desert - Wadi Rum. In the southeast of Jordan, near Petra.
We have little information about the three years Paul spent in Arabia after his encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus. Fortunately, he was forced later, because of the attacks of his adversaries, to lift the veil a little on this period of his life.
He tells us that after this meeting he did not consult his family or the leaders of the Church in Jerusalem: “At once I consulted neither flesh nor blood. Neither did I go up to Jerusalem” (Galatians 1:16-17).
For now, this momentous event is enough for him. Moreover, if he had gone to Jerusalem, his situation vis-à-vis the Christians would have been very delicate, because of his numerous attacks against the disciples of Christ. Then he would have put his life in danger with the Sanhedrin for joining the disciples of Christ.
For three years, Paul deepened the new orientation of his life.
Paul simply said, “I went to Arabia. The Orthodox theologian Nicolas Koulomzine considers “this retreat very significant: Paul follows the royal path of all mystics, he retires to the desert in order to isolate himself, to find himself for a time, alone with God. Thanks to this time of reflection, he will feel the influence on him of the Spirit of the Lord.”





Located in the desert of present-day Jordan, Petra was an extraordinary city, especially because of its many magnificent monuments carved into the very rock.

“In Arabia,” did he go down to Petra, the capital of the Nabataeans, or did he head for Palmira? One can only speculate on Paul's movements during these three years of reflection. The term "Arabia" then applied to the entire Arabian Peninsula, but its core was the kingdom of the Nabatheans, with its capital Petra, a real eagle's nest in the desert, which controlled the caravan route. The Greco-Roman ruins of this capital-fortress are impressive. Arabia also included Basra, Homs (Emesa), Amman, and a very large territory extending to the rivers of Mesopotamia, the Tigris and the Euphrates. The sheik of the Nabataeans, Aretas, king of Damascus and a large part of the territory of Arabia, was at war with king Herod Antipas, because the latter had divorced his daughter to marry Herodias, the wife of his brother, the one who asked for the head of John the Baptist. In Arabia, Paul felt protected against Jewish emissaries, and this may be the reason why he traveled to this desert region.

For three years, Paul deepened the new orientation of his life. To clarify the change in him, he uses expressions such as “putting on Christ Jesus” or “appropriating the feelings of Christ Jesus” (Philemon 2:5).

He discovers the mystery of God's infinite love for us through the rejection of his people

and the scandal of the cross.

During this period, a spiritual and intellectual transformation continued in him, which revealed Pauline theology more and more. Paul will then speak of “his gospel”: “The gospel that I announced is not on a human scale: neither did I receive it or learn it from a man, but by a revelation of Jesus Christ.” (Galatians 1, 11-12).

During his stay in Arabia, from the Scriptures he knows by heart, Paul develops a new conception of Christ and faith. He then understands that the universal plan of God is addressed not only to the Jews but to all nations. He also discovers the mystery of God's infinite love for us through the rejection of his people and the scandal of the cross.

His gospel is the same as that of the other apostles, but Paul will know how to make it accessible not only to the Jews of the Diaspora but to the Greco-Roman world.

The fundamental idea revealed to him in Damascus is that of a powerful intervention of God in history, in the person of Jesus who came to save men and not to condemn them. Jesus is the messenger of the Father, the messenger of the good news, the Messiah-Savior. The love that the Lord has for Paul, the persecutor, is offered to all. Christ intervened with mercy in his life and made effective the salvation offered to all humanity.

Paul thus became aware of Christ's will to remove the barrier and the wall that separated Judaism from other nations.

What touches Paul in the depths of his being, during this period of reflection, is

the Cross of Jesus.

What touches Paul in the depths of his being, during this period of reflection, is the Cross of Jesus, “this masterpiece of the love of God”. He will depict it to the Galatians, he will preach it to the Corinthians: “For I wanted to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ crucified” (1Corinthians 2:2).

Paul is also deeply touched by the stripping of Christ, and the way in which he fulfills his mission: “He, of divine condition, did not jealously retain the rank which made him equal to God. But he annihilates himself, taking on the condition of a slave, and becoming like men. Having behaved like a man, he humbled himself again, obedient unto death, and death on the cross.” (Philippians. 2, 6-10).

For Paul, to be a Christian is to be conquered by Christ and to be released from the narrow framework of a single culture, a single religion, a single nation. Christ is the New Adam, the new prototype of humanity. Paul's conception of Christ is not the product of religious speculation, but of revelation by the Spirit. In Arabia, his new theology found its bases.

After three years, Paul returned to Damascus and appeared in the synagogue. To the great astonishment of the Jews, he asked to speak to demonstrate, based on the texts of the Prophets, that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah and that he was alive. Among the Orthodox Jews, anger began to growl and Paul was threatened with death.




There were conspirators who promised to kill the "apostate" as soon as he walked through the maze of city streets. It was easy to buy off the rulers of Damascus. Guards were posted at all the gates to seize Paul if he tried to flee: “After a while the Jews came together to put him to death. But Saul got wind of their plot. They even guarded the gates of the city day and night, in order to put him to death. Then the disciples took him by night and lowered him in a basket along the wall” (Acts 9, 23-24).
This is the version of Luke who accuses the Jews of the conspiracy. Paul, for his part, believes that it is the civil authorities who want his life: "In Damascus, the ethnarch of King Aretas was guarding the city to arrest me and it is through a window, in a basket, let me slide along the wall, and so I escaped from his hands.” (2 Corinthians 11:32)
This conspiracy against Paul is probably orchestrated by both groups, that is, by the Jews with the support of the city authorities.
From a house that belonged to a Christian, Paul huddled in a large basket and was let down along the wall by strong ropes. At the bottom, it emerges and, after crossing gardens, irrigation canals and farmyards, it reaches the road that leads south, towards the "via maris", the road to the sea. will then go to Jerusalem.
For Paul, it was the first in a series of many escapades that will force him to flee from town to town to save his life.

13- Paul meets Peter and James in Jerusalem​

Saints Peter and Paul (1)

Paul had everything to learn from the doings and deeds of Christ. The chief apostle was qualified to give them to him.
After his three-year stay in Arabia, Paul felt the need to meet the disciples of Christ. He had to learn all that Jesus had said on the roads of Palestine, during the meeting of the Last Supper, during the appearances after the resurrection, on the morning of Pentecost. He had everything to learn from the deeds and gestures of Christ.
In the interest of Christian unity, he also had to learn about the liturgy as it was practiced in the community of Jerusalem and familiarize himself with the tradition concerning the catechumenate, baptism, and the celebration of the Last Supper.
Arrived in Jerusalem, Paul finds himself in a difficult situation, both with the Orthodox Jews and with the Christians. Everyone distrusts him and avoids him as much as possible. Only one person then tried to understand this man converted by Christ: Barnabas. A Hellenist born in Cyprus, he was able to appreciate the qualities of the fiery Paul of Tarsus. “Arrived in Jerusalem, Paul tried to join the disciples, but all were afraid of him, not believing that he was really a disciple. Then Barnabas took him with him, brought him to the apostles and told them how on the way Saul had seen the Lord, who had spoken to him, and with what boldness he had preached in Damascus in the name of Jesus.” (Acts 9, 26-27)





Saint Barnabas(2)

Between Paul and Barnabas developed one of the most fruitful friendships in the history of the Church.
Barnabas is one of the most sympathetic characters of the primitive Church. He discovers in Paul the great soul of an apostle. His friendly hand intervenes to tear Paul out of his isolation and introduce him to the two most esteemed apostles: Peter and James. Barnabas will play a very big role in Paul's life. It is thanks to him that the apostle of the nations entered the circle of the disciples and that he became a pillar of Christianity. Following this meeting, one of the most fruitful friendships in the history of the Church developed between Barnabas and Paul.
Paul himself makes only a brief allusion to these events: “After three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days; I saw no other apostle, but only James, the Lord's brother." (Galatians 1, 18-19)
Pierre, always affable and welcoming, a man of great simplicity, probably invited him to share his lodgings in the hospitable house of Marie, the mother of the evangelist Mark, whose uncle Barnabas was.
From Peter, Paul learned to know the words of the institution of the Eucharist, as he reminded them to the Corinthians. The chief apostle was qualified to give them to him. We are in the presence of an authentic and solid teaching of the primitive tradition. With Peter, Paul probably visited the Garden of Gethsemane. The Epistle to the Hebrews, which is written in the spirit of the Apostle, and which contains his spiritual treasure, alludes to the prayer of the Lord during his agony: "It is this Christ who, in the days of his mortal life , sent up prayers and supplications, accompanied by a loud cry and tears, to Him who could save him from death”. (Hebrews 5, 7)





Saint James, the Major (3)

James took the lead of the disciples of Jesus, in Jerusalem. Always eager to stay
faithful to Jewish rituals, he will make Paul's mission difficult
During these 15 days in Jerusalem, Paul also met James, the brother of the Lord. His membership in the family of Jesus is beyond doubt, and his influence on the first-century church will be considerable. When Peter departs from Jerusalem, he will take the lead of Jesus' disciples. This Christian, always eager to remain faithful to the rituals of his people, will make Paul's mission difficult. The day will come when he will find James and his disciples on his way, determined to annihilate the effects of his preaching. From its beginnings, Christianity will divide and fight itself.
After these fifteen days in Jerusalem, Paul will remain in continuous contact with the disciples of the Mother Church and he will visit the holy city after each of his missionary journeys. The expression "I transmitted to you in the first place what I myself had received" (1 Corinthians 15:3) confirms that it is based on a solid tradition, that of the Lord's apostles. Paul has faithfully reported to us certain words of Jesus, such as those on the institution of the Eucharist, the mission of the disciples and the doctrine of marriage. The word of Jesus: "It is more blessed to give than to receive", which is not mentioned in the Gospels, it is Paul who kept it (Acts 20, 35).
It is quite evident that during these fifteen days in Jerusalem, Paul did not spend all his time with Peter and James. He was expansive and combative in character. He felt urged to bear witness to the truth recognized and acquired by him. The synagogue where Paul gathered with other Jews from the Diaspora then became the scene of extremely violent debates. He came very close to being put to death, like Stephen. The group of disciples of Christ trembled for his life, but also for theirs. They had hitherto avoided any conflict with the Pharisees, a fairly large number of whom had come to join them.
Paul was a danger to this fragile and fearful community. His unequal and provocative character risked triggering general persecution.

And here comes this imprudent man who admits of no compromise. Times were troubled and the little church in Jerusalem was threatened. Any difference, any disagreement was settled with knife and dagger. Paul was a danger to this fragile and fearful community. His unequal and provocative character risked triggering a general persecution: “From then on he went and came with them in Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. He also addressed the Hellenists and discussed with them; but these were engineering his downfall. Knowing this, the brothers brought him back to Caesarea, from where they sent him to Tarsus. (Acts 9, 28-30)

His action therefore ended in a failure even more bitter than that of Damascus. He was forced to leave the city and the text adds that after Paul's departure the Christian community enjoyed a period of tranquility: "However the churches enjoyed peace throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria ; they built themselves up and lived in the fear of the Lord, and they were filled with the consolation of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 9, 31)

Paul was forbidden to stop on the way to visit the communities on the coast. "This is how I remained unknown by face to the communities of Judea." From Caesarea, Paul crossed to Tire and Sidon on his way to Seleucia near Antioch in Syria. (Galatians 1, 22). He then arrived in Tarsus, his native town.

Failure in Damascus, failure in Jerusalem, failure in Caesarea, it's not very good, and it's only the beginning.

- The city of Antioch in Syria was the base of Paul's missionary operations!

- After the Roman conquest by Pompey, in 64 BC., it became the capital of the province of Syria!

- It was located at the crossroads of the West and the East!

- Thanks to a network of canals and conduits that were supplied from the surrounding mountains, water was accessible both in the palaces of the rich and in the huts of the poor, in public baths and in private baths. Only the cities of Tarsus and Damascus could boast of such a profusion of running water.

- It was in Antioch that Roman coins bearing the effigy of the Emperor were minted.

- The population of Antioch consisted of various races and peoples. In Paul's time, it had about 500,000 inhabitants and was the third city of the empire after Rome and Alexandria.

- The three stages of the young Christian community on the way to the universal Church are characterized by the names: Jerusalem - Antioch - Rome. Antioch which was in contact with all the important cities of the Empire was an ideal place for a Church which wanted to spread among the nations.

- In addition to being an important commercial city, Antioch was a much more dynamic intellectual center than the city Jerusalem continually agitated and in revolt against Rome. Placed in tutelage and under surveillance by the Romans, Jerusalem was in a deplorable economic situation.

- In Antioch, the Jews formed an important colony. All who aspired to a serious religion, especially women, went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day. The number of proselytes recruited from among non-Jews was considerable. Citadel of civilization, the separation between Jews and non-Jews was less pronounced than elsewhere. This allowed the foundation of the first mixed church. The Antiochians allowed non-Jews to participate in their life of faith!

- Antioch in Syria exerted a profound influence on Paul: it became, for more than 20 years, his chosen homeland and the starting point of his three great missionary journeys.

- It was a very different world from what we know today!

- In the same way that the world we discover in the first part of the Bible was very different from the modern world!

- This is why we need to soak up this knowledge essential to a good knowledge of the Bible!

- And the languages that were spoken at these different times were also very different from modern languages!

- The Hebrew was more limited and corresponded to the reality of the time!

- The Greek was much richer and corresponded to the reality of the time!

- This is why we cannot consider the two languages in the same way and even less as our modern languages!

- For us, the Hebrews might seem uneducated!

- For the Greeks, we would be uneducated!

- So let's show some modesty and learn to understand these people who are very different from us!

- It will help us to get closer to the Bible and avoid moving away from it!

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14- Antioch of Syria




The city of Antioch at the foot of the mountain
To understand Paul's pastoral work, one must know a little about the city of Antioch in Syria, which was the base of his missionary operations. It was from there that he and Barnabas were sent by the small Christian community.
Antioch was founded three centuries before Paul's birth by Seleucus Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals. Placed at the crossroads of the caravan routes from the East, in connection with Babylon, Persia and India, it was in continuous contact with the western basin of the Mediterranean. Traders, bankers, shipowners were very quickly attracted to this cosmopolitan center, streaming with wealth and passion. After the Roman conquest by Pompey in 64 BC. J.C., it became the capital of the province of Syria.
Third city of the empire
(after Rome and Alexandria),
Antioch of Syria exerted a profound influence on Paul
The city was completely surrounded by a fortified wall, comprising between 300 and 400 towers, a masterpiece of Greco-Roman architecture. Antioch was proud of its hydraulic installations. Thanks to a network of canals and conduits that drew their supplies from the surrounding mountains, water was accessible both in the palaces of the rich and in the huts of the poor, in public baths and private baths. Only the cities of Tarsus and Damascus could boast of such a profusion of running water.





Antioch is located:

- In the northeast of the Mediterranean,

- North of Palestine (Jerusalem) of Lebanon and Jordan (Damascus),

- East of the island of Cyprus and Cilicia (Tarsus)

It was in Antioch that Roman coins bearing the effigy of the Emperor were minted. When Jesus asked the Pharisees, “Whose image and inscription is this?” He was probably holding a coin minted in Antioch in his hand.

Renan painted, in his picturesque style, this picture of Antioch:

“It was an incredible mass of jugglers, charlatans, mimes, magicians, thaumaturges, sorcerers, impostor priests; a city of races, games, dances, processions, feasts, bacchanalia, unbridled luxury, all the follies of the Orient, the most unhealthy superstitions, orgy fanaticism.

The population of Antioch consisted of various races and peoples. In Paul's time, it had about 500,000 inhabitants and was the third city of the empire after Rome and Alexandria.

When Titus razed the Temple of Jerusalem and destroyed the city in AD 70. AD, Antioch became the center of Christianity. From 252 to 380 ten councils met there.

The three stages of the young Christian community on the way to the universal Church are characterized by the names: Jerusalem - Antioch - Rome. Antioch which was in contact with all the important cities of the Empire was an ideal place for a Church which wanted to spread among the nations.

In addition to being an important commercial city, Antioch was a much more dynamic intellectual center than the continually restless city of Jerusalem in revolt against Rome. Placed in tutelage and under surveillance by the Romans, Jerusalem was in a deplorable economic situation.

After the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, Antioch became the center of Christianity.

From 252 to 380 ten councils met there.

In Antioch, the Jews formed an important colony. All who aspired to a serious religion, especially women, went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day. The number of proselytes recruited from among non-Jews was considerable. Citadel of civilization, the separation between Jews and non-Jews was less pronounced than elsewhere. This allowed the foundation of the first mixed church. The Antiochians allowed non-Jews to participate in their life of faith!

This situation was a cause for concern for the Church in Jerusalem. It was decided to send observers and the choice fell on Barnabas as head of delegation. A more qualified man could hardly have been chosen for this delicate mission. Barnabas, of imposing stature, with a face and gaze reflecting kindness, with calm gestures, had a solid judgment, which does not confuse the accidental with the essential.

After his official visit, Barnabas decided to stay in Antioch. It was he who, a little later, would pick up Paul in Tarsus, to invite him to work with him in this cosmopolitan city of the Empire.

The church at Antioch increasingly saw itself as an outpost of the Christian mission. Barely fifteen years had passed since the death of the Lord, and already a series of newly founded communities lined the Orontes valley and the Syro-Phoenician coast, like “a brilliant necklace of pearls”. Jerusalem with its old traditions will be destroyed and Antioch, a city open to all currents, will take over and open Christianity to the nations.

Antioch in Syria exercised a profound influence on Paul: it became, for more than 20 years, his chosen homeland and the starting point of his three great missionary journeys.

- In Antioch, a deep friendship was created between Barnabas and Paul. It will have lasting consequences in the life of the apostle. They worked within the young community, still imbued with the freshness of faith in Jesus Christ.

- Under the influence of Greek culture, Paul and Barnabas were able to open the Church of Antioch to the world of their time. This Church was the first to break away from strict Judaism and to integrate non-Jews into their community.

- The collaboration between Paul and Barnabas will last for many years. It started in Antioch and, as we will see later, it ended dramatically in Antioch. But the break was preceded by twelve years of close and fruitful collaboration. The brothers and sisters of this Church were right to send them on a mission together.

- So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised took him to task: "Why, they asked him, did you go in to the uncircumcised and eat with them?" (Acts 11, 1-18)

- Conservative Christians did not accept missionaries allowing Gentiles to join them if they did not first become “Jews”, observing the rituals of their ancestors. This will be the problem that Paul and Barnabas will have to face throughout their missionary journeys.

- In Antioch, Paul and Barnabas lived in a charismatic community, fasting and praying in the company of the faithful of the local Church. Paul preached in the synagogues but also - this is new - elsewhere in the city. A tradition long evoked, showed him speaking near the Pantheon and to Romanized audiences. He taught more willingly than he baptized.

- For the third time, Barnabas will play an essential role in Paul's life. After having presented him to Peter and James in Jerusalem, having drawn him from his retirement in the city of Tarsus to take him to Antioch, he is now going to take him on a mission to the country he knows best because was born there: Cyprus. They will take with them the young Mark, cousin of Barnabas.

- The Christians of Antioch, have clubbed together to finance the trip. They gave them letters of recommendation, so that they would be well received in the synagogues as official delegates of the community of Antioch.

- Here we have the association of two men who linked their destinies and worked together to carry the message of Jesus!

- Together they were stronger!

- Together they moved mountains!

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15- Barnabas and Paul in Antioch



According to the Acts of the Apostles, Paul visited Jerusalem for 15 days where he met Peter and James, and then settled in Tarsus, his birthplace. He stayed there for three or four years. It is there that Barnabas comes to look for him to work with him: “Barnabas then went to look for Saul in Tarsus. Finding him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they lived together in the Church and taught a considerable crowd there. It was in Antioch that the disciples first received the name of Christians.” (Acts 11, 25-26)

The name "Christians", therefore, did not come from the Jews who called them "Nazarenes", as the Semitic-speaking peoples still do today. The Christians themselves designated themselves by the following names: brothers, saints, believers, disciples, members of the Way. They welcomed this new name and hastened to adopt it. It expressed what was deepest in their new faith: they were "disciples of Christ."

In Antioch, a deep friendship was created between Barnabas and Paul. It will have lasting consequences in the life of the apostle. They worked within the young community, still imbued with the freshness of faith in Jesus Christ.

Every week, on the Lord's Day, we gathered for the celebration of the Last Supper. According to the example given by Christ and following the custom of the Christian Jews, the agapes (fraternal meal) preceded the Last Supper. Nothing united these people more than a meal together. When the apostles gloried in “having eaten and drank with the Lord” (Acts 10:41), they saw it as a sign of intimacy. Jesus' most precious gift, the Eucharist, he gave at the end of a fraternal meal. Christians kept for a long time this double meeting of the feast and the Lord's Supper.

Under the influence of Greek culture, Paul and Barnabas were able to open the Church of Antioch to the world of their time. This Church was the first to break away from strict Judaism and to integrate non-Jews into their community.

Even today, we are indebted to this first missionary Church of Antioch, even though it has now completely disappeared. On the outskirts of the Turkish city of Antakya, there is only a ruined Catholic chapel in a garden overgrown with weeds. It has been closed since there is no longer a resident priest for the approximately sixty families who attended the religious services.

The collaboration between Paul and Barnabé will last for many years. It started in Antioch and, as we will see later, it ended dramatically in Antioch. But the break was preceded by twelve years of close and fruitful collaboration. The brothers and sisters of this Church were right to send them on a mission together.





We must remember, however, that Barnabas and Paul were not the first to promote the spread of Christianity. It was above all the Christians dispersed by the persecution of Jerusalem, the Judeo-Christian craftsmen and merchants who were the first instruments of propaganda. At first, this missionary activity was aimed only at Jews. Exclusivism did not stem from ill will, but from a misconception of the message of Christ. The Judeo-Christians lacked an overview, broad and generous vision of the mission. We remember that in chapter 11 of the Acts of the Apostles the first Christians had reproached Peter for having admitted into the Church, and without any special formality, the centurion Cornelius and his whole family. Peter defended his decision by recalling the vision he had had, and demonstrated how the Holy Spirit, descending on these non-Jews, had justified his action: "However the apostles and the brothers of Judea heard that the heathen, they too had accepted the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised took him to task: “Why, they asked him, did you go in to the uncircumcised and eat with them?” (Acts 11, 1-18)

Conservative Christians resented missionaries allowing Gentiles to join them if they did not first become "Jewish", observing the rituals of their ancestors. This will be the problem that Paul and Barnabas will have to face throughout their missionary journeys.

Barnabas was born in Cyprus and was the cousin of Mark the Evangelist. He was not part of the Quorum of the Twelve, but the Church granted him the title of apostle because of the important participation he took in the diffusion of the Word of Christ. Coming from a rich family, just like Paul, he will earn his living working with his hands, so as not to be a burden on the community. He died martyred, around the year 60, near Salamis, on his native island.

In Antioch, Paul and Barnabas lived in a charismatic community, fasting and praying in the company of the faithful of the local Church. Paul preached in the synagogues but also - this is new - elsewhere in the city. A tradition long evoked, showed him speaking near the Pantheon and to Romanized audiences. He taught more willingly than he baptized.





One day when several of them were gathered to celebrate the Lord's Day, they perceived together an invitation which they felt had come from elsewhere: "In the Church established in Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Symeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen, childhood friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. One day, while they were celebrating the worship of the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said: "Set me apart, therefore, Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." So, after fasting and praying, they laid hands on them and left them to their mission.” (Acts 13, 1-3)

For the third time, Barnabas will play an essential role in Paul's life. After having presented him to Peter and James in Jerusalem, having drawn him from his retirement in the city of Tarsus to take him to Antioch, he is now going to take him on a mission to the country he knows best because was born there: Cyprus. They will take with them the young Mark, cousin of Barnabas.

The Christians of Antioch, have clubbed together to finance the trip. They gave them letters of recommendation, so that they would be well received in the synagogues as official delegates of the community of Antioch.

- Barnabas, Paul and Mark go to the island of Cyprus by boat!
- This is the first missionary trip that will last about 4 years!
- The Jews of the Cypriot Diaspora turn to the Greeks!
- Paul followed here the usual plan that he will adopt throughout his missionary journeys: to begin with the synagogue in which, as a distinguished rabbi and pupil of Gamaliel, he was willingly invited to speak. The Jews of the Diaspora will thus prove to be an important support as the principal agents of the expansion of Christianity.
However, very often, as we will see during these trips, things go wrong. A listener gets angry, shouts at imposture, at sacrilege. This takes the form of violence, sometimes going as far as the punishments reserved for heretics, whippings regulated by the rabbis or the specifically Roman flagellation administered by lictors: "From the Jews, says Paul, I have received five times the thirty-nine lashes, three times I was scourged (by the Romans)." (2 Corinthians 11:24)


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16- Salamis on the island of Cyprus
Barnabas, Paul and Mark are heading for the port of Antioch. Mark will be talked about later, as editor of the first gospel. We are in the spring of the year 45.





Our three travelers and all the other passengers had to bring food for the whole trip; the captain only provided drinking water. For this journey from Antioch to Salamis, we had to plan around thirty hours squatting on the bridge among the goods and the many animals that continually mooed.

Throughout Antiquity, travelers favored transport by sea, infinitely faster and less exhausting than land travel, but they were well aware of the dangers. This is why certain basic rules were followed to avoid shipwrecks. The first of these rules was that you only sail during the good season - from May to September - in order to avoid the winds that would lead to disaster. The texts of the time condemn the greed of shipowners who overload ships with goods and passengers, and sail during dangerous periods of "closed seas" (late autumn and winter). In 64, the historian Flavius Josephus was shipwrecked in the Adriatic Sea, because his boat had embarked six hundred passengers, far exceeding the capacity of the ship, and had sailed during the period of “mare clausum”.




The point of arrival was Salamis, the port of Salamis, birthplace of Barnabas. There was a large Jewish community there.

In the distance, our three travelers see the cliffs of Cyprus and the white houses that stand out against the blue sky. Although Roman territory since the year 58 BC., the island retained its almost totally Greek character, by its language, its culture, its writing and its living environment. Paul therefore finds himself in familiar territory and Barnabas sets foot on "his island". It is reasonable to think that Barnabas and Mark had relatives and friends on the island.

For Paul and Barnabas, this first missionary journey will last about four years. During this period, they will give little news to their base community of Antioch, the means of communication being limited and quite primitive.

The Acts of the Apostles recounts this “first mission” of the two travelers in chapters 13 and 14. The account, very posterior to the events, simplifies the mission and amplifies it at the same time. It still gives an enlightening picture. During the trip, Paul reveals his methods, his message and his character to us, but he remains the missionary sent by the community of Antioch, to which he will report on his return.

On the island of Cyprus, many Jews worked in the copper mines to which the island owes its name. The members of the Cypriot diaspora had already broken with the rule of the synagogues to speak only to the Jews: ' in Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, but without preaching the word to anyone but the Jews. There were, however, among them some Cypriots and Cyreneans who, having come to Antioch, also spoke to the Greeks, announcing to them the Good News of the Lord Jesus. The hand of the Lord assisted them, and great were the number of those who became believers and converted to the Lord.” (Acts 11, 19-21).





Paul preaching in the synagogue. A 12th century mosaic.

The three missionaries dismounted at Salamis, 50 km north of Salamis. It was the largest merchant port on the island. All that remains today is a very extensive field of ruins, near Famagusta.

“When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews.” (Acts 8,5)

Here Paul followed the usual plan that he would adopt throughout his missionary journeys: to begin with the synagogue in which, as a distinguished rabbi and student of Gamaliel, he was willingly invited to speak. The Jews of the Diaspora will thus prove to be an important support as the principal agents of the expansion of Christianity.

However, very often, as we will see during these trips, things go wrong. A listener gets angry, shouts at imposture, at sacrilege. This translates into violence, sometimes going as far as the punishments reserved for heretics, whippings regulated by the rabbis or the specifically Roman flogging administered by lictors: "From the Jews, says Paul, I have received five times the thirty-nine lashes, three times I was scourged (by the Romans)." (2 Corinthians 11:24)

Salamis is the first Church founded by Barnabas and Paul. Later, Barnabas will return there with his cousin Mark. It is also not far from this city that Barnabas will be martyred around the year 60.

- From these meetings with Sergius Paulus will result an important event in the life of Paul. The apostle who until now was called Saul, will add to his name that of Paul. He will be known by this new name “for all eternity.” For a time the Tarsiote used both names: Saul called Paul. But quickly, “Saul” will disappear, giving way to “Paul”. Paulos, in Greek, means small. Besides the reality of his small size, Paul no doubt wanted to underline in his own eyes his condition as a servant compared to the infinite power of God.
- Another significant change: in Cyprus, we see Paul pass imperceptibly from the supporting role to that of head of mission. So far the texts have spoken of “Barnabas and Paul”. It will no longer be a question, from now on, of “Paul and Barnabas”.
- Marc, however, expressed his disagreement and protested strongly. What were they doing up there in those wild mountains? There will be no Jewish communities, no synagogues, only impassable paths, bordering abysses, bridges and walkways torn down and merciless brigands. This is not how he had imagined the journey. The courage of the young man from Jerusalem, who knew nothing of wild nature, was flagging. He didn't want to continue. Paul's audacious ardor was beyond him. He did not feel able to face the difficulties and dangers of these inhospitable places. He spoke about it to his cousin, Barnabas, and communicated to him his decision to take the first boat bound for Caesarea Maritime, to then enter Jerusalem. This desertion of young Mark deeply hurt Paul and it will later become one of the causes of conflict between Paul and Barnabas.
- Each time, Paul becomes a more important leader!
- He fully plays his role!
- He keeps moving forward!
- Nothing can stop it!
- The machine is launched at full speed!

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- It was the first time that the Gospel penetrated the aristocracy of Roman society. It is easy to understand that for this occasion it was Paul, the Roman citizen, who played the main role. The privilege of Roman citizenship gave him a certain prestige in the eyes of the governor of this senatorial province.

- Sergius Paulus became the first prominent Roman to convert (Cornelius, baptized by Peter, was only a centurion). The proconsul may have been one of those "God-fearing" people who in every city went to the synagogue, drawn by the moral richness of the Jewish faith.

- From these meetings with Sergius Paulus will result an important event in the life of Paul. The apostle who until now was called Saul, will add to his name that of Paul. He will be known by this new name “for all eternity.” For a time the Tarsiote used both names: Saul called Paul. But quickly, “Saul” will disappear, giving way to “Paul”. Paulos, in Greek, means small. Besides the reality of his small size, Paul no doubt wanted to underline in his own eyes his condition as a servant compared to the infinite power of God.

- From this moment, the Evangelist Luke no longer names the Apostle except with his name of Paul. In this Greek and Roman name (Paulos - Paulus) we find a new opening for “the apostle of the Nations”.

- In Cyprus, we see Paul pass imperceptibly from the supporting role to that of head of mission.

- Mark, however, expressed his disagreement and protested strongly. What were they doing up there in those wild mountains? There will be no Jewish communities, no synagogues, only impassable paths, bordering abysses, bridges and walkways torn down and merciless brigands. This is not how he had imagined the journey. The courage of the young man from Jerusalem, who knew nothing of wild nature, was flagging. He didn't want to continue. Paul's audacious ardor was beyond him. He did not feel able to face the difficulties and dangers of these inhospitable places. He spoke about it to his cousin, Barnabas, and communicated to him his decision to take the first boat bound for Caesarea Maritime, to then enter Jerusalem. This desertion of young Mark deeply hurt Paul and it will later become one of the causes of conflict between Paul and Barnabas.

- Mark will later be able to overcome this youthful defection from Paphos, and he will again become a precious collaborator of the apostle Paul. Prisoner in Rome, Paul writes: "Aristarchus, my companion in captivity, greets you, as well as Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, about whom you have received instructions: if he comes to you, make him welcome." (Colossians 4, 10)

- This is very interesting!

- It is always possible to overcome disagreements!

- This is the prerogative of the true disciples of Jesus!

- You still have to want it!

- Sometimes it takes time!

- The important thing is to continue your mission and move forward!


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17- Paphos​

From Salamis, Barnabas, Paul and Mark traveled to Paphos, on the other side of the island. In this seaport, magic reigns supreme. It is just if we do not grant him the rank of religion. Its supporters are inspired by doctrines that have their roots in Egypt or Mesopotamia. Sergius Paulus, the Roman proconsul, gladly welcomes magicians and philosophers of all tendencies to his palace. He is always happy to engage with them in a debate that the intellectuals of antiquity loved.




Before the proconsul Sergius Paulus. Paul blinds the magician Elymas.

Having learned of the presence in Paphos of three new preachers, the proconsul wanted to meet them. “He invited Barnabas, Paul and Mark and expressed the desire to hear the word of God”. One would rather believe that, being bored on his island, the representative of the emperor probably sought to distract himself by meeting these unusual visitors.

It was the first time that the Gospel penetrated the aristocracy of Roman society. It is easy to understand that for this occasion it was Paul, the Roman citizen, who played the main role. The privilege of Roman citizenship gave him a certain prestige in the eyes of the governor of this senatorial province.

Sergius Paulus became the first prominent Roman to convert (Cornelius, baptized by Peter, was only a centurion). The proconsul may have been one of those "God-fearing" people who in every city went to the synagogue, drawn by the moral richness of the Jewish faith.

Sergius Paulus, from a noble family, is presented to us by Pliny as a cultured man, an important personage, an authority in the natural sciences, a member of the imperial commission for the regulation of the Tiber, the river which crosses Rome, a connoisseur of philosophical questions and nuns. Seeking the truth, he had none of the jaded skepticism of Pontius Pilate. Luke calls him "a wise man", because he obviously sought access to the world of the supernatural.

His administrative occupations in the small island left him a lot of leisure time which he devoted to intellectual work. As proconsul, he was surrounded by a court composed of young Roman patricians, preparing for their future career as administrators.

“Saul” will disappear, giving way to “PAUL”. Paulos, in Greek, means small.

From these meetings with Sergius Paulus will result an important event in the life of Paul. The apostle who until now was called Saul, will add to his name that of Paul. He will be known by this new name “for all eternity.” For a time the Tarsiote used both names: Saul dit Paul. But quickly, “Saul” will disappear, giving way to “Paul”. Paulos, in Greek, means small. Besides the reality of his small size, Paul no doubt wanted to underline in his own eyes his condition as a servant compared to the infinite power of God.

From this moment, the Evangelist Luke only names the Apostle with his name Paul. In this Greek and Roman name (Paulos - Paulus) we find a new opening for “the apostle of the Nations”.

It is interesting to note that Saul's name never appears in Paul's letters. He does not mention it even when he evokes his life preceding his conversion and this encounter in Paphos. He refers to himself as "Paul". It is only in the Acts of the Apostles that we encounter the two names of Saul and Paul. Before his conversion, Luke names him “Saul”. The only passage where the two names are used side by side is in Acts 13:9 which simply says, "Saul, also called Paul." This is the last time that Luke uses this name "Saul".

In Cyprus, we see Paul pass imperceptibly from the supporting role to that of head of mission.

Another significant change: in Cyprus, we see Paul pass imperceptibly from the supporting role to that of head of mission. So far the texts have spoken of “Barnabas and Paul”. It will no longer be a question, from now on, of “Paul and Barnabas”.

After spending a few months in Cyprus, Paul decided to go to the continent and Barnabas let himself be carried away by his friend's ardor.

Marc, however, expressed his disagreement and protested strongly. What were they doing up there in those wild mountains? There will be no Jewish communities, no synagogues, only impassable paths, bordering abysses, bridges and walkways torn down and merciless brigands. This is not how he had imagined the journey. The courage of the young man from Jerusalem, who knew nothing of wild nature, was flagging. He didn't want to continue. Paul's audacious ardor was beyond him. He did not feel able to face the difficulties and dangers of these inhospitable places. He spoke about it to his cousin, Barnabas, and communicated to him his decision to take the first boat bound for Caesarea Maritime, to then enter Jerusalem. This desertion of young Marc deeply hurt Paul and it will later become one of the causes of conflict between Paul and Barnabas.




Makc, author of a gospel, cousin of Barnabas, disciple and collaborator of Peter, once again a companion of Paul.
Mark had grown up in Jerusalem among the first apostles, he had been brought up in the Judaic tradition which still strongly linked the young Church to the Synagogue. Paul, that fiery apostle, was determined to tear the Church from the Synagogue. Back in Jerusalem, Mark will become Peter's pupil and collaborator and his interpreter for the Greek language. He will take the road with him. The chief apostle speaks of “my son Mark” in one of his letters (1 Peter 5:13). Mark will accompany Peter on his missionary journeys and learn all about Jesus of Nazareth. This will fully qualify him to write the first of the four gospels, which is also sometimes called the "Gospel of Peter".
Mark will later be able to overcome this youthful defection from Paphos, and he will again become a valued collaborator of the apostle Paul. Prisoner in Rome, Paul writes: "Aristarchus, my companion in captivity, greets you, as well as Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, about whom you have received instructions: if he comes to you, make him welcome." (Colossians 4, 10)
After this departure from the port of Paphos, Paul never set foot on the island of Cyprus again. He considered this island as the stronghold and the foundation of Barnabas, and he did not want to build "on the ground of others".

- According to the Acts of the Apostles, Paul's life is marked by three great missionary journeys. The first begins in the year 46, when Paul is 41 years old (Acts 13.1-3). He begins the second in 50 and the third ends in the year 58, with his arrest in the Temple of Jerusalem (Acts 21, 27-34). In all, twelve or thirteen years of adventures on the roads and on the seas! These trips have nothing to do with the comfort of travel today. Only the main roads of the Empire had inns every thirty kilometers, where travelers could find refuge at the end of the day. On the secondary roads, it was necessary to spend the night in makeshift shelters.
- Paul and Barnabas, who probably traveled on foot, joined one of the many caravans that moved from one city to another. They traveled between thirty and thirty-five kilometers per day, a speed slightly lower than the average speed of a person on foot today. Road conditions were much worse than they are today.
- During his twelve or thirteen years of mission, Paul visited several large cities of the Empire: Antioch, Thessalonica, Athens, Corinth, Ephesus, Rome. These cities welcomed a mixture of nationalities and people from all over the world rubbed shoulders there, just like in our cities today!
- Arriving in towns and villages, Paul and Barnabas always proceeded in the same way. They went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day. This meeting was intended to convince their co-religionists that Christ was the Messiah. Generally, they rallied some, the others were hostile. This they knew in advance, but they considered that their preaching should first be addressed to the Israelites.


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18- On the roads of the empire​

From Paphos on the island of Cyprus, Paul and Barnabas decide to go to Asia Minor. In this very busy port, boats sail in all directions. Just choose. We must act quickly because the dangerous period of autumn, which prohibits sea travel, is fast approaching. Among the destinations that Paul might be interested in are Ephesus, a coastal city and a major transit center. But he prefers Attaleia. The person who influenced this decision is undoubtedly Sergius Paulus who probably has relations and contacts likely to be useful to the two missionaries.

Paul never had a definite travel plan. He responded to opportunities that presented themselves. Sergius Paulus offered him to go to Attaleia and from there to Antioch of Pisidia and this destination seemed to him interesting. As we mentioned earlier, Mark took the ship to Caesarea and from there he will reach Jerusalem.

According to the Acts of the Apostles, Paul's life is marked by three great missionary journeys. The first begins in the year 46, when Paul is 41 years old (Acts 13.1-3). He begins the second in 50 and the third ends in the year 58, with his arrest in the Temple of Jerusalem (Acts 21, 27-34). In all, twelve or thirteen years of adventures on the roads and on the seas! These trips have nothing to do with the comfort of travel today. Only the main roads of the Empire had inns every thirty kilometers, where travelers could find refuge at the end of the day. On the secondary roads, it was necessary to spend the night in makeshift shelters.





Roman roads in the Empire




Via Appia near Rome







Under construction - sketch of a section






Old Roman road, near Pelussin

The Romans had built, in their provinces around the Mediterranean, a quite remarkable road network whose first destination was military: indeed, the legions had to be able to move quickly to be where their intervention was necessary. For this reason, the Roman roads were drawn in a straight line and always connected two strategic points.

The oldest of these roads, the Via Appia, linked Rome to Capua. It had been built in 312 BC. J.-C. At the beginning of the Christian era, all the countries around the Mediterranean were furrowed with traffic routes. The road network will have more than 350 lanes, covering nearly 80,000 km.

Roman engineers had developed very efficient construction techniques that were used on all roads in the empire. Wide from 5 to 7.50 meters, they were built of five superimposed layers of materials, with a surface covering of stone slabs. Milestones or terminals indicated the distances between two cities. The military, aided by local workers, were in charge of building these roads and the many bridges, retaining walls and tunnels that made it possible to cross natural obstacles. The army was also responsible for maintaining the road network.

The Roman roads were at the service of all the inhabitants of the empire. Leaders, dignitaries and the wealthiest citizens traveled in comfortable cars, escorted by horsemen. Simple individuals, according to their means, traveled in groups in heavy covered wagons, on horseback or mule, or on foot.

Paul and Barnabas, who probably traveled on foot, joined one of the many caravans that moved from one city to another. They traveled between thirty and thirty-five kilometers per day, a speed slightly lower than the average speed of a person on foot today. Road conditions were much worse than they are today.

During his twelve or thirteen years of mission, Paul visited several large cities of the Empire: Antioch, Thessalonica, Athens, Corinth, Ephesus, Rome. These cities welcomed a mixture of nationalities and people from all over the world rubbed shoulders there, just like in our cities today!

The Gospel came from the rural world, from the interior of Palestine, and Paul had to be able to incarnate it in this new reality of the urban world. Difficult task! He had in mind the prophecy of Pentecost which wanted the Good News to reach all nations. Luke enumerates the peoples present in Jerusalem at the feast: “How is it then that each of us hears them in his own language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites, inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and that part of Libya which is close to Cyrene, Romans in residence, both Jews than proselytes, Cretans and Arabs, we hear them publishing in our language the marvels of God!” (Acts 2, 8-11) Throughout his travels Paul shows how the Gospel reached all these peoples and many others. Thus the prophecy of Pentecost is fulfilled.

Arriving in towns and villages, Paul and Barnabas always proceeded in the same way. They went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day. This meeting was intended to convince their co-religionists that Christ was the Messiah. Generally, they rallied some, the others were hostile. This they knew in advance, but they considered that their preaching should first be addressed to the Israelites.

Of all those churches founded during Paul's sweaty and laborious first journey - Salamis, Paphos, Perge, Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe - virtually nothing remains today. The call to prayer launched by the muezzin from the top of the minaret tells another story.

Towards the end of his stay in Antioch of Pisidia, Paul must already have considered a break with the synagogue: “The following Sabbath, almost the whole city assembled to hear the word of God. At the sight of this crowd, the Jews were filled with jealousy, and they replied with blasphemies to Paul's words. Emboldened then, Paul and Barnabas declared: “It was to you first that it was necessary to announce the word of God. Since you reject it and do not deem yourselves worthy of eternal life, well! we turn to the pagans. For thus has the Lord commanded us: I have made you a light of the nations, to make you salvation to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 13, 44-47)
We note the power of Paul's message!
Which causes the jealousy of the Jews!
As in the case of Jesus!
This did not prevent them from pursuing their activity with force!
Incredible examples to follow that push us to action!
The opposite of inactivity!

Because of these confrontations with some Jews in the synagogue, the two missionaries were no longer allowed to speak. That is why they taught in private homes, on terraces and in the open air. However, the final rupture only occurred during Paul's stay in Corinth, when he left the synagogue and settled nearby in the house of Justus, who was a proselyte (Acts 18:6).
Which shows that all means are good to transmit the message of Jesus!
Despite Jewish opposition, the Word of the Lord, through Paul and Barnabas, took root throughout the region. The good seed had been sown.
The work of Yah.weh cannot be stopped!
It must continually spread!
It is life itself that is stronger than anything!


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19. Perge and Antioch of Pisidia





Perge, in Pamphylia, near Attaleia




Paul and Barnabas leave the port of Neo-Paphos, to go to Attaleia, in Asia Minor. It took thirty-six hours of sailing to get there. Attaleia Bay was protected against corsairs by a crown of forts and bastions.
From Attaleia, they reach the city of Perge in less than half a day's walk. “They announced the word to Perge,” says Luke. (Acts 13,13) They stayed in this city for some time and then they crossed the Taurus mountains and a semi-desert area to reach Antioch in Pisidia. “From Paphos, where they embarked, Paul and his companions reached Perge, in Pamphylia. But John Mark left them to return to Jerusalem. As for them, pushing beyond Perge, they arrived at Antioch of Pisidia. On the Sabbath day they entered the synagogue and sat down. After the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the heads of the synagogue sent word to them: "Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement to speak to the people, speak." (Acts 13, 13-15)




Antioch of Pisidia, in a mountainous region

While Tarsus and Antioch of Syria are barely 80 meters above sea level, Antioch of Pisidia is at 1,200 meters, Iconium at 1,027 meters and Lystra at 1,230 meters. These territories had been dangerous regions, filled with gangs of thieves and killers. To put an end to this robbery, the Emperors Caesar-Augustus and Claudius had recourse to a very effective means: they founded colonies of veterans. Antioch had thus become a Roman colony under Italian law. The settlers came mostly from the Celtic legion, recruited in Gaul.

Augustus's decision to establish a veterans' colony there had given new life to the town. The veterans demobilized after the battle of Actium (31 BC) against Mark-Antony, Cleopatra and Brutus, obtained land there which they cultivated, but on one condition: to bring order among the population, for which they were perfectly prepared. Antioch was a replica of Rome: administration, religious traditions, division into districts, theatre, baths, aqueducts, etc. It was nicknamed "little Rome". In his will, Emperor Augustus mentioned the colonies of Pisidia as one of the important achievements that marked his reign.

Certainly, Paul knew great cities: Damascus, Antioch of Syria, Tarsus, Jerusalem, Ephesus. He would never have thought that a Roman metropolis could be found in the middle of a region that Luke would describe as barbaric and savage? Antioch of Pisidia had all the infrastructure of a large city and was protected by Roman walls. It was also a "holy city", dedicated to the worship of the male god of the moon, named Men or Lunus. During the illuminated nights, wild orgiastic liturgies took place, during which the inhabitants of the city offered their sacrifices to the moon and indulged, in the company of numerous hierodules (prostitutes) of the temple, in unbridled debauchery and Dionysian celebrations. Paul alludes to it in his letter to the Galatians, when he writes: "Once it is true, when you did not know God, you were slaves of the gods who possessed no divinity" (Galatians 4:8).

In this region of pastures and livestock, in the center of southern Asia Minor, Paul and Barnabas will lay the foundations of many churches. Throughout this period, the two missionaries were in constant danger from the Jewish communities in these remote towns.

The Jews, attracted by the leather trade, enjoyed here as everywhere else many privileges since the time of Caesar, their great benefactor and their debtor.

Confrontations with some Jews in the synagogue.

Paul must have already considered a break with the synagogue.

Towards the end of his stay in Antioch of Pisidia, Paul must already have considered breaking with the synagogue: “The following Sabbath, almost the whole city assembled to hear the word of God. At the sight of this crowd, the Jews were filled with jealousy, and they replied with blasphemies to Paul's words. Emboldened then, Paul and Barnabas declared: “It was to you first that it was necessary to announce the word of God. Since you reject it and do not deem yourselves worthy of eternal life, well! we turn to the pagans. For thus has the Lord commanded us: I have made you a light of the nations, to make you salvation to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 13, 44-47)

Because of these confrontations with some Jews in the synagogue, the two missionaries were no longer allowed to speak. That is why they taught in private homes, on terraces and in the open air. However, the final rupture only occurred during Paul's stay in Corinth, when he left the synagogue and settled nearby in the house of Justus, who was a proselyte (Acts 18:6).

In Antioch, to fight Paul and the Christians, the Jews began to use a tactic which would often return in the future and which would be favorable to them. Thanks to their business sense and their money, they maintained very good relations with influential circles. Many Jewish women married Greek or Roman officials and had their friends among the wives of the rulers of the city. This is how the Synagogue easily won over the municipal police to its cause, thanks to the pious ladies. It was explained to the guardians of public order that the two apostles were introducing a new cult, which was forbidden by law, and that they were proclaiming a certain Christ as king, which made him an adversary of Caesar. This Jesus had been condemned to death in the time of Pontius Pilate, for having fomented an insurrection against the Roman authority. In the eyes of the rulers, the Christians were therefore guilty of high treason.

By bribing a few dubious individuals, a popular riot was provoked. City officials realized that they could no longer guarantee public order if foreigners did not leave the city immediately.

Where the Jews failed to gain civil authority, they applied the punishment of the whip themselves, in the basements of their synagogues. This barbaric pain would henceforth return with obsessive regularity throughout the life of St. Paul.

After several months, Paul and Barnabas were expelled from Antioch in Pisidia: “The Jews shook their heads at the ladies of rank who worshiped God as well as at the notables of the city; they thus aroused a persecution against Paul and Barnabas and drove them out of their territory. These, shaking off the dust of their feet against them, came to Iconium. As for the disciples, they were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 13, 50-52)

This witch hunt and unjust treatment was only possible in small provincial towns without a proconsul, such as Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium and Philippi. In the great cities of the empire, Paul's Roman citizenship protected him from these abuses.

Despite Jewish opposition, the Word of the Lord, through Paul and Barnabas, took root throughout the region. The good seed had been sown.

- Paul likes to meet the Jews of the Diaspora and to pray with them in the synagogue. There is a familiar atmosphere.

- In the first place, he followed the path of the Jewish emigrants, those who were called the Jews of the Diaspora. Colonies were established in different cities of the Roman Empire and had developed a whole network of synagogues. This allowed Paul to quickly find a familiar atmosphere.

- Then he chose the places where he could practice his trade. This allowed him to live among hard-working artisans, to get to know them better and to remain financially independent. Barnabas acted in the same way.

- Arriving in a city, Paul and Barnabas went to the Jewish quarter and looked for work there. According to Eastern custom, they were received in the community, and Paul immediately began to practice his trade of weaving. On Sabbath days, the two missionaries went to the synagogue.

- Imperial law forbade openly preaching a new religion (religio illicita). Only the Synagogue had express permission to proselyte. This favored Christians because for decades non-Jews did not distinguish between Christianity and Judaism. It seemed to them to be the same religion.

- Speaking before the congregation, Paul begins by giving a traditional interpretation of the scripture; then he announces the message of Jesus

- Paul had a dual scheme of missionary preaching: the first for the use of Jews, the other for the use of non-Jews. In the Acts of the Apostles (13, 15) Luke has preserved for us the broad outlines of a missionary reflection addressed to a synagogue audience.

- Paul's speeches used to deeply move his listeners, Jews and Gentiles. In Antioch of Pisidia, it is talked about throughout the week, and the following Saturday, the synagogue is full to capacity. In the midst of the pagans eager to listen to foreign preachers, the Jews find themselves in a minority and they are furious: "At the sight of this crowd, the Jews were seized with fury, and it was insults that they opposed to the words from Paul. Paul and Barnabas then had the boldness to declare: It is to you first that the word of God should be addressed! Since you reject it and deem yourselves unworthy of eternal life, then we turn to the pagans. For such is indeed the order we have from the Lord: "I have made you a light of the nations, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth". (Acts, 13, 44-46)

- On the other hand, Yah.weh is a God of order and his servants must reflect this order!

- Paul is a good example!

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20. Paul's working method
We can wonder if Paul had a method of work that he used systematically in his missionary journeys. Although he didn't always have a set plan, he knew what he wanted and where he was going. We find two constants in his movements.





Paul enjoys meeting Diaspora Jews and praying with them in the synagogue. There is a familiar atmosphere.

First, he followed the path of the Jewish emigrants, the so-called Diaspora Jews. Colonies were established in different cities of the Roman Empire and had developed a whole network of synagogues. This allowed Paul to quickly find a familiar atmosphere.

Then he chose the places where he could practice his trade. This allowed him to live among hard-working artisans, to get to know them better and to remain financially independent. Barnabas acted in the same way.

Arriving in a city, Paul and Barnabas went to the Jewish quarter and looked for work there. According to Eastern custom, they were received in the community, and Paul immediately began to practice his trade of weaving. On Sabbath days, the two missionaries went to the synagogue.

Imperial law forbade openly preaching a new religion (religio illicita). Only the Synagogue had express permission to proselyte. This favored Christians because for decades non-Jews did not distinguish between Christianity and Judaism. It seemed to them to be the same religion.

In the Jewish quarter of Antioch, on the Sabbath, all the bazaars were closed. Many Jews and many "God-fearing" (non-Jewish sympathizers) went to the synagogue. Above the front door were two olive branches framing the inscription: "Temple of the Hebrews." In the basement there were bathrooms. Anyone who had touched forbidden meat or a corpse had to perform the ritual purification ablutions first. Upstairs was the prayer hall, where the seven-branched candelabra stood. In the middle of the room was the reading desk, and behind a curtain were the scrolls of the Bible. During the prayers and reflections, the women were seated at the side, behind a wooden grill.




Addressing the congregation, Paul begins by giving a traditional interpretation of the scripture; then he announces the message of Jesus

News of the arrival of two scribes spread quickly. Paul and Barnabas wore the white and brown mantle (the tallit) which distinguished them from the proselytes. Paul presented himself as a doctor of the law and Barnabas as a Levite. After the reading of the scriptures, Paul was invited to address the congregation.

Ben-Chorin, a Jewish writer, believes it was traditional to invite Paul, a disciple of Gamaliel, to deliver the day's reflection. He then begins by presenting a traditional interpretation of the Scripture; then he announces the message of Jesus, which is regularly resented as a scandal by his Jewish listeners.

Paul had a dual pattern of missionary preaching: one for use by Jews, the other for Gentiles. In the Acts of the Apostles (13, 15) Luke has preserved for us the broad outlines of a missionary reflection addressed to a synagogue audience.

Every Sabbath, the Jews read Psalm 22. They knew it by heart and considered it a messianic psalm. The inspired ancestor painted, a thousand years before Paul, a grandiose picture of the sufferings of the Messiah. This is the psalm that Jesus recited on the Cross: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Ps 22, 2)

Referring to this psalm, Paul told the Jews that it is not their dream of world domination that the Messiah will realize, but this other dream of the prophets: the conversion and reunion of all peoples and the constitution of the universal kingdom of God , through the sufferings of the Messiah. Psalm 22 ends with this vision of the future: “All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to Yahweh. All the families of the heathen nations will bow down before his face. For the dominion belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations.”

The clash is due to the fact that Paul seems to belittle the Law of Moses and that, on the other hand,

he advocates absolute equality between pagans and Jews, which amounts to suppressing the Election of Israel.

In his presentation, Paul appeals to the intimate experience of each: “You know well that the Law of Moses did not make you righteous (did not justify you). It is in Jesus that you will find the remission of sins, peace and reconciliation with God.”

Paul was treading on minefield by asserting that the Law of Moses had limits and that these limits could be crossed? Only one had done it before him: Etienne, and they had put him to death. Not only does Paul follow in his footsteps, but he goes even further.

Paul's letters are full of quotations which he draws from the Greek version of the Septuagint. He was the first to call the Scriptures "the Old Testament" (2 Cor 3:14). He understood that Christ had come to fulfill the promise. For him, Christianity is in the continuity of this extraordinary history of salvation which began with Abraham and which was realized in Jesus Christ.

Paul's speeches used to deeply stir his listeners, Jews and Gentiles. In Antioch of Pisidia, it is talked about throughout the week, and the following Saturday, the synagogue is full to capacity. In the midst of the pagans eager to listen to foreign preachers, the Jews find themselves in a minority and they are furious: "At the sight of this crowd, the Jews were seized with fury, and it was insults that they opposed to the words from Paul. Paul and Barnabas then had the boldness to declare: It is to you first that the word of God should be addressed! Since you reject it and deem yourselves unworthy of eternal life, then we turn to the pagans. For such is indeed the order we have from the Lord: "I have made you a light of the nations, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth". (Acts, 13, 44-46)

According to Ben-Chorin, “if Paul had contented himself with announcing the Messiah in the person of Jesus of Nazareth, he would not have provoked such a conflict with the synagogue. The confrontation is due to the fact that on the one hand, he seems to depreciate the Law of Moses and that, on the other hand, he advocates absolute equality between pagans and Jews, which amounts to suppressing the Election of Israel.” Paul explains that Israel's privileged position played its part, but with the coming of Christ it ended. It is not belonging to the chosen people that decides salvation, but faith in Jesus Christ. The Messiah came to break down the wall that separated Jews and Gentiles: "In Christ there is no difference between Jews and Gentiles, between free men and slaves, between men and women."

Paul and Barnabas continue to score points and the anger of the Jews reaches its climax. The women show themselves to be the most exalted. They assail the notables of the city with their complaints. The result is not long in coming: it is the troublemakers that the leaders are attacking. They are driven out of town. “These, having shaken off the dust of their feet against them, came to Iconium; as for the disciples, they remained filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 13, 51-52)

Among Christians, Paul is the one who best understood the universalist spirit of Christ. For having preached salvation for all, he will be persecuted as an apostate and the hatred of his people will pursue him relentlessly, wherever he goes.

- During the year that they spent in Iconium, Paul and Barnabas undertook missionary expeditions in the surroundings, in these numerous peasant villages, located on the slopes of the mountains. They founded small rural communities there, which would later be administered by the Church of Iconium. With Antioch, Iconium will remain, for many years, a point of support for the Christian Churches of Asia Minor, and will hold the patriarchal title over fourteen cities.

- Paul and Barnabas proclaimed the “Good News” but very quickly they came up against the refusal of the Jews who were manipulating the crowds against them. At some point it was decided to seize the two missionaries and stone them. Warned, they slipped away in time and joined the Roman road which, at the time, ended at Lystres. A day of walking in one of the most beautiful regions of central Anatolia.

- “At Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews and spoke in such a way that a great crowd of Jews and Greeks embraced the faith. But the Jews who remained incredulous stirred up the Gentiles and indisposed them against the brethren. Paul and Barnabas prolonged their stay for quite a long time, full of assurance in the Lord... The population of the city was divided. Some were for the Jews, others for the apostles. Among the pagans and the Jews, their chiefs at the head, one prepared to mistreat them and to stone them. But realizing this, they went to seek refuge in the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra, Derbe and the surrounding region. There too, they announced the Good News.” (Acts 14, 1-7)

- Paul took a liking to the young man, while unaware that one day he would lay hands on him. Timothy will become his most faithful collaborator, the one who will one day be the consolation of his old age. Several years later, Paul will remind him of the painful hours of Lystra: "Remember, O Timothy, what I endured at Lystra!" (2 Tim. 3, 11). This family became the gathering place of the Christian Church. Following this family, several people of the village converted.

- The man understood the invitation by the tone of voice and the gesture that accompanies it. He obeys. He leaps. He walks ! The townspeople think that Paul and Barnabas are gods who came down to their village! They want to honor them.

Meanwhile, the rumor of the success of the two missionaries reached Iconium and the Jewish community, which believed to have gotten rid of them. They rush to Lystra to enlighten the naive and put an end to the work of the impostors.

- the miracle, Paul is venerated as a god, then everything turns for the worse: he is stoned until he is considered dead

- Like Stephen many years ago, Paul is dragged out of town and thrown to the ground. Furious, the townspeople gather stones and the stoning begins. When the people of Lystra and the Jews who aroused their anger see Paul unconscious, they believe him dead and leave him face down. Barnabas and the Christians come running. We lean towards Paul. The heart is still beating. The head is intact. Apparently, he did not receive any major injuries. Escaping stoning is a miracle.

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21. Iconium and Lystra​

Paul and Barnabas stayed about a year in Antioch in Pisidia. They left the city in the year 46, heading east. Taking the Sebaste Way, they traveled to Iconium, located on the edge of a lake, beyond salt marshes. They probably wanted to find some solid points of support, on the high plateau of southern Galatia. This population of simple people had won Paul's heart.



Iconium, 100 km from Antioch of Pisidia

The people of Iconium were proud of their city's past. Emperor Claudius had established a colony of veterans and for this reason the city liked to call itself Claudiconium, in honor of the emperor, which later became Iconium. The population included Hellenized Galatians, Roman officials, army veterans and Jewish citizens. Iconium was an important center of wool weaving. Paul easily found accommodation and practiced his profession.

During the year that they spent at Iconium, Paul and Barnabas undertook missionary expeditions in the surroundings, in these numerous peasant villages, situated on the slopes of the mountains. They founded small rural communities there, which would later be administered by the Church of Iconium. With Antioch, Iconium will remain, for many years, a point of support for the Christian Churches of Asia Minor, and will hold the patriarchal title over fourteen cities.

Iconium is located over 1,000 meters above sea level. Among the ruins of the city, even today there is a large, half-destroyed citadel.

After a year of appreciated and fruitful preaching, Paul and Barnabas were persecuted and forced to flee.

Paul and Barnabas proclaimed the “Good News” but very quickly they came up against the refusal of the Jews who were manipulating the crowds against them. At some point it was decided to seize the two missionaries and stone them. Warned, they slipped away in time and joined the Roman road which, at the time, ended at Lystres. A day of walking in one of the most beautiful regions of central Anatolia.

“At Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews and spoke in such a way that a great crowd of Jews and Greeks embraced the faith. But the Jews who remained incredulous stirred up the Gentiles and indisposed them against the brethren. Paul and Barnabas prolonged their stay for quite a long time, full of assurance in the Lord... The population of the city was divided. Some were for the Jews, others for the apostles. Among the pagans and the Jews, their chiefs at the head, one prepared to mistreat them and to stone them. But realizing this, they went to seek refuge in the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra, Derbe and the surrounding region. There too, they announced the Good News.” (Acts 14, 1-7)


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Paul and Barnabas leave Iconium and take refuge in Lystra. This is where Paul meets Timothy.




In Lystra, an almost totally pagan city, Paul and Barnabas found a warm welcome in a Jewish family. It is interesting to note how much the piety of Judaism could remain alive within a family isolated in such an environment. This family consisted of three people: grandmother Lois, her daughter Eunice, whose pagan husband had died, and her son Timothy. The father was probably a Roman or Greek official. In the diaspora, such intermarriage was common. The mother and grandmother lived in the hope of the "salvation of Israel", and they had initiated Timothy, from his childhood, into the Holy Scriptures.
Paul takes a liking to the young man, unaware that one day he would lay hands on him. Timothy will become his most faithful collaborator, the one who will one day be the consolation of his old age. Several years later, Paul will remind him of the painful hours of Lystra: "Remember, O Timothy, what I endured at Lystra!" (2 Tim. 3, 11). This family became the gathering place of the Christian Church. Following this family, several people of the village converted.
Today, all that remains of the city of Lystra, founded by Augustus in 6 BC. J.-C., only scattered stones, a fragment of the enclosure, a few houses of the village and gutted sarcophagi. A small mosque stands guard. Nothing reminds us that it was at Lystra that Paul almost lost his life.
Paul healed a handicapped person and this was the beginning of his problems: “There was a man in Lystra who could not stand on his feet. He was crippled from birth, he had never walked. The poor man's eyes devour Paul who meets this gaze. "Seeing that he had the faith to be saved", the Tarsiote fixes him and, in a loud voice, orders: Get up, straight on your feet! (Acts 14, 8-10)
The man understood the invitation by the tone of the voice and the gesture which accompanies it. He obeys. He leaps. He walks ! The townspeople think that Paul and Barnabas are gods who came down to their village! They want to honor them.
Meanwhile, the rumor of the success of the two missionaries reached Iconium and the Jewish community, which believed to have gotten rid of them. They rush to Lystra to enlighten the naive and put an end to the work of the impostors.

After the miracle, Paul is revered as a god, then everything turns for the worse:




they stone him until he is considered dead

In a short time, the inhabitants of Lystra turn against Paul. By curing the cripple, this magician has set them on a wrong path, they think now! The people of Iconium ask them what they are going to do with the false god Hermes who healed the cripple? Answer: Stone him!

Like Stephen many years ago, Paul is dragged out of town and thrown to the ground. Furious, the townspeople gather stones and the stoning begins. When the people of Lystra and the Jews who aroused their anger see Paul unconscious, they believe him dead and leave him face down. Barnabas and the Christians come running. We lean towards Paul. The heart is still beating. The head is intact. Apparently, he did not receive any major injuries. Escaping stoning is a miracle.

Paul and Barnabas decide to leave Lystra before their enemies realize that Paul survived the stoning. To go from Lystres to Derbé - the last planned stage of their mission - it is necessary to travel forty kilometers, that is to say about eight hours of walking. But in Paul's condition, the journey will be much longer. Barnabas had to borrow a cart on which he lays Paul. In several stages, he is taken to Derbe. There he will recover and be able to resume his mission. (cf. Acts 14, 20)

For centuries, the Churches of Galatia were able to maintain themselves. A number of Armenian Christians were the last to remain faithful to the Christian faith. They were cruelly decimated during the war with the Turks. Thus the Churches founded by Paul and Barnabas, their heritage, the fruit of their efforts and their sufferings, will be completely destroyed.

After Paul was stoned at Lystra, his adversaries, believing their enemy to be dead, did not pursue him. And so it was that the two missionaries were able to find peace, in the peaceful town of Derbe, a Christian community recruited entirely from pagans. We read in the Acts of the Apostles that they gathered “quite many disciples”.
In Derbe, the activity of Paul and Barnabas lasted at least a whole year and it extended to the high valleys near the lake. Pastoral relations with Lystra, Iconium and Antioch of Pisidia were never interrupted because the young Timothy was an always available messenger. We know this from the excellent testimonies given to him by these communities when Paul returned a few years later: “At Lystra there was a disciple named Timothy, son of a Jewess who had become a believer and of a Greek father. The brethren of Lystra and Iconium bore him a good testimony.” (Acts 16:2).
Following these foundations, the Good News spread from Galatia to all the surrounding regions. These towns and villages would later give the Church brilliant doctors of theology. Christianity in this region was able to develop and flourish into flourishing communities thanks to the diligent work of Paul and Barnabas.
After saying goodbye to the community of Derbe, they turned back to visit Lystra, Iconium and Antioch of Pisidia. From Antioch they again crossed the Taurus Gorge to join the last community on their plan of action, that of the city of Perge.
During this first missionary journey, Paul and Barnabas succeeded in founding Churches in seven cities of the Empire before returning to their base: Salamis, Paphos, Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe and Perge. During these four years, Paul assumed his role as mission leader and developed his missionary style.
Before leaving the communities they had founded, Paul and Barnabas encouraged Christians to stand firm in times of trial. They choose leaders and entrust them to the Lord. It is a question here of “elders” (presbyteroi), whereas in his letter to the Philippians Paul will speak of episcopes (episcopoi) and deacons, which indicates a continuous development of tasks and responsibilities in the young Churches.



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22 Derbe, Perge, return to Antioch of Syria





Derbe, a town that has now disappeared,
south of present-day Turkey.
Paul and Barnabas founded a community there recruited entirely from pagans.




They stay there for a year. It's one of the few towns they leave without being forced to by persecution.

Derbe, a solitary mountain village at the extreme limit of the province of Galatie, was once a dangerous nest of brigands. This small town, which became a prosperous colony of veterans and freedmen under the Emperor Claudius, experienced a period of expansion during Paul's time. Today, nothing remains of this Greco-Roman city.

After Paul was stoned at Lystra, his adversaries, believing their enemy to be dead, did not pursue him. And so it was that the two missionaries were able to found in peace, in this peaceful provincial town, a Christian community recruited entirely from pagans. We read in the Acts of the Apostles that they gathered “quite many disciples”.

The Church of Derbe, like the other three churches in Galatia, was born in pain. Paul alludes to this birth when he writes to the Galatians threatened in their faith by the actions of the Judaizers: "My little children, for you I endure again the pains of childbirth, until Christ is formed in you!” (Galatians 4, 19).

In Derbe, the activity of Paul and Barnabas lasted at least a whole year and it extended to the high valleys near the lake. Pastoral relations with Lystra, Iconium and Antioch of Pisidia were never interrupted because the young Timothy was an always available messenger. We know this from the excellent testimonies given to him by these communities when Paul returned a few years later: “At Lystra there was a disciple named Timothy, son of a Jewess who had become a believer and of a Greek father. The brethren of Lystra and Iconium bore him a good testimony.” (Acts 16:2).

Following these foundations, the Good News spread from Galatia to all surrounding regions. These towns and villages would later give the Church brilliant doctors of theology. Christianity in this region was able to develop and flourish into thriving communities thanks to the diligent work of Paul and Barnabas.

Since the departure of the two missionaries from Antioch of Syria, their mother Church, more than four years had now passed. During difficult times, they undoubtedly felt nostalgia for their original community with whom they could hardly communicate. At very irregular intervals and thanks to certain caravan leaders, they sent messages, but the opportunities were not very numerous.




Instead of returning directly to Antioch of Syria via Tarsus, Paul and Barnabas decide to retrace their steps
Derbe is barely 200 km from Tarsus and Paul and Barnabas could have reached Paul's homeland in a few days, crossing the Taurus Mountains. However, the apostolic responsibility towards the newly founded communities encouraged them to retrace their steps and retrace the path already traveled in order to once again visit these young centers of Christianity.
After bidding farewell to the community of Derbe, they turned back to visit Lystra, Iconium and Antioch of Pisidia. From Antioch, they crossed the Taurus Gorge again to reach the last community on their plan of action, that of the city of Perge.
During this first missionary journey, Paul and Barnabas succeeded in founding Churches in seven cities of the Empire before returning to their base: Salamis, Paphos, Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe and Perge. During these four years, Paul assumed his role as mission leader and developed his missionary style.
Duration of first trip: 4 years
Paul and Barnabas succeeded in founding Churches in seven cities of the Empire
Before leaving the communities they founded, Paul and Barnabas encourage Christians to stand firm in the face of trial. They choose leaders and entrust them to the Lord. Here we are talking about “elders” (presbyteroi), while in his letter to the Philippians Paul will speak of episcopes (episcopoi) and deacons, which indicates a continuous development of tasks and responsibilities in the young Churches.

From Perge, Paul and Barnabas reach Attaleia, about 80 kilometers to the south-west, in order to return to Antioch in Syria by sea. They follow the coasts of Cilicia. This is the only trip that Paul will make along the southern coasts of Asia Minor, sailing from west to east. This journey of several days was uneventful.
At the end of the race, the boat loads its sails in front of the port of Antioch in Syria.
The Acts of the Apostles recount: “From Attaleia they sailed to Antioch, whence they had set out, commended to the grace of God for the work they had just accomplished. When they arrived, they called the church together and began to report all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.” (Acts 14, 26-27)
Thus ends the first missionary journey of Paul and Barnabas.

- After his stay in Arabia and Damascus (Galatians 1, 18), Paul speaks of a first meeting with Peter and James, then of a second meeting (that of the Council) which he places “after fourteen years” (Galatians 2, 1). This therefore means that Paul has already made two mission trips, and not just one. The assembly would therefore have taken place in the year 51.

- Paul, during his travels, founded several communities in the Greek environment. The problem of welcoming non-Jews then arises: should they be circumcised to mark their belonging to the Christian community? Do they have to observe food prohibitions and all the laws of Moses? It is therefore very likely that the meeting took place after the second trip, that is to say when the number of non-Jewish converts became more important.

- The consequences of this meeting in the history of Christianity are such that some will later call it the "Council of Jerusalem", which would suggest a well-structured assembly, bringing together many people. We must think rather of a meeting of some representatives of the Church of Antioch with James, Peter and John, of the Church of Jerusalem. Even though it is a private meeting, no other council has made such important decisions as that of Jerusalem. Without this "first council", the others would not have been possible.

- For these believers in Jerusalem, there is no question of living in community with non-Jews, nor of sharing meals with those who are not circumcised and who do not respect all the dietary prescriptions of the Law. This restrictive attitude does not fit with the experience of Diaspora Jews who were much more open to non-Jews because they lived with them.

- In Jerusalem, Paul brought Titus, a young man whom we have not yet met. He is an Antiochian who recently became a Christian. He had great hopes for the man who would become one of his greatest collaborators. He calls him “his true son in the same faith” (Titus 1, 4). For Paul, this young man is living proof of the noble fruits that were already growing on the tree of the Gentile Church. In Jerusalem, one could not resist the charm of this Christian from the non-Jewish world. "I went up to Jerusalem," wrote Paul. I also took Titus.” He tells us that he was born to a pagan family and uncircumcised. This detail is provided by Luke who adds that “the Church of Antioch provided the necessary funds for the journey of its three representatives.” (Acts 15, 3)

- In Jerusalem, everyone was aware that the attitude that would be adopted towards Titus would be of capital importance for the future of the Gospel. Titus symbolically represented all the Pagan-Christian Churches. If he were accepted unconditionally, as a full brother, it would be a decision applicable to all non-Jewish Christians in the new communities.

- For Paul, the problem was posed as follows: Is salvation the fruit of the grace of Christ? Is circumcision necessary for salvation or is Christ's grace sufficient? This question of principle was very important. Once decided, Paul will be able to allow the practice of circumcision, as will be the case with Timothy, who had a Jewish mother.

- In Jerusalem, Peter, James and John accepted Paul's point of view. The emerging Church thus avoided a conflict which would have been catastrophic and would have relegated Christianity to the rank of a “Judaizing sect”.

- After the meeting, the apostles and elders decided to send two delegates to Antioch, Judas and Silas, “prominent figures among the brothers”, who would travel with Paul and Barnabas. They were given a letter which explained James' proposal: "The Holy Spirit and we have decided to impose no burden on you other than these inevitable requirements: to abstain from the meat of pagan sacrifices, from the blood of suffocated animals and from immorality. If you avoid all this carefully, you will have done well. Farewell!" (Acts 15, 28-29)

- We thus arrived at a compromise acceptable to both groups: The non-Jewish Christians accepted the rules set out by James and the Jewish-Christians did not force the non-Jews to be circumcised. The two groups could thus find themselves at the same table.


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23. The Council of Jerusalem​

It is difficult to locate the assembly in Jerusalem because the account of the Acts of the Apostles (15, 1-34) does not coincide with what Paul says in his letter to the Galatians (2, 1-10). Today, experts agree that it is Paul who correctly situates this event.

After his stay in Arabia and Damascus (Galatians 1, 18), Paul speaks of a first meeting with Peter and James, then of a second meeting (that of the Council) which he places "after fourteen years" ( Galatians 2, 1). This therefore means that Paul has already made two missionary journeys, and not just one. The assembly would therefore have taken place in the year 51.

For his part, Luke would have “advanced” the date so that it would be closer to the start of Paul's missionary activity and thus legitimize the Apostle's mission to the non-Jews as early as possible.

...reluctance of a group of Christians who, in the name of fidelity to the Law and the privileged election of Israel, insisted that those who become Christians should be circumcised

Paul, during his travels, founded several communities in a Greek environment. The problem of welcoming non-Jews then arises: should they be circumcised to mark their belonging to the Christian community? Should they observe the food prohibitions and all the laws of Moses? It is therefore very likely that the meeting took place after the second journey, that is to say when the number of non-Jewish converts became greater.

Keeping these few considerations in mind, either date does not cause major problems. We will therefore see this event here, after the first journey, in order to then more easily follow the movements of Paul first with Barnabas and then with Silas, according to the chronology of Luke in the Acts of the Apostles.

Luke indicates that for this important meeting, the representatives of Antioch in Syria - Paul, Barnabas and Titus - traveled to the Holy City by land: "Passing through Phenicia and Samaria, they told of the conversion of the nations heathen and thus brought great joy to all the brethren.” (Acts 15:3) In Jerusalem, the elite of the Mother Church awaits them.

The consequences of this meeting in the history of Christianity are such that some will later call it the "Council of Jerusalem", which would suggest a well-structured assembly, bringing together many people. We must think rather of a meeting of some representatives of the Church of Antioch with James, Peter and John, of the Church of Jerusalem. Even though it is a private meeting, no other council has made such important decisions as that of Jerusalem. Without this "first council", the others would not have been possible.

In Jerusalem, people first listen with enthusiasm to the story of the penetration of Christianity into pagan circles. Quickly, however, the initial joy is disturbed by the reluctance of a group of Christians who, in the name of fidelity to the Law and the privileged election of Israel, wanted those who become Christians to be circumcised. They kept repeating that everyone should be forced to keep the Law of Moses. Always brutal when he argues, Paul will speak of "intruding false brothers".

For these believers in Jerusalem, there is no question of living in community with non-Jews, nor of sharing meals with those who are not circumcised and who do not respect all the dietary prescriptions of the Law. This restrictive attitude does not fit with the experience of Diaspora Jews who were much more open to non-Jews because they lived with them.




Saint Titus. Like Timothy, he was one of Paul's best friends. "The Epistle of Paul to Titus" testifies to the affectionate tenderness he has for him. Titus had the glory of establishing Christianity in the island of Crete where paganism had one of its principal centers.

In Jerusalem, Paul brought Titus, a young man whom we have not yet met. He is an Antiochian who recently became a Christian. He pinned great hopes on who would become one of his greatest collaborators. He calls him "his true son in the same faith" (Titus 1:4). For Paul, this young man is living proof of the noble fruits that were already growing on the tree of the Gentile Church. In Jerusalem, one could not resist the charm of this Christian from the non-Jewish world. "I went up to Jerusalem," wrote Paul. I also took Titus away.” He tells us that he was born of a pagan family and uncircumcised. This detail is provided by Luke who adds that "the Church of Antioch provided the necessary funds for the travel of its three representatives." (Acts 15, 3)

In Jerusalem, everyone was aware that the attitude they were going to adopt with regard to Titus would be of capital importance for the future of the Gospel. Titus symbolically represented all the pagan-Christian churches. If he were accepted unconditionally as a full brother, it would be a decision applicable to all non-Jewish Christians in the new communities.

Paul would have seen his work compromised in its very nature, if the conception of the Judeo-Christians, insisting on circumcision for all, was to triumph. Maintaining this obligation for non-Jews would make the Church a sect of the Synagogue and nullify the universality of salvation. Uncircumcised Christians would constitute a second-class group within the Church itself. The old wall of separation in the Temple, between Jews and non-Jews, would rise again within the Christian Church itself. To welcome non-Jews into the Church, but avoid making a common table with them, would make them Christian pariahs. So it was both a social and a religious problem.

For Paul, the problem was posed as follows: Is salvation the fruit of the grace of Christ? Is circumcision necessary for salvation or is the grace of Christ sufficient? This question of principle was very important. Once decided, Paul will be able to allow the practice of circumcision, as will be the case with Timothy, who had a Jewish mother.

In Jerusalem, Peter, James, and John accepted Paul's view. The nascent Church thus avoided a conflict which would have been catastrophic and would have relegated Christianity to the rank of a “Judaizing sect”.

After the meeting, the apostles and elders decided to send two delegates to Antioch, Judas and Silas, "prominent personages among the brethren", who would travel with Paul and Barnabas. They were given a letter that explained James's proposal: "The Holy Spirit and we have decided to impose no other burden on you than these inevitable requirements: to abstain from the meat of pagan sacrifices, from the blood of strangled animals and from immorality. If you avoid all this carefully, you will have done well. Farewell!" (Acts 15, 28-29)

The compromise formula adopted by James fixes four taboos for the pagans which constituted, according to rabbinic literature, the four minimum requirements imposed on proselytes in contact with the Jews: avoid consuming meat sacrificed to idols, abstain from illegitimate unions (prostitution ), do not eat unbled meat and avoid consuming animal blood. These restrictions are intended to prevent non-Jews from causing defilement to their Judeo-Christian brothers and sisters.

We had thus arrived at a compromise acceptable to both groups: Christian non-Jews accepted the rules set out by James and Christian-Jews did not force non-Jews to be circumcised. The two groups could thus find themselves at the same table.