Who was St. Paul....and Why would God Choose Him?

Who was St. Paul…and Why Would God Choose Him?

            When we hear a reading at Mass from one of the New Testament epistles, it is almost always from one of Paul’s letters. Nearly half of the New Testament texts are attributed to St. Paul.  Of the 27 books of the New Testament, there are 13 letters bearing Paul’s name.  Some have also attributed the book of Hebrews to Paul, although Hebrews does not indicate its author as do the 13 Pauline letters.  Add to this that the Acts of the Apostles largely tells the story of Paul’s missionary journeys, and Paul arguably becomes the second most significant figure in the New Testament after Jesus.  But while Paul’s letters and theology are familiar, the man behind the letters is less so.  Perhaps he is best known for persecuting Christians and his miraculous encounter with the risen Christ on the road to Damascus which initiates his conversion.  But one must wonder what formed Paul to be the person he was, what was his background – and why would God choose him to be his special apostle to the Gentiles?

What did Paul look like?

            The closest we come to a physical description of Paul in the New Testament comes from the apostle himself.  In 2 Corinthians 10:10 he tells us: For they say, “his letters are weighty and strong, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech is of no account.”  Here, Paul is indicating how his critics describe him, that he is a persuasive writer, but not an impressive speaker.  Paul himself seems to concede this point in the next chapter.  In 11:6 he writes, Even if I am unskilled in speaking, I am not in knowledge.  Ironically, the Greek word that Paul uses to describe himself as “unskilled” is idiotes, meaning one who is untrained.  With all of Paul’s letters and the deep theology within them, one would think that he was also a skilled preacher.  But to the learned men of his time, this appears not to be the case.  Fortunately, like Moses, his message had a power beyond his human limitations.

            While described as weak in the passage above from 2 Corinthians, there are other ancient documents which do provide a physical description of the apostle.  An apocryphal work, The Acts of Paul and Thecla, dated to around the year 150 AD, describes Paul as: a man small in size, bald-headed, bowed-legged, stocky with eye brows meeting, and rather long-nosed.  At least two ancient sources, although of much later date, describe Paul as being only 3 cubits high.  The exact length of a cubit could vary in different cultures.  The cultures in which a cubit was longer would measure as long as 21 inches.  If that is the case then the apostle would measure around 5’2” tall.  He would hardly have been impressive physically.

What’s his name?  Saul, Paul, or both?

            Another item to be addressed is his name.  It common to hear people speak about Paul having his name changed from Saul to Paul.  But there is no place in the New Testament that indicates that his name was ever changed, not even in Acts 9 during his vision of the risen Christ.  It was common for people of that time to have two names, especially Jews of the diaspora.  Scholars generally believe that Saul was his Jewish name, being named after Israel’s first king, and Paul was his Greek name, being raised in Tarsus in Asia Minor, modern day Turkey.  A close reading of Acts indicates that this is the case.  His encounter on the road to Damascus is recorded in Acts 9, but he is not called Paul until four chapters later.  Acts 13:9 states: But Saul, who is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him….  There is no statement anywhere in scripture that his name was changed, only that he is known by two names.  It is when he begins his ministry to the Gentiles that he is referred to as Paul.  To support this, we see other figures in the New Testament who were known by two names: Matthew is also called Levi, Thomas is also called Didymus, and Bartholomew is probably Nathaniel.  Did Saul have his name changed to Paul?  Perhaps, but this is not verifiable by scripture alone.

Paul and Jesus

It is generally accepted that Jesus may have been about 10 to 15 years older than Paul.  At the time of Jesus’ death, Paul would have been between 15-20 years old.  There is no evidence that Paul and Jesus ever met during Jesus’ earthly ministry.  Could Paul and Jesus have encountered each other during a festival in Jerusalem?  Possibly.  Could Paul have heard about Jesus and his preaching while studying under Gamaliel?  Maybe.  But the only evidence in the New Testament that Paul and Jesus ever met is in Acts 9:3-5. 

Now as he journeyed he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed about him.  And he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”  And he said, “Who are you, Lord?”  And he said, ”I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.”

            Paul even makes reference to this post resurrection appearance in 1 Corinthians 15:8.  Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.  But Paul never indicates that he had met Jesus during his earthly ministry.  From a human point of view, besides being Jewish, Jesus and Paul seemed to have very little in common.  On the one hand, Jesus was a Palestinian Jew from the rural northern region of Galilee, a man from the country.  On the other hand, Paul was a Jew of the Diaspora, from Tarsus in Asia Minor, a man from the city.  We can even see how the areas in which they were raised and taught impacted their preaching.  Jesus used language and imagery common to country folk and people of the land.  He taught using parables about sheep, goats, and farmers sowing seeds.  Paul used imagery from the city.  He was, “Metropolitan Paul.”  He refers to the “wisdom of the world” in 1 Corinthians 1:20 and “philosophy” in Colossians 2:8 and even argues with Epicurean and Stoic philosophers in Acts 17:18, indicating he is speaking to a more educated, urban audience.

            We have no indication that Jesus would have had any formal education beyond that of the ordinary person of his day.  But Paul himself tells us of his education in Acts 22:3 under the famous rabbi, Gamaliel.  If he were truly educated under Gamaliel, then his education in the law of Moses would have taken place in Jerusalem.  Having been raised in Tarsus as a Jew and having received further formal education in Jerusalem, it is certain that Paul would have been multi-lingual, knowing Hebrew, Greek, and probably Latin.

Paul the Pharisaic Jew

Paul gives us a summary description of himself in Philippians 3:5-8.  He writes: Circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as the law a Pharisee, as to zeal a persecutor of the church, as to righteousness under the law blameless.  But whatever I gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.  Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.  For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as refuse, in order that I may gain Christ.  As a Pharisee, he would have already believed in the spirit world, the afterlife, and the resurrection of the dead, but not in the Christian sense, not in relation to Jesus.  The Pharisaic belief in the resurrection was tied to their eschatological hopes of the coming of the Messiah and the establishment of the kingdom of God, a belief rooted in the writings of the prophets.  However, Paul’s vision of Christ and his conversion so radically reoriented his life and values that many were suspicious of this new apostle of Jesus.  He moved through the cities of that Greco-Roman world proclaiming the good news and he preached a new freedom that made him deny his former attachment to the Jewish Law.

Paul the Roman Citizen

            This raises the next point.  Paul was not only raised in a Greek culture, with formal education in the law of Moses, he was also a Roman citizen.  Paul indicates that he is a Roman citizen several times in Acts, and that he used his citizenship strategically.  Being a citizen of Rome came with certain rights and privileges.  For example, Roman citizens had the right to a trial when accused of crimes as well as the right to appeal.  Also, Roman citizens were exempt from certain punishments, most notably, crucifixion.  One could become a Roman citizen in various ways.  For example, one could be born to a Roman citizen, one could become a Roman citizen through military service, or one could provide some other service to Rome and be granted citizenship as a reward, or one could purchase Roman citizenship.  What we know is that Paul used his Roman citizenship to his advantage and that he was born a Roman citizen.

            We see that Paul found himself in some difficult situations regarding Roman law.  In Acts 16:36-39, we see that Paul and Silas complain that they have been beaten unjustly and causes the magistrates to come and apologize to them.  Then in Acts 22:24-29, Paul appeals to his Roman citizenship to avoid being scourged.  Finally, in Acts 25:11, Paul is on trial, and as a Roman citizen he exercises his right to appeal to the emperor.

Paul the Tentmaker

It is commonly known that Paul was a rabbi, a master of the law.  But it comes as a surprise to some that Paul was also a tradesman.  We know that while in Corinth, Paul supported himself by applying his trade as a tentmaker, or one who works with leather or skins.  We read in Acts 18:1-3 that when in Corinth he stayed with Aquila and Priscilla.  In v. 3 it gives the reason he stayed with them: And because he was of the same trade, he remained with them, and they worked, for by trade they were tentmakers.  This indicates that Paul worked as a tentmaker, at least on occasion, to support himself during his missionary journeys.  In doing so, he would have the opportunity to encounter travelers, business men, and suppliers, providing occasions for witnessing to Christ.

Why would God choose Paul?

            With all of this in mind, why would God choose someone who was having Christians arrested and killed and, in reality, persecuting Christ himself?  I believe the answer is twofold.  First, Paul really did love God.  He was not indifferent or lukewarm in his faith.  As Jesus says in Revelation 3:16, So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth.  God needed someone passionate enough, with the help of His grace, to go, travel, and preach to the gentiles, all while facing the difficulties of physical hardship and opposition from secular and religious leaders.  Paul himself said that he was zealous in his faith in Philippians 3:6 (above) and in Galatians 1:14 where he states: and I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.  His zeal and love for God would sustain him through the most difficult trials.  See 2 Corinthians 11:22-33 for a long list of trials that Paul recounts he had to endure.

            Another reason God would have chosen Paul was his background.  We have already discussed that Paul was a Jew, but a Jew of the diaspora, raised in a Greek culture.  He was a pharisee and educated in the Jewish law under the famous Rabbi Gamaliel.  Furthermore, he was multilingual, able to speak to nearly everyone he encountered either in Hebrew, Greek, or Latin.  He was a Roman citizen, and while highly educated, was also a simple tradesman as a tentmaker.  All of this made Paul able to relate to everyone, Jew, Greek, Roman, educated, tradesmen, the weak and suffering.  He knew scripture and he understood the lives and trials of ordinary people.  He was perfect for the job.  God chose Paul because he loved God and had the right background for a particular mission.

What about us?

            What can we learn from Paul’s life?  We do not have to have the greatest education or speak multiple languages like Paul.  God will use us to be a witness in the ordinary events of our lives.  God will use our backgrounds, whatever they are, for a particular mission that is set aside for us – one that only we can fulfill and have been created to achieve.  Every mission is important.  Every mission is great and necessary.  But all of our talents will never be enough by our own merits.  Our love for God vitalizes our talents and our relationships to be effective witnesses for Christ in the ordinary duties and events of our days.  We may look at Paul’s life and say, “I could never do that.”  Any that would be correct.  None of us could do Paul’s mission because that mission was set aside for Paul.  But Paul could never do your mission or mine, because your mission has been set aside for you and my mission has been set aside for me.  But like Paul, let us begin with love, and our mission will be completed in ways that we may never fully understand until we see the results in eternity.