623 lines
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HTML
623 lines
66 KiB
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<td valign="top" ><span style="font-family: 'times new roman', times;">"I must approach this inquiry with uneasiness when I find [Paul] affirmed to be an apostle of whom in the list of apostles in the gospel I find no trace." (Tertullian)</span></td>
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// ]]>
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<h3>Recommendations</h3>
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<p><a href="/Audio/music-store-manager.html">Only Jesus</a> (great song by Big Daddy)</p>
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<p><a href="http://astore.amazon.com/justjesus0ece-20">Just Jesus: His Living Words (2011)</a></p>
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<p><a href="http://astore.amazon.com/jesusonchurchstructure-20">Jesus' Words on Church Structure</a> by S. Rives</p>
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<p><a href="http://www.jesusfocusedpublishers.com/"></a></p>
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<p> </p> </div>
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<a href="/JWO/jesuswordsonly.html"><img alt="JesusWordsOnS-cropsmall" src="/images/stories/JesusWordsOnS-cropsmall.jpg" width="116" height="117" /></a> </div>
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<a href="/JWOS/jesuswordssalvation.html"><img alt="JesusWordsSalv-crop2" src="/images/stories/JesusWordsSalv-crop2.jpg" width="114" height="146" /></a> </div>
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<a href="/Did-Calvin-Murder-Servetus/calvinfreebookonline.html"><img src="/images/stories/DidCalvinMurderServetusM.jpg" alt="DidCalvinMurderServetusM" height="NaN" width="120" /></a> </div>
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<h2>Paul's Biography</h2>
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<h3>Introduction</h3>
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<p>The <em>Jewish Encyclopedia</em> on "<a href="http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/11952-paul-of-tarsus">Paul of Tarsus</a>" gives a fair and objective summary of Paul's personality and his impact upon history:</p>
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<p style="padding-left: 30px;">To judge from those Epistles that have all the traits of genuineness and give a true insight into his nature, Paul was of a fiery temper, impulsive and impassioned in the extreme, of ever-changing moods, now exulting in boundless joy and now sorely depressed and gloomy. Effusive and excessive alike in his <strong><em>love</em></strong> and in his <em><strong>hatred</strong></em>, in his <strong><em>blessing</em></strong> and in his <em><strong>cursing</strong></em>, he possessed a marvelous power over men; and he had unbounded confidence in himself. He speaks or writes as a man who is conscious of a great providential mission, as the servant and herald of a high and unique cause. The philosopher and the Jew will greatly differ from him with regard to every argument and view of his; but both will admit that he is a mighty battler for truth, and that his view of life, of man, and of God is a profoundly serious one. The entire conception of religion has certainly been deepened by him, because his mental grasp was wide and comprehensive, and his thinking bold, aggressive, searching, and at the same time systematic. Indeed,<strong><em> he molded the thought and the belief of all [modern] Christendom.</em></strong></p>
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<p>I added "modern" in the last sentence to clarify that Paul's impact is mostly on "modern" Christianity beginning in the 300s. As the Jewish scholar Milgram explains at this <a href="/JWO/millgram-on-paul-a-sabbath.html">link</a>, Paul did not have a significant impact upon early Christianity. In fact, Paul constantly complained of that fact. It was not until Constantine in the 300s wanted Sun-Day -- the day of the god of the Sun -- to be a rest day in place of the Sabbath (which came from the Jews) -- that Paul rose in estimation of the 'church.' Paul's anti-sabbath passages were now the basis to condemn all Sabbatarians as following Judaism, and they need to instead treat Sun-Day as the day of rest. See "<a href="/JWO/paul-abolished-sabbath.html">Paul Abolished Sabbath</a>."</p>
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<h3>The Basic Facts About Paul</h3>
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<p><span>"Paul </span>was born at Tarsus, the principal city of Cilicia...." (George Tomline, <em>Elements of Christian Theology </em> (1818) Vol. 1 at<a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=n5sPAAAAIAAJ&dq=Elements%20of%20Christian%20Theology%20tomline&pg=PA345#v=onepage&q&f=false"> 345</a>.)</p>
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<p>"In the Acts of the Apostles he is called <strong><em>Saul</em></strong> till the ninth verse of the thirteenth chapter, and afterwards he is always called <em><strong>Paul.</strong></em> No satisfactory reason has been assigned for this change." (<em>Id.</em>)</p>
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||
<p>"He was of the<em><strong> tribe of Benjamin</strong></em>, and of the sect of the Pharisees. Philipp. 3:5." (<em>Id.</em>)</p>
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<p>"Paul is not mentioned in the Gospels; nor is it known whether he ever heard our Saviour preach, or saw him perform any miracle. His name first occurs in the account given in Acts' [account] of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, to which he is said to have consented:" Acts 8:1. (<em>Id.</em>, at <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=n5sPAAAAIAAJ&dq=Elements%20of%20Christian%20Theology%20tomline&pg=PA346#v=onepage&q&f=false">346</a>.)</p>
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<p>It is unlikely Paul ever heard Jesus' voice because when the Jesus of the vision on the Road to Damascu is heard by Paul saying "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" Paul responds: "Who are you Lord?" (Acts 9:8) - obviously not recognizing the voice. If this were truly Jesus, and Paul heard it earlier during Jesus' ministry, Paul should have recognized the voice.</p>
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<p>Was Paul a tent-maker or the maker of theatrical scenery? Andrew Perriman points out that the usual meaning of the term <em>skenopoios</em>, translated in the English versions of the Acts of the Apostles as "tent-maker" (Acts 18:3) is a stagehand or maker of theatrical scenery. See the next section.</p>
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<h3>Paul's Real Job Was As A Stage-Hand?</h3>
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||
<p>As Perriman points out (see this <a href="http://www.postost.net/2010/07/paul-maker-theatrical-scenery">link</a>), in Anthony Thiselton's <em>The Hermeneutics of Doctrine</em> (2007), as part of a discussion on ‘Christian Doctrine as Dramatic Narrative,’ Thiselton notes the argument of L.L. Welborn that ‘tentmaker’ is an unlikely translation of <em>skenopoios</em> in Acts 18:3. (<em>Id.</em>, at <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=QKi0iSORfh0C&lpg=PP1&dq=hermeneutics%20of%20doctrine&pg=PA70#v=onepage&q=tentmaker&f=false">70</a>.) The BDAG Greek Lexicon points to the better attested use of the word is from the context of Old Comedy in which it denotes a ‘<em><strong>stagehand</strong></em>’ or ‘<em><strong>manufacturer of stage properties</strong></em>.’</p>
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||
<p>The problem for the familiar 'tentmaker' rendering is that outside the New Testament, <em>skenopoios</em> is used <em><strong>only in the theatrical sense</strong></em> or figuratively to describe the construction of an impermanent dwelling. That could refer to a tent, but there is nothing in the context of Acts 18:3 to resolve the sense in favour of ‘tentmaker’. BDAG concludes:</p>
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<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span><span style="font-size: medium;"> In the absence of any use of the term </span><em><span style="font-size: medium;">skēnopoios</span></em><span style="font-size: medium;">, beyond the pass. in Pollux and the Herm. Wr., and the lack of specific qualifiers in the text of</span><a target="_blank" class="lbsBibleRef" href="http://bible.logos.com/passage/esv/Ac%2018.3"><span style="font-size: medium;">Ac 18:3</span></a><span style="font-size: medium;">, one is left with the <strong><em>strong probability</em></strong> that Luke’s public in urban areas, where <em><strong>theatrical productions were in abundance</strong></em>, would think of </span><em><span style="font-size: medium;">skēnopoios </span></em><span style="font-size: medium;"> in ref. to <em><strong>matters theatrical</strong></em>.</span></span></p>
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<p>Welborn thinks that in Paul speaking of Christians as ‘fools’ or ‘clowns’ for the sake of Christ (<a target="_blank" class="lbsBibleRef" href="http://bible.logos.com/passage/esv/1%20Cor.%201.27">1 Cor. 1:27</a>; <a target="_blank" class="lbsBibleRef" href="http://bible.logos.com/passage/esv/1%20Cor%204.10">4:10</a>; <a target="_blank" class="lbsBibleRef" href="http://bible.logos.com/passage/esv/2%20Cor.%2011.16-17">2 Cor. 11:16-17</a>) or of himself and the apostles as having ’become a spectacle (<em>teatron</em>) to the world’ (<a target="_blank" class="lbsBibleRef" href="http://bible.logos.com/passage/esv/1%20Cor.%204.9">1 Cor. 4:9</a>), that Paul is drawing on first hand experience of the theatre. (See L.L. Welborn, <em>Paul, The Fool for Christ</em> (2005) at <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=GX-nbIgZMUUC&lpg=PA90&dq=welborn%20clowns%20for%20christ&pg=PA90#v=onepage&q&f=false">90</a>.)</p>
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||
<p>In these passages, Paul is alluding to the "Guardian mime" and is using a "theatrical metaphor" throughout these paragraphs. <em>Id</em>. Paul understands himself to be a secondary actor for Christ -- a fool who mimics the actions of the archmime. <em>Id. </em>The mimic fool was a typical character in Greek theater -- copying the acts of another actor.</p>
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||
<p>When Paul shortly thereafter portrays himself as acting with fear and trembling when speaking (1 Cor. 2:1-5), Welborn says this fits a common "theatrical metaphor." Here "Paul portrays himself as a well-known figure in the mime: the <strong><em>befuddled orator</em></strong>." <em>Id., </em>at <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=GX-nbIgZMUUC&lpg=PA90&dq=welborn%20clowns%20for%20christ&pg=PA92#v=onepage&q&f=false">92.</a></p>
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<p><span></span></p>
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<p>Author James McGrath (<em>The Only True God</em>) notes the implications of viewing Paul's advocation is the more common meaning of<em> skenopoios</em> as a stage-hand and asks:</p>
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<p style="padding-left: 30px;">If that were Paul's profession, how might we think differently about him? How might it change the way we think about his activity of proclamation of the Christian message? ("<a href="http://exploringourmatrix.blogspot.com/2010/07/pauls-theatrics.html">Paul's Theatrics</a>" July 28, 2010.)</p>
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||
<p>One person comments on Perriman's blog to discuss this question, and aptly notes why we do not wish to accept Paul was a stage-hand yet the tolerable benefits of doing so:</p>
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||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">It’s hard to imagine Paul <strong><em>erecting stage scenery</em></strong>. But maybe that’s just another example of interpretive conditioning. In any case, if it helps to bring to life the various cultural frames of reference within which Paul’s mind worked, it can’t be a bad thing. I’m all in favour of deflating his theology to culturally and religiously and politically relevant proportions. (<a href="http://www.postost.net/2010/07/paul-maker-theatrical-scenery">Link.</a>)</p>
|
||
<p>Thus, Paul was most probably a theater stage-hand at Tarsus.</p>
|
||
<h2>Paul's Conflicting Accounts of his Wilderness Experience with A Bright-Light Saying "I am Jesus"</h2>
|
||
<p>Paul had various conflicting versions of his initial encounter with a bright light that said "I am Jesus."</p>
|
||
<p><span>Acts 9:3-7</span><br /><br /><span>3. As Saul was coming near the city of Damascus, suddenly a light from the sky flashed around him.</span><br /><span>4. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul! Why do you persecute me?”</span><br /><span>5. “Who are you, Lord?” he asked. “I am Jesus, whom you persecute”, the voice said.</span><br /><span>6. “But get up and go into the city, where you will be told what you must do.”</span><br /><span>7. The men who were traveling with Saul had stopped, not saying a word; </span><strong>they heard the voice but could not see anyone (NIV) "no man" (KJV) "no one" (YLT)</strong><br /><br /><br /><span>Paul tells it again but this time differently in Acts 22:6-9: </span><br /><br />6.“As I was traveling and coming near Damascus, about midday a bright light from the sky flashed suddenly around me.<br /><span>7. I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul! Why do you persecute me?’</span><br /><span>8. ‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked. I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you persecute,’ he said to me.</span><br /><span>9. The men with me </span><strong>saw the light, but did not hear the voice of the one who was speaking to me</strong><span>.”</span><br /><br />So we must ask: did the two men with Paul see the light or not? Did they hear the voice or not?</p>
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||
<p>If we strain to treat Paul politely, one possibility is that Paul saw a light, and the men clearly saw that too, but did not see "anyone" in the sense of a man, as the KJV tries to suggest. It was just a blinding light. However, that's a thin reed and not plausible. Paul equated the light with Jesus, and thus if the men saw the light, they presumably saw "someone" - just not a distinguishable form of a man. Hence, a contradiction appears to be unavoidable in whether the two men saw the light or not.</p>
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||
<p>Regardless, the second contradiction is impossible to reconcile: one version says the men heard (acoustica) the voice, and the second version says the men did not hear (acoustica) the voice. The exact same word in Greek makes these two versions impossible to reconcile.</p>
|
||
<p>Because the third version in Acts 26 says only Paul was blinded, it appears only Acts 9:7 is the true account: the two men with Paul did not see anyone. And hence that explains why they were not blinded.</p>
|
||
<h3>Do Paul's Words Evince Instability?</h3>
|
||
<p>Paul said in 2 Corinthians 11: 16-18 that he talks like a fool and will boast of himself / his deeds even though the Lord would not have him talk like this: <br /><br /><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>16. I repeat: no one should think that I am a fool. But if you do, at least accept me as a fool, <span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>just so I will have a little to boast of.<br /><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>17. Of course what I am saying now is<em><strong> not what the Lord would have me say</strong></em>; in this matter of boasting I am really talking like a fool.<br /><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>18. But since there are <strong><em>so many who boast for merely human reasons, I will do the same</em></strong>.<br /><br />Paul clearly did not view himself here talking as Scripture. Furthermore, Paul borders on a bit of the zany here. Paul blatantly tells a spiritual community that<strong><em> he will commit the sin of boasting</em></strong> ("not what the Lord would have me say") and instead will talk like a fool, and then boasts for "merely human reasons" of self-glory.</p>
|
||
<p><span>The Lord is clear in Jeremiah 9:24 about the error in Paul's ways where YHVH says, “If anyone wants to boast, he should boast that he knows and understands me.” </span></p>
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||
<p><span>Paul clearly knew he was violating that principle, and went ahead anyway with boasting. Paul thereby put it in a spiritual letter to a community a litany of boasts of his deeds. It is completely self-contradictory for Paul to do so, let alone a brazen sin shown as an example to a spiritual community. We would expect cult leaders to talk like this. This passage calls into question therefore Paul's mental stability.</span></p>
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<p>Also, this passage reminds us of Jesus' comment in John 7:18:</p>
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<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span>[Jesus / Yashua said,] “A person who speaks on his own authority is <strong><em>trying to gain glory for himself</em></strong>.”</span></p>
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<h3>Was Paul's "Freedom in Christ" Licentious?</h3>
|
||
<p>Paul had a view that nothing was unlawful for him to perform. Three times he says this: <span style="color: #cc0000;">“All things are lawful unto me ... all things are lawful for me"</span><span> (I Cor.6:12); and again, </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">"All things are lawful for me"</span><span> (I Cor,10:23). Add to these the verse, </span><span style="color: #cc0000;">"Happy is he that condemns not himself in that thing which he allows"</span><span> (Rom,14:22).</span></p>
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||
<p>Simultaneously, Paul viewed his sins as not done by himself but by the sin itself. In Romans 7:17, we read:</p>
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||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">17. <span style="color: #ff0000;">Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me</span>.</p>
|
||
<p>Hence, to Paul's boasting, cursing, etc. - any of his sin, was not Paul's fault -- "it is no more I that do it." Instead, Paul believed the responsible force is the "sin that dwells in me."</p>
|
||
<p>At the same time, Paul did not believe anything he did was actually sinful -- all things were lawful to him.</p>
|
||
<h3>In What Sense Did Paul Perceive Himself An Apostle of Jesus Christ?</h3>
|
||
<p>The word "apostle" in Greek means<em> messenger</em>. Paul and any evangelist carried the message of Jesus, or at least so all sincere speakers do. Hence, every believe is a messenger / apostle in that loose sense of the term. But carrying the message does not make any of us one of the special 12 whose words of recollection from Jesus are deemed inspired, as Jesus promised the 12. (Matthias in Acts 1 was appointed by the 11, with the help of the Holy Spririt, to replace Judas with Matthias.) So did Paul believe he held an honor as apostle identical to what the 12 had? Or that he was a messenger / apostle in the same sense that all of us are messengers of Christ?</p>
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<p>In some passages, a good case can be made that Paul knew he was an apostle in a small 'a' sense. We learn from Nicholson, <em>The Gospel According to the Hebrews</em> (1879), that this follows from various statements of Paul:</p>
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<p style="padding-left: 30px;" class="gtxt_body">In the N. T. there is no mention of an appearance to James except in 1 Cor. xv. <em>7, </em>where, having already mentioned appearances to Kephas, to ' the Twelve,' and to 500 brethren, Paul says 'Then was he seen by James, then by <em><strong>all the Apostles</strong></em>.'</p>
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<p style="padding-left: 30px;" class="gtxt_body">There can be no doubt that this James was not the son of Zebedee (whom Paul never mentions and who had been dead many years) but ' James ' (Gal. ii. 9, 13) bishop of Jerusalem, called also 'James the Lord's brother' (Gal. i. 19). The words 'then by all the Apostles ' <em><strong>do not imply that this James was one of the </strong></em><em><strong>Twelve</strong>, </em>but only that he was an Apostle (as he is also styled in Gal. i. 19) —<em><strong>a much wider title</strong></em>, given in the N. T. to Paul, Barnabas, and apparently (Rom. xvi. 7) to Andronicus and Junias: see Bishop Lightfoot's excursus ' The name and office of an Apostle' <em>(Ep. to the Galatians, </em>92). (Nicholson: <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=QVAVAAAAYAAJ&dq=some%20things%20out%20of%20the%20Gospel%20according%20to%20the%20Hebrews%20and%20the%20Syriac&pg=PA63#v=onepage&q=some%20things%20out%20of%20the%20Gospel%20according%20to%20the%20Hebrews%20and%20the%20Syriac&f=false">63</a>.)</p>
|
||
<p>Thus, Paul had a conception that the label 'apostle' could extend to James and others than the twelve. Hence, in Paul claiming to be an apostle, with his broader definition, it is not unlikely that he took the title in the small 'a' sense. Paul thought himself as a messenger of Jesus, just like any evangelist might be called. If a correct reading, Paul did not understand he was one of the special 12. Regardless, Paul did not understand he spoke with constant inspiration either, as he often explained. See this<a href="/Recommended-Reading/paul-admits-often-uninspired.html"> link.</a></p>
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<h3>Paul Complained Of His Lack of Official Recognition As an Apostle</h3>
|
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<p>Also, in other contexts, it was clear Paul knew he had no letters of recommendation from the Jerusalem church that 'sealed' him as apostle. Thus, Paul claimed that the existence of the Corinthian church was itself the 'seal' he needed (1 Cor. 9:1-2), and that he thanked them for accepting him without "letters of recommendation." (2 Cor. 10:9-18.) Eisenman cogently explains these passages reveal Paul alluded that he did not have "official 'written letters of Apostolic appointment from James...." (R. Eisenman, <em>The New Testament Code</em> (2006) at 570). See detailed summary of Eisenman's well-demonstrated discussion we present at this<a href="/JWO/eisenman-on-paul.html"> link</a>. Thus, if Paul thought himself a true apostle in the capital A sense, Paul knew he did not have this recognition from the 12. All that they ever called Paul was a "brother" in Acts 15 and 2 Peter 3.</p>
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<h3>Paul Read Bible Verse That Paul Was The 'Light to the Gentiles'</h3>
|
||
<p>Paul in <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts+13%3A47&version=NIV">Acts 13:47</a> applied Isaiah 49:6 to himself as the light to the Gentiles. First, Paul says to a group of Jews: "<span>Since you reject it [<em>i.e.</em>, Paul's gospel] and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles."</span> Paul next explains he did this in obedience to God's command:</p>
|
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<p style="padding-left: 30px;">For this is what the Lord has commanded us:</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">“‘I have made you<sup>[<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts+13%3A47&version=NIV#fen-NIV-27410a" title="See footnote a">a</a>]</sup> a light for the Gentiles, <br /> that you<sup>[<a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts+13%3A47&version=NIV#fen-NIV-27410b" title="See footnote b">b</a>]</sup> may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’<span style="font-size: 8pt;"> (NIV)</span></p>
|
||
<p>The NIV footnoted a and b to reveal something that indeed is embarassing:</p>
|
||
<ol type="a">
|
||
<li id="fen-NIV-27410a"><a title="Go to Acts 13:47" href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts+13%3A47&version=NIV#en-NIV-27410">Acts 13:47</a> The Greek is singular.</li>
|
||
<li id="fen-NIV-27410b"><a title="Go to Acts 13:47" href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts+13%3A47&version=NIV#en-NIV-27410">Acts 13:47</a> The Greek is singular.</li>
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</ol>
|
||
<p>This tells you about Paul's self-perception -- the "you" was singular and thus a reference to himself. Paul's words border on the<strong><em> sacrilegious</em></strong> if they do not in fact cross the line. But the passage in Isaiah which Paul quotes identifies who is the Light to the Gentiles -- the Servant (which is the Messiah):</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px; ">he says: "It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to <strong><em>restore the tribes of Jacob</em></strong> and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will<strong><em> also make you a light for the Gentiles</em></strong>, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth."</p>
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<p>Paul applied a verse that applies to Jesus to himself, <strong><em>arrogating the position of Jesus!</em></strong> And Paul changed it to be an past tense situation "I have made you" rather than the original 'I will also make you...." Indicating, Paul pointed at himself as the fulfillment of this passage!</p>
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<p>Incidentally, God in Isaiah <a href="http://bible.cc/isaiah/42-6.htm">42:6</a> also identified that He would make the Messiah the "light of the Gentiles." It reads:</p>
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<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span>I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for <strong>a light of the Gentiles</strong>; (NIV)</span></p>
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<p>Mishaya aptly asks whether Paul was "usurping this Messianic title" in Acts 13:47. See YouTube at<a href="http://bible.cc/isaiah/42-6.htm"> 2:31</a>. It appears indubitably so.</p>
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<h2></h2>
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<h2>Paul: A Pharisee Who Post-Conversion Admits He Performed Torah for Appearance Sake</h2>
|
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<p>Paul says he was born a member of the Tribe of Benjamin. This would make him or his grandparents Jewish. Paul also said he was a Pharisee. (Phil. 3:4-6.)</p>
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<p>Did Paul abaondon his Pharasaical ways as a Christian?</p>
|
||
<p>Jesus condemned the Pharisees for doing religious observance for appearances, <em>i.e.</em>, to be seen by men. (Matt. 15.) Jesus condemned the Pharisees for teaching the less weighty matters of the Law like tithing, but leaving untaught and undone the weightier matters of the Law. (Matt. 23:23.) The Pharisees wrongly replaced the written Law given Moses with oral commands, <em>e.g.</em>, a Korban payment excused support for one's parents. (Matt. 15:6.)</p>
|
||
<p>So did Paul abandon Pharisaical hypocrisy and Law-negation after conversion?</p>
|
||
<p>In Paul's outward actions, Paul clearly observed the Law given to Moses by God. In Luke's depiction of Paul, Paul is a Torah-keeping (Acts 28:17), synagogue attending (Acts 13, 14, etc.), vow taking (Acts 18:18 and 21:24), festival observing (Acts 20:6,16), and sacrifice offering (Acts 21:26) Jew.</p>
|
||
<p>However, at the very same time, <strong><em>Paul's words make it clear that this was deliberately done from pretense to gain converts</em></strong>, <em>i.e.</em>, a deliberate mask to gain converts by deflecting criticism that he believed the Law given Moses had been done away with. See 1 Cor.9:20-21; see discussion in <em>Jesus Words Only</em> at <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=3VFnsDuxBPcC&lpg=PP1&dq=jesus%20words%20only&pg=PA66#v=onepage&q&f=false">66</a> et seq. Paul was, as he said himself, all things to all men so more would come to Christ.</p>
|
||
<p>Thus, Paul's religious observances were admittedly done for appearance sake. Paul shamelessly says this in his writings. This is why Paul could say circumcision was unnecessary but then arrange for Timothy to be circumcised. (Acts 16:3.)</p>
|
||
<p>One of the most obvious problems for Paul, but rarely pointed out, is that the Apostolic Gospel of Matthew shows the Lord <strong><em>Jesus condemned the behaviors and beliefs of a Pharisee which in every respect matches the post-conversion Paul </em></strong>although Matthew never used Paul's name.</p>
|
||
<h2>Time-Line Problems</h2>
|
||
<p>Most authorities say Paul's words in Galatians signify he did not visit the apostles at Jerusalem until Paul was a Christian for 3 years. Then he returned 14 years later -- either from that point or the point of conversion -- to hold the meeting recorded in Acts 15. Thus, Acts 15 represents either 14 or 17 years from Paul's Damascus experience.</p>
|
||
<p>However, CW in his work <a href="http://questioningpaul.com/Questioning_Paul-Galatians-02-Euangelion-Healing_and_Beneficial_Message.Paul"><em>Questioning Paul</em> </a> believes a greater period exists if we provide estimate for some intervening points in Paul's timeline, so it is instead closer to 19 years:</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">[T]he timeline he provided in Galatians, delineating the number of years which transpired between his conversion and the Yaruwshalaym Summit is too great. According to Paul’s testimony in Acts nine, he spent a considerable period of time in Damascus amazing the locals while confusing the Jews after his conversion. (Acts 9:22-23) Let’s assume this took the better part of a year. Then he claims to have gone off to Arabia for <strong><em>three years</em></strong> before returning to Damascus (Galatians 1:17-18) only to be lowered down the wall in a basket. (Acts 9:24-25 and 2 Corinthians 11:32-33 where he claimed to be fleeing a government official under the Arabian King Aretas who died in 40 CE.) He then went to Yaruwshalaym to meet with Shim’own and Ya’aqob. (Galatians 1:18-19) His travelogue continues through Syria and Cilicia, a journey which collectively could have transpired over the course of a year. (Galatians 1:21) Although in Acts nine, Sha’uwl tells us that he went to Caesarea, bypassing Syria, and then to Tarsus. (Acts 9:30) But then Paul tells us that he was summoned to the <em>Yaruwshalaym Ekklesia</em> "after the passage of another <em><strong>fourteen years</strong></em>." (Galatians 2:1) That’s a total of nineteen years.</p>
|
||
<p>The problem with this is that the meeting in Acts 15 is strongly believed to be 50 CE. So if you subtract 19 years, you are at year 31 CE. The crucifixion is 3 year later. But even if you used the 17 year hypothesis, Paul's Damascus encounter would be 33 CE -- a year before the crucifixion. Only if we calculate as short as possible -- just 14 years does Paul have a sequence that can fit the crucifixion.</p>
|
||
<h2>Was Paul a Roman Spy? Col. Sheldon's Analysis</h2>
|
||
<p>At the outset, I wish to emphasize <strong><em>I do not believe Paul was a spy for Rome</em></strong> when he professed to be an apostle. However, a biographical synopsis would be incomplete without mentioning this possibility. This is because a very scholarly and respectable case for this notion was made by Col Rose Marie Sheldon, "<span>Operation Messiah: St. Paul, Roman Intelligence and the Birth of Christianity" (2008). Later that book was turned into an article in a respectable biblical journal: </span>"Operation Messiah: The Political Life of St. Paul," <em>Biblical Archaeology Society of Northern Virginia</em>, November 7, 2010.</p>
|
||
<p>Col. Sheldon's credentials -- articles on espionage in the ancient world -- are formidable. See <a href="http://www.vmi.edu/fswebs.aspx?tid=26499&id=4294967738">http://www.vmi.edu/fswebs.aspx?tid=26499&id=4294967738</a></p>
|
||
<p>The idea for Col. Sheldon's book began with <a class="profile-name-link" href="http://www.blogger.com/profile/09146213572915573064" rel="author">Thijs Voskuilen</a> who on a blog explains how he raised the idea with Col. Sheldon and how she gradually came to agree. Here is Vokuillen's explanation at this <a href="http://thijsvoskuilen.blogspot.com/">blog</a>:</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">I did not base my thesis on Robert Eisenman's work. He has said that Paul, being a sincere apostle, worked with the Romans to secure his position.<br /><br />My - our - thesis is that Saul of Tarsus never converted and became an agent-provocateur, handled and protected by the Romans. In other words: we think he probably remained an agent all along. This is a very different interpretation of Saul's life and work that to our knowledge has not been considered before - except by some of Paul's contemporaries, who tried to kill him various times.<br /><br />I have described the way I came to my conclusions in my MA Thesis, which was published as Alias Paulus in the Netherlands in 2002.</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">****</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">The original meaning of the word ha-satan was "spy for God". For a spy it is good to be underestimated. A good spy likes it when his enemies think he has been defeated. It makes his job, which depends on secrecy, a lot easier.</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">I finally decided that, from a writer's perspective, it was not very good form to use the devil as a character, so I decided to take him out. What I had left was a Roman infiltrating the group of Jesus and manipulating the course of events, either in real time or afterwards, i.e. on paper.<br /><br />The government manipulating the writing of history. It wouldn't be the first time, nor the last, and it always works on paper.<br /><br />Why would the Romans do that?</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">****</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">St. Paul, the persecutor who had started preaching turning the other cheek to persecutors, submission to the authorities, and paying one's taxes to the Roman government as the will of God.</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">****</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">During the writing of the thesis, I approached Col. Rose Mary Sheldon of the Virginia Military Institute. On the internet I read that she was an expert on espionage in ancient times.<br /><br />I told her I was a student in Holland, who was writing a paper on a provocateur in ancient Rome. Not knowing any more than that, she sent me a few articles related to the subject. I used them for my paper and then sent her the final draft, asking for her opinion.<br /><br />After several months, I had not heard back from her. I sent her an E-mail in which I repeated the question what she thought of the theory. She replied, "You have very liberal professors. I envy you."<br /><br />I sent her another E-mail, asking her what she thought of the theory itself. She replied, "I think it is likely."<br /><br />She asked to keep her updated.</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">****</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Until now scholars have stopped at the possibility that St. Paul, an otherwise sincere apostle, worked with the Romans to further his cause.<br /><br />To my knowledge, no scholar has raised the possibility that Saul never quit being an agent. And as Operation Messiah shows, there are many strong clues to support this possibility, which is highly likely from both a psychological and strategic point of view.</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">****</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">2008<br />From 2005 to 2007 <em><strong>Col. Sheldon and I combined our everyday work with writing the book</strong></em>.<br /><br />We each wrote several chapters. I was responsible for the majority of the chapters on the alleged conversion, the travels and Paul's stay in Rome, including the clues that I had found during the writing of my thesis and the article and adding some new ones.<br /><br />Finally the book <em>Operation Messiah</em> was published in July, 2008.</p>
|
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<h2>Paul Eclipsed by Apostle John At Ephesus</h2>
|
||
<p>Apostle John outlived Paul. He moved into Ephesus where Paul once preached for three months, converting many. However, Luke tells us in Acts 19 the Ephesus synagogue which once accepted him now expelled him. Paul was already on the decline there, as Paul himself admitted. Then, thirty years later, Apostle John left Patmos and came to live in Ephesus, and brought those communities to follow the doctrines of Jesus. Paul was entirely eclipsed at Ephesus by Apostle John. Evangelical scholar F.F. Bruce explains how this disappearance of Pauline influence came about within orthodox circles at Ephesus, as David E. Blair summarizes Bruce's points:</p>
|
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<p style="padding-left: 30px;">The consideration of the Johannine community is perhaps the most conservative of these studies. Yet much evidence is weighed back and forth. Bruce locates the community at Ephesus. References to heretical thought in the Gospel of John are reflective of a Roman Asia location. Also, the early Church traditions of the John at Ephesus are strong and extend through Papias, Polycarp, and beyond. While aware of the adventurous work of J. Louis Martyn and Robert E. Brown in "The Community of the Beloved Disciple," Bruce leaves the question of the number of significant persons within the community open and sees a strong possibility of the apostle John at Ephesus and/or Patmos.<em> The Pauline foundation in Roman Asia is seen to be eclipsed, and the ongoing Church there becomes a reflection of Johannine thought</em>. (<a href="http://www.amazon.com/review/R3LKITM51V4TRQ">Review</a> of F.F. Bruce, <em>Peter, Stephen, James and John: Studies in Early Non-Pauline Christianity</em> (Eerdman's 1980)</p>
|
||
<h2>Paul's Legacy As Would Be Perceived by Late 200s</h2>
|
||
<p>As Renan has stated, Paul gained a credibility among orthodoxy in the 300s at Rome that did not at all exist prior to that period. Renan begins by telling us Paul had no following among the orthodox Christian groups after his death until the 300s:</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span>After his disappearance from the scene of apostolic struggles we shall find him soon forgotten. His death was probably regarded by his enemies as the death of an agitator. </span><span>The second century </span><strong><em>scarcely speaks of him</em></strong><span>, and apparently endeav</span><span>ors to systematically blot out his memory</span><span>. His epistles are then </span><strong><em>slightly read</em></strong><span>, and only regarded as authority by rather </span><em><strong>a slim group</strong></em><span>.* His partisans themselves greatly weaken his pre</span><span></span><span>tensions." He leaves no celebrated disciples. Titus, Timothy, and so many others, who, as it were, constituted his court, disappear without renown. (Renan, <em>St. Paul</em> (1875) at 327 (excerpted at our<a href="/Recommended-Reading/renan.html"> link</a>.)</span></p>
|
||
<p>The reason was simple. The Roman state urgently sought to stop Sabbath-resting practices. It wanted one single day for rest, and it was to be Sun-Day -- the day of worship of the Sun, the god Sol Invictus. Thus, Paul's anti-Law position was used by Roman Catholicism in the 300s at the behest of the state to extirpate Sabbath rest on Saturday and try a syncretic solution of making Christian practices coincide with pagan ones. Hence, the Christian Sabbath changed from Saturday to Sunday to placate Roman Emperors. See our page "<a href="/Recommended-Reading/sabbathcommand.html">Sabbath Command</a>."</p>
|
||
<p>Renan records what happened in the 300s to Paul's legacy as a consequence -- but it is limited to Rome and nothing happens to change his reputation in the East (<em>i.e.</em>, the Middle East):</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span> </span><span>In the </span><strong><em>third, fourth, and fifth centuries</em></strong><span>, Paul </span><strong><em>will increase wonderfully</em></strong><span>. He will become the teacher par excellence, — the founder of Chris</span><span></span><span>tian theology. The true president of those " great Greek Councils, which make Jesus the keystone of a system of metaphysics, is the apostle Paul. But in the middle ages, especially </span><span>in the Occi</span><span></span><span>dent, his fortune will undergo a strange eclipse. Paul will say scarcely nothing to the heart of the barbarians. Outside of Rome, he will pos</span><span></span><span>sess </span><em><strong>no legend</strong></em><span>. <em>Id.</em></span></p>
|
||
<p>Had that fortuitous desire of Roman Caesar's to encourage worship of Sol Invictus on Sunday not intervened from the early 300s, where would Paul have been in church history?</p>
|
||
<p>We find the answer in Tertullian, a leading orthodox figure in the early church, who said in 207 AD in <em>Against Marcion </em>3.5 that<em>"</em>Paul is the apostle of the heretics." He clearly spoke disparagingly of him. Specifically, Tertullian in <em>Adversus Marcion</em> at <a href="http://www.documentacatholicaomnia.eu/1003/1001/0160-0220,_Tertullianus,_Adversus_Marcionem,_MLT.html#[0327A]">3:5</a> (Caput V) said Paul is the "<strong><em>apostle of the heretics</em></strong>." In Latin, he called Paul "<em><strong>haereticorum</strong></em> apostolus." One commentator says this meant "the <strong><em>writings of Paul</em></strong> --- the haereticorum apostolos of Tertullian --- were <strong><em>regarded suspiciously</em></strong> at Rome." (Hans Lietzmann, <em>The Lord's Supper</em> (Brill: 1979) at <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=1bsUAAAAIAAJ&lpg=PA282&ots=oCfZPSLxMs&dq=haereticorum%20apostolus&pg=PA282">282</a>.)</p>
|
||
<p>Tertullian spoke with justification. Among the early gnostic heretics, their writings refer to Paul as "<strong><em>the great (or greatest) apostle</em></strong>" and "Paul who has become like Christ." (A. H. B. Logan, A. J. M. Wedderburn, <em>New Testament and Gnosis</em> (2004) at <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=qSdnK6qLhNgC&lpg=PA13&ots=ubigbdORV_&dq=haereticorum%20apostolus&pg=PA13">13</a>.) Tertullian was correct: Paul was the "apostle of the heretics.</p>
|
||
<p>Those who today admire Gnostic views of that era through the 200s cite Paul as the most important influence on the growth of Gnosticism. There are "difficult to understand" statements in Paul that modern Gnostics legitimately claim support Gnosticism, <em>i.e.</em>, private revelations from God no longer conforming to the Biblical standard of <em>a prophet confirmed by predictions that come true and are tested against Torah but whom demands are trusting him. </em>This is laid out by a pro-Gnostic in quite convincing fashion from Paul's own words in an article entitled "<a href="http://www.christianjewishbible.netfirms.com/paul_gnostic_indwelling_christ.htm">The Gnostic Theology of Paul as Taught in His Authentic Epistles</a>." This article defends Paul as a Gnostic who taught Jesus pre-existed His birth and only "appeared to be a man," quoting 2 passages where Paul says this.</p>
|
||
<p>While the modern Gnostics proudly hold up Pau for teaching thisl, this Gnostic-like teaching that Jesus only appeared human was, according to John, the Apostle, the message of the Anti-Christ, <em>i.e.</em>, that Jesus had not come in HUMAN FLESH, but only appeared to be a man. (2 John 1:7.) Hence, no one in the early church in the orthodox church promoted Paul's writings to be taken as 100% authoritative.</p>
|
||
<p>Rather, no one in the church in the first 300 years endorsed faith alone except the heretic/gnostic Marcion in 144 AD. No one in the early church endorsed predestination; instead, all condemned it as a blasphemy because it would attribute evil to God. And the list goes on. Even on the Law's abrogation, the early church did not agree, and maintained the law applied to Gentiles except circumcision (which in Lev. 12 only applies to sons of Israel), and thus the 10 Commandments were valid for Gentiles to follow (including the 4th--the Sabbath command.) See our article "<a href="/JWO/early-church-view-of-law-given-moses.html">View of Law in early Church</a>."</p>
|
||
<p>Thus, had Rome not needed the anti-Law views of Paul to extinguish the costly practice of two rests oer weej -- a Saturday and Sunday rest -- Paul likely would have faded from memory, and never been considered an inspired source of revelation. The modern view that Paul founded Christianity, and without him it would have been extinguished in Palestine, is a fiction. The history of the evangelism of the 12 proves they went to the far reaches of Spain, Italy, India, Iran, the Baltic Sea, Turkey, etc. See our page "<a href="/JWO/paul-or-james-church-greatest-evangelist.html">Paul or James' Church: Who Was The Greater Evangelist</a>?" Paul became a forgotten footnote until Rome needed his epistles to quash Sabbath observance.</p>
|
||
<h3>Paul's History Contained in "Simon Magus" Critiques</h3>
|
||
<p>Many scholars concur that "Simon Magus" in the Ebionite influenced works such as the Clementine Homilies (often disparagingly referred to as the Pseudo-Clementine Homolies). The Berlin Pastor, Hermman Detering (born 1953), believes these works are actually historical accounts of the life of Paul. And thus, it demonstrates Peter went to Rome not to work with Paul so much as to confront him. As the Wikipedia article on "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermann_Detering">Hermann Detering</a>" explains:</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">Many scholars, since <a title="Ferdinand Christian Baur" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_Christian_Baur">Ferdinand Christian Baur</a> in the 19th Century, have concluded that the attacks on "Simon Magus" in the 4th Century <a class="mw-redirect" title="Pseudo-Clementines" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudo-Clementines">Pseudo-Clementines</a> may be attacks on Paul. Detering takes the attacks of the Pseudo-Clementines <strong><em>as literal and historical,</em></strong> and suggests that the attacks of the Pseudo-Clementines are correct in making "Simon Magus" a <a title="wiktionary:proxy" class="extiw" href="http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/proxy">proxy</a> for <a class="mw-redirect" title="Paul of Tarsus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_of_Tarsus">Paul of Tarsus</a>,<sup><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermann_Detering#cite_note-2">[3]</a></sup> with Paul originally been detested by the church, and the name changed when Paul was rehabilitated by virtue of <a class="mw-redirect" title="Authorship of the Pauline Epistles" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Authorship_of_the_Pauline_Epistles">forged Epistles</a> <em>correcting</em> the genuine ones.<sup><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hermann_Detering#cite_note-3">[4]</a></sup></p>
|
||
<p>Detering's argument expands beyound the Pseudo-Clementines to include other apocrypha, arguing that Simon Magus is sometimes described in apocryphal legends in terms that would fit Paul, though most significantly in <a title="Clementine literature" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clementine_literature">Clementine <em>Recognitions</em> and <em>Homilies</em></a>. Detering contends that the common source of these documents may be as early as the 1st century, and<strong><em> must have consisted in a polemic against Paul, emanating from the Jewish side of Christianity</em></strong>. Paul being thus identified with Simon, Detering argues that Simon's visit to Rome (in the Pseudo-Clementines) had no other basis than Paul's presence there, and, further, that the tradition of Peter's residence in Rome rests on the assumed necessity of his resisting the arch-enemy of Judaism there as elsewhere. Thus, according to Detering, the idea of Peter at Rome really originated with the <a title="Ebionites" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebionites">Ebionites</a>, but it was afterwards taken up by the Catholic Church, and then Paul was associated with Peter in opposition to Simon, who had originally been himself.</p>
|
||
<p>Hence, Peter and Paul were not allies at Rome because the Clementines depict a confrontation between Simon Magus (a cipher for Paul) and Peter. And Detering defends that the Clementines are historical not fictional accounts. When Paul was rehabilitated later, the same stories were edited to change "Paul" to "Simon Magus." This makes sense if you read the Clementines for the individual "Simon Magus" is so like Paul it is otherwise uncanny.</p>
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||
<h2>Death of Paul</h2>
|
||
<p>In the 4th Century, it was claimed that in the 1st Century Paul died alongside Apostle Peter at Rome. Of course, this was the belated claim of the Roman church who benefited from this account.</p>
|
||
<p>However, there is good reason to believe Paul died in Spain. Paul mentions in Romans his intention to go to Spain. Then</p>
|
||
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">"The Christian church in Terragona in northeaster Spain firmly credits its foundation to Paul, in partnership with a follower named Thecla, in AD 60, when Paul was under house arrest at Rome. Perhaps the Spanish date is wrong." (<span>Stephen Dando-Collins, <em>Mark Anthony's Heroes: How The Third Gallica Legion Saved an Apostle and made an Emperor</em> (Wilely 2011) at this <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=3i3_rwfgY6gC&lpg=PT99&dq=apostle%20paul%20died%20in%20spain&pg=PT99#v=onepage&q=apostle%20paul%20died%20in%20spain&f=false">google books page link</a>.</span></p>
|
||
<p>Dando-Collins tries to suggest by this that he knows that Paul was still under house arrest in 60 AD. But indeed, this story about Spain implies Paul's release. Indeed, if Paul were ever tried and executed, someone somewhere in theory would have told that story long before Eusebius' very late and brief statement that Paul was executed at Rome at the time of Peter's execution at Rome.</p>
|
||
<p>Chrysostum tells a cohesive story in 398 AD but it is also too late to give credence. It says Paul was set at liberty at Rome, then "went into Spain," and then "came to Jerusalem, and made a visit to Jewish believers there, and then he came to Rome where he was put to death by Nero." (Nathaniel Lardner, Andrew Kippis, <span style="text-decoration: underline;">The Works of Nathaniel Lardner</span> (1815) Vol. 2 at <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=sKQTAAAAYAAJ&lpg=PA605&ots=8q7jN9x9Om&dq=chrysostom%20unknown%20to%20many%20despised%20acts&pg=PA607#v=onepage&q=chrysostom%20unknown%20to%20many%20despised%20acts&f=false">607</a>.) Chrysostum later explains that Nero did this because Paul converted a "favorite concubine," and then a different story was that Nero killed Paul because Paul "saluted a butler, or cup-bearer, and a concubine of Nero." And a thrid story was that Paul converted a "cup-bearer of Nero." Finally a fourth story was that Nero killed Paul because Paul found favor with "one of the friends of the emperor." <em>Id.</em>, at <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=sKQTAAAAYAAJ&lpg=PA605&ots=8q7jN9x9Om&dq=chrysostom%20unknown%20to%20many%20despised%20acts&pg=PA619#v=onepage&q=chrysostom%20unknown%20to%20many%20despised%20acts&f=false">619</a>.</p>
|
||
<h3>Further Study</h3>
|
||
<p>A thorough biography from a pro-Paul perspective is at this <a href="http://blog.geverett.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/Introduction-to-the-Pauline-Epistles.pdf">pdf</a>.</p>
|
||
<p>See Wikipedia's bio on "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_the_Apostle">Paul the Apostle</a>."</p>
|
||
<h3>You Tube Videos on Paul</h3>
|
||
<p><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUv_GE64uh0&feature=youtube_gdata_player">Paul the Movie (entire)</a></p>
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