PAOLO, APOSTOLO

PAUL, APOSTLE, Saint – Gold-ground glass (4th century) – Vatican Library, Sacred Museum.

As a physical effect, a kind of blindness came upon the protagonist for a few days, and, as a moral-psychological consequence, his complete transformation from persecutor to a most convinced follower of Jesus. This is the most salient point in the life of P. and, therefore, the preferred subject of historical-religious studies.

For rationalists, it constitutes a formidable obstacle; many theories have been advanced, usually exaggerating or inventing physical, physiological, historical-psychological, or purely psycho-religious elements, but so far no hypothesis has been able to claim to have solved the enigma. With a sense of melancholy, it has been concluded that “no analysis, whether psychological or dialectical, can fathom the intimate mystery of the act by which God revealed His Son to P.” (F. C. Baur, *Das Christentum und die Kirche der drei ersten Jahrhunderts*, 2nd ed., Tübingen 1860, p. 45). In this event, “history can only note the sudden change” (C. Weizsäcker, *Das apostolische Zeitalter der christlichen Kirche*, 3rd ed., ibid. 1902, p. 75).

3. At Damascus and in the Desert

Having recovered from the profound impression and received Baptism at the hands of Ananias (v.), P. immediately became a Christian missionary; but his first result was disappointment (Acts 9:20-21). Then he decided to withdraw into the desert to meditate and deepen the truths perceived by supernatural intuition at the moment of his conversion. For nearly three years he lived in the desert (Gal. 1:17-18), that is, in Arabia Petraea not far from Damascus. After this retreat, P. made another unsuccessful missionary attempt in Damascus (Acts 9:23); then he went to Jerusalem to meet the Apostles, particularly Peter (Gal. 1:18; Acts 9:26-27). The reception was rather cold toward the former terrible persecutor. The Levite Barnabas (v.) helped to dispel this distrust, but even in Jerusalem no prospect opened for the zeal of the convert. There were even attempts by Hellenist Jews to plot against him. “When the brethren learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus” (Acts 9:30), where he remained for about four years, until Barnabas came to fetch him to take him as a missionary to Antioch (Acts 11:25).

4. First Missionary Journey

In the city of the Orant, P. remained for four or five years, carrying on secondary activity in the shadow of his friend Barnabas, who took him with him to Jerusalem to bring alms collected in anticipation of the famine (Acts 11:30) foretold by the prophet Agabus (v.). Returning from Jerusalem, in 45-46 P. was assigned to a far-reaching missionary task. A prophet designated him together with Barnabas; the leaders laid hands on them and commended them to the grace of God for the ministry entrusted to them. Joining them was the young Mark, Barnabas’ cousin. The first stop was the island of Cyprus, Barnabas’ homeland. The three landed at Salamis and, after crossing the whole island, reached Paphos (v.), seat of the governor. This office was held by the proconsul Sergius Paulus, who was converted to Christianity, especially following P.’s victory over the magician Bar-Jesus (v.), who was struck blind after the Apostle’s rebuke (Acts 13:1-12). From this moment P. came to the forefront and was always referred to by his famous name, not assumed in memory of the converted proconsul but probably received at birth along with that of Saul.

From Paphos the missionaries set sail for Pamphylia in Asia Minor. After a very brief stop at Perga (v.), they reached Antioch at the borders between Phrygia and Pisidia and therefore called “Antioch of Pisidia.” There, on a Sabbath, in the synagogue, P. addressed the Jews and the assembled proselytes (Acts 13:16-41), a remarkable example of primitive catechesis and a summary of Pauline theology. The effect was encouraging; P. was officially invited to speak again the following Sabbath. But then the hostility of the Jews began, who, making special use of some proselytes, forced the missionaries to leave the city (ibid., 13:50). They headed east and reached Iconium in Lycaonia, where they carried on a brief apostolate until driven out by Jewish opposition. At Iconium many of the events described in the apocryphal Acts of P. (v.) took place. At Lystra (v.) P. achieved greater success with the miraculous healing of a cripple; but soon he had to flee to Derbe, where he carried on a quiet and fruitful activity, about which little is known (Acts 14:21). From Derbe the missionaries began the return journey, strengthening the converts and establishing a certain ecclesiastical hierarchy in the communities. At Perga they embarked for Syrian Antioch, thus ending the first missionary journey, most probably in A.D. 49.

5. Council of Jerusalem

Undoubtedly the most delicate question that beset the early Church was its relationship with Judaism. The problem, unknown in Palestine where the converts were happy to retain their Mosaic practices, manifested all its difficulties in Antioch, where prominent figures like Barnabas and P. had not required the Gentile Christians to submit to strictly Jewish precepts. The arrival of some emissaries from the Church of Jerusalem with the express intention of imposing such norms caused no little disturbance among the faithful. Above all, insistence was placed on the necessity of circumcision (Acts 15:1), a rite that was repugnant to the vast majority of Gentiles.

To resolve the problem, P. and Barnabas were sent to Jerusalem to confer with the Apostles. They also brought Titus (v.), an uncircumcised Christian. In Jerusalem the two missionaries were received with signs of esteem and mutual brotherhood; yet some zealous men did not fail to demand of P. the circumcision of Titus, according to the most probable interpretation of the intricate period of Gal. 2:3. P. not only did not accede to this demand, but so well argued the thesis that the Mosaic Law no longer obligated, that in practice his opinion triumphed in the assembly. Peter supported his cause, and even James, “the brother of the Lord,” much revered by Jewish Christians, adhered to it, requiring only some practical concessions from the Gentile Christians, such as abstention from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, and from what is strangled.

It was A.D. 49 or 50; the decision was of the greatest importance for the early Church. It was the triumph of P., who joyfully brought back to Antioch the decision abolishing the Mosaic Law. When, shortly afterward, Peter in Antioch adopted a hesitant attitude, avoiding contact with the Gentile Christians so as not to irritate the prejudiced Jewish Christians, P. did not hesitate to rebuke his dangerous conduct publicly (Gal. 2:11-14).

6. Second Missionary Journey

Once this question was settled, P. began his second journey, which proved much longer than the first. Barnabas proposed taking along his cousin Mark again, who on the first journey had abandoned them at Perga in Pamphylia (Acts 13:13). P. strongly opposed this, even breaking off his association with Barnabas, who went away with Mark to Cyprus (ibid., 15:39). Barnabas’ place was taken by Silas (v.) or Silvanus, who had excellent qualities besides the valuable privilege of Roman citizenship (cf. ibid., 16:37). The journey’s first destination was the Christian communities of Derbe, Lystra, and Iconium. In the second of these cities P. found a new

A collaborator who would become his disciple and most beloved companion, the young Timothy (v.). From Antioch in Pisidia the three made their way northward through Phrygia and “the Galatic country” (ibid. 16:6), interpreted by some as practically equivalent to Lycaonia and Pisidia, while others, with greater justification, see in it the true region of Galatia (v.). The missionaries probably reached Pessinus and Dorylaeum; then Paul proposed to head west toward the important cities of the province of Asia, but the Holy Spirit disapproved this plan. An attempt in the opposite direction, toward Bithynia in the northeast, met with the same result (ibid. 16:6-7). Then the three turned northwest until, at Troas, Paul received a clear revelation that his mission was to be in Greece. The first city evangelized on the European continent was the important Roman colony of Philippi (ibid. 16:12-15). As at Lystra, so too at Philippi a miracle worked by Paul provided the occasion for persistent opposition to the missionaries. Some, whose comfortable livelihood had been taken away when the Apostle freed a slave-girl from demonic possession, accused him of disturbing the public order. Paul and Silas were flogged and imprisoned; but the next day the magistrates, alarmed at having inflicted such punishment on Roman citizens, released them (ibid. 16:16-39).

Having left Philippi, whose small Christian community was entrusted to the care of Luke (v.), who had joined the three missionaries at Troas, Paul went to Thessalonica (modern Salonica) on the Thermaic Gulf. Among the converts in this city it suffices to recall Jason, who at his own expense took the missionaries in (ibid. 17:5-9), and Aristarchus and Secundus, who later became companions of the Apostle (ibid. 20:4). To escape the hostility of the Jews, Paul went to Berea, where he carried on a serene and fruitful activity until some Jews from nearby Thessalonica arrived. Then Paul moved on to Athens (ibid. 17:16-34), where he delivered an interesting discourse on the Areopagus (ibid. 17:22-31); but the result was rather meager. The philosophers mocked Paul as a dreamer, while the common people, it seems, paid no heed to him. A few, however, did convert; among them are mentioned Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, and Damaris.

Far more fruitful, though attended by great suffering and distress for the Apostle, was the long activity carried on in the capital of Achaia, Corinth. Here Paul converted, among others, even Crispus, the archisynagogue (ibid. 18:8). This aroused the resentment of the Jews, who brought the Apostle before the Gallio (v.), brother of the philosopher-poet Seneca. This magistrate did not

PAUL, APOSTLE, Saint – Portrait of St. Paul scratched on a marble slab (4th century); the inscription is not pertinent to the figure. See the related article by Wilpert – Rome, cemetery of St. Agnes.

act against the accused, so that Paul was able to continue his apostolate for “many days,” perhaps until the autumn of 53, when he set out eastward to revisit the mother Church of Jerusalem and the other Christian communities of Asia.

7. Third Missionary Journey

Paul left Corinth with a “vow” (ibid. 18:18), that is, almost certainly as a Nazirite (v. NAZIRITE). He went to Jerusalem (Acts 18:22; ἀναβὰς καὶ ἀσπασάμενος τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν); then he went to Antioch, from where in the spring of 54 he began his third missionary journey. After a brief visit to the communities of the province of Galatia, evangelized during the first and second journeys, Paul made an extraordinarily long stay (about three years, cf. ibid. 20:31) at Ephesus. In this city a rudimentary form of Christianity had already been spread by the Alexandrian Apollos (v.). Paul completed the instruction of the few adherents and, assisted by numerous collaborators, carried on intense activity even in the neighboring cities (ibid. 18:24–19:40). The effectiveness of his preaching is evident from the agitation of the silversmith Demetrius, who saw his trade in statuettes of the goddess Artemis threatened (ibid. 19:24). At Ephesus Paul likewise suffered greatly and would say metaphorically that he had fought with beasts (1 Cor 15:32); a genuine primitive (v.) struggle is more than probable, perhaps reflected in the Letter to the Philippians. A brief visit to Corinth is also plausible, though debated, where the Apostle would have met with a hostile reception from an enemy (cf. 2 Cor 2:1-5). Finally, after visiting the communities of Macedonia, Paul went to Corinth, where he spent the three winter months (57–58). His stay in the capital of Achaia was cut short because of plots hatched against him by some Jews (Acts 20:3). To escape an ambush, Paul changed his route on his way to Jerusalem, where he intended to bring the collection he had diligently gathered for the poor of that city (cf. 2 Cor 8–9; Rom 14:31). Passing again through the various Churches of Macedonia and the Asian coast, he arrived in Jerusalem for Pentecost in 58.

8. Paul’s Imprisonment

In the holy city, where he was joyfully received by the leaders, Paul was urged to give public proof of his observance of the Mosaic prescriptions to silence the grumbling of the Judaizers. He willingly joined four Nazirites who were to fulfill their vow, bearing their not inconsiderable expenses. But he was immediately arrested by the Roman cohort following an attempt at mob violence by the Jews, who accused him of having brought the Greek Christian Trophimus of Ephesus into the Temple (Acts 21:27ff.). The tribune Lysias subjected him to scourging, which he had stopped as soon as he learned of the prisoner’s Roman citizenship; then, upon learning of a Jewish plot against the prisoner’s life, he quickly had him taken to Caesarea to the procurator Antonius Felix. There, after a futile attempt by the Jews to press charges, Paul was kept under military custody with relative freedom for two years. The successor of Felix, Porcius Festus, wishing to dispose promptly of the strange case of the prisoner, proposed a trial in Jerusalem, since it concerned religious matters; but Paul refused, appealing to the Emperor’s tribunal as a Roman citizen (ibid. 25:12).

In the autumn of 60 Paul set out, under escort, for Rome. Off the coast of Malta the ship was wrecked; but the passengers and crew were saved, not without a special intervention of divine Providence. On the island there was a forced stopover of three months, during which Paul won great popularity by his miraculous healings. Only in the spring of 61 did he enter the Urbe, welcomed with great veneration by the Christians. There, though remaining for two years in the condition of a prisoner, he obtained fairly ample freedom, which he used for fruitful Christian propaganda (ibid. 28:31).

9. The Martyrdom

From the captivity epistles (Ephesians, Colossians, Philemon, and perhaps Philippians) and the pastoral epistles (1 and 2 Timothy and Titus) it is clear that Paul regained full freedom and continued his intense apostolic activity. Most probably he went to Spain (cf. Rom 15:24, 28; Clement of Rome, Ad Cor., 5:7; Muratorian Fragment). Then he returned to Italy and the East, stopping at Ephesus (1 Tim 1:3), Miletus (2 Tim 4:20), Crete (Tit 1:5), Macedonia (1 Tim 1:3), and Epirus (at Nicopolis, cf. Tit 3:12), where he was probably arrested again. Taken to Rome, in 67 according to the traditional date, he ended his eventful life, beheaded at the Aquae Salviae, in the place now called “Tre Fontane,” according to the apocryphal Acts.

Paul, the most eminent figure of the apostolic age, was a man of action of the most dynamic kind, an indefatigable missionary and a fighter, but above all he was a mystic and an apostle whose heart was filled with love and zeal for “Christ.”

II. Epistolary corpus

Apart from the various discourses scattered in the Acts, tradition has preserved for P. fourteen letters (it is not excluded that some of his writings have been lost [cf. 1 Cor 5:9; Col 4:16]). According to the usual order—not chronological or logical but dictated by extrinsic criteria—the Pauline letters are: Romans, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians, Timothy, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews (see the respective entries). The most probable chronological order is as follows: Thessalonians (51 AD), Galatians (54), Philippians (7) during the Ephesian stay (54–55), Corinthians (55, 57), Romans (57–58), Philemon, Colossians, Ephesians and, according to the most common opinion, Philippians at the time of the Roman imprisonment (61–62), Hebrews (64), 1 Timothy (65–66), Titus (66), 2 Timothy (66).

The various writings often differ in subject matter, style, and length. While all are commonly called “letters,” they vary greatly in tone and literary genre. Some, like the brief note to Philemon, are strictly personal and confidential, whereas others (such as Romans, Ephesians, Hebrews) differ little from a doctrinal “epistle.”

Literarily, these writings of P. are distinguished by a very particular elegance. The language, fairly pure, belongs to the koine or common dialect; Semitisms are rare compared with those in other New Testament works, yet there are even bold anacolutha that make reading difficult and off-putting at first. The charm of the Pauline letters is not the effect of recherché artistry but of the depth of thought and the vehemence of P.’s affections for Christ, for his neophytes, and for the entire Christian Church.

III. Doctrine

It is difficult to summarize in a few lines the teaching of P., which forms the bedrock for many points of Christian theology. Although he has felicitous Trinitarian expressions (cf. Rom 8:9–11, 14–17; 15:15–16; 1 Cor 6:11; 12:4–6; 2 Cor 2:21; 13:13; Gal 4:6; Eph 1:3–14; Tit 3:4–6), P. presents a doctrine that is eminently Christocentric. In the revelation at Damascus, the risen Christ had identified himself with his followers: “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” (Acts 9:4). From this concept P. derived, as most important elements of his catechesis, the idea of the Resurrection—ultimate consequence of the redemptive work—and that of the Mystical Body: Christ, head of the Church, who vivifies and sustains the entire marvelous edifice constituted by the various faithful. Another cornerstone of Pauline doctrine is the universality of Redemption, which, without annulling the privileges of the Jewish people, is offered indiscriminately to all nations. This is the great mystery hidden from ages past, dimly illuminated by the ancient prophets but inconceivable to the majority of contemporary Jews; P. glories in being appointed to proclaim it (Eph 3:8–9).

10. Christology

For P., the novelty of Christianity consists in the revelation of the Word as “the mystery of God, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Col 2:2–3). To the fragmentary revelation of the ancient prophets, God has substituted the perfect revelation through his Son, “through whom he also created the worlds, who, being the radiance of his glory and the exact imprint of his nature and upholding the universe by the word of his power, after making purification for sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs” (Heb 1:2–4); here twice over are summarized the principal prerogatives of the Son of God in his eternal preexistence, historical existence, and glorified state. The Son of God, principle of union and coordination of all created things (cf. Col 1:16), recapitulates (ἀνακεφαλαιώσασθαι) and sums up all things in himself as principle of election to a supernatural order (Eph 1:10).

By this prerogative, Christ is the antithesis of Adam. Both, though in different form and function, were constituted heads of humanity. The second, through his sin, brought about estrangement from God and a series of punishments and sorrows, above all death. The first, in a superabundant manner, repairs the evil caused by the second, bringing the life of grace and vanquishing sin (cf. Rom 5:12–21). This presupposes man’s capacity to receive the communication of divine life, that is, grace, and God’s universal salvific will (cf. ibid. 3:21–31; 8:15; Eph 1:3–14), together with the absolute necessity of redemption for fallen humanity (cf. Rom 1:18–3:18). By virtue of redemption, the kingdom of sin gives way to that of grace, the tyranny of the Mosaic Law—manifested as a conscious instrument of sin through its multiplicity of precepts without intrinsic aid for their observance—to the freedom of the children of God, the dominion of the flesh and concupiscence to the possibility of living “according to the spirit” with the capacity to produce fruits of justice, and the kingdom of death to that of life and resurrection (cf. 1 Cor 15:12ff.). In short, to the rudimentary forms of religion (συνέχίζει τὸ σύνολον; cf. Gal 4:3) and the imperfect “economy” of the Old Testament, according to the terminology dear to the Greek Fathers, is substituted a new “economy” based on the salvific work of Christ, on the reign of grace, and on the ineffable reality of the Mystical Body. The soul of all these marvelous events is Christ, the one eternal priest who regulates the relations between God and humanity (cf. Heb 2:17; 4:14; 5:5 et al.): he alone is the mediator (1 Tim 2:5).

11. The Holy Spirit and the Mystical Body

Christ is the center of all creation and the head of the Mystical Body, but the Holy Spirit is its vivifying soul (cf. 1 Cor 6:19; Rom 8:2, 11; 2 Tim 1:14). It is the source of charisms, which were of such importance in the early Church (cf. 1 Cor 12:4). The revelation of divine mysteries is the work of the Spirit (ibid. 2:10). The impulses of grace come from the same Spirit. The Christian, therefore, must “walk by the Spirit” or “be moved by it” (Rom 8:4, 14), which produces the whole complex of virtues (Gal 5:22). The believer must consider himself a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:19). To it is attributed sanctification, because through it “the love of God is poured into our hearts” (Rom 5:5).

Yet this role is also exercised by the glorified Christ as head of the Mystical Body. For this reason, it is easy to point to Pauline texts that attribute the same prerogative now to one and now to the other divine Person, who operates in conformity with the predestination of God the Father (Rom 8:29–30). Moreover, even in ordinary language, the various vital phenomena are readily referred to the head and the soul of an organism. In the theological field, the truth is clearer insofar as Christ is able to pour forth the fullness of the Spirit (1 Cor 15:45); sanctification is attributed to the Holy Spirit sent by the Son.

To the concept of the Mystical Body is joined that of the intimate solidarity among the faithful as members of the same organism, and thus that of the Communion of Saints (cf. 1 Cor 10:17; Eph 4:4–6).

### 3. The Sacraments
Among the means of grace, P. especially recalls Baptism, which marks the birth of the Christian. More than emphasizing the necessity of the rite (cf. Acts 19:3, 5), P. insists on its symbolism; it outwardly represents death to the world and incorporation into the Mystical Christ (cf. Rom. 6:3; Gal. 3:27; Eph. 4:5). The Apostle dwells at length on the Eucharist (1 Cor. 11:20-32). He speaks of Holy Orders, emphasizing its power to confer grace (Acts 20:28; 1 Tim. 4:14; 2 Tim. 1:6). Finally, he notes the symbolic character of Christian marriage, which represents the intimate union between Christ and His Church (cf. Eph. 5:32), and addresses practical cases to regulate its use, declaring its lawfulness but subordinating it to the more esteemed state of virginity (1 Cor. 7:2-40).

### 4. Ethics
Moral theology finds a more modest harvest in P.’s writings. While in the letters to the Romans and the Galatians he solemnly declares the end of the Mosaic Law in its entirety, he is less explicit in manifesting what constitutes “the law of Christ” (Gal. 5:2; 1 Cor. 9:21) or of grace (cf. Rom. 6:15). Nevertheless, he upholds the obligatory nature of the natural law and the dictates of conscience (ibid. 2:14-15). In his letters, lengthy lists of moral exhortations are not uncommon (cf. 1 Thess. 5:14, 19-22; Rom. 12:8-15). Generally, however, P. places far greater emphasis on the positive aspects of asceticism and mysticism than on the negative side of avoiding sin. The Christian’s duty is to form “a new creature” perfected and to live “in Christ.” This can only be achieved through the acquisition of moral virtues under the vivifying and unifying action of “charity” (cf. 1 Cor. 13:1-13), which is “the bond of perfection” (Col. 3:14).

The Christocentric idea of his theology also dominates P.’s ethics. He frequently speaks of moral “death” and “resurrection” (Rom. 6:4, 6, 11; Col. 2:20–3:8), of the necessity to “put off” the old self (Adam) and “put on” the new (cf. 1 Cor. 15:49; Eph. 4:20-24; Col. 3:9-11). Just as in his Christology he dwells on liberation from the tyranny of the flesh, so in the moral sphere he insistently demands renunciation of the flesh to follow the impulses of the Spirit, which dwells in the hearts of the faithful (cf. Gal. 5:16-26; Rom. 8:4-10).

Regarding society, P., though pointing out many vices (cf. Rom. 1:18-32), does not adopt a revolutionary stance; his primary aim is individual transformation. Even when writing to Philemon on behalf of Onesimus, a fugitive slave, he carefully avoids any statement that might incite rebellion. He does not condemn slavery but insistently emphasizes the duty of “charity” and presents analogies designed to direct the thoughts of Christian masters toward other ideas (slavery to Christ, 1 Cor. 7:22; the danger of slavery to sin, Rom. 6:16). In politics, a subject he consistently avoids, P. is by no means the “revolutionary” depicted by some of his contemporary Jews (cf. Acts 16:20-21; 17:6-7; 24:5, 12) and certain modern historians. He urges his readers to respect the law of the state, but even here he points to a higher authority, God, to whom all must be subordinate, including every human dignity (cf. Rom. 13:1-7; 1 Tim. 2:2; Titus 3:1).

### 5. Eschatology
For this topic, the two letters to the Thessalonians and certain passages in those to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 15:12-55; 2 Cor. 5:3) and Romans (13:11ff.) are fundamental. While in some texts P. seems to hope for the swift end of the world and the beginning of a blessed life with Christ (cf. 1 Cor. 5:3-4; Phil. 1:6, 10; 3:20; 4:5), in others (Rom. 11:25) he posits as necessary the prior spread of the Gospel and the conversion of the Jews, which should precede the complex events of the Parousia (the revelation of the Antichrist and the second coming of Christ). When speaking of the afterlife, P. emphasizes the final resurrection, which has its meritorious and formal cause in that of Christ, the Head of the Mystical Body (Rom. 4:25; 1 Cor. 15:12-58). This is followed by the Last Judgment (cf. 2 Cor. 5:10; Rom. 2:16; 2 Tim. 4:1). The fate of sinners is only briefly mentioned (cf. 2 Thess. 1:5ff.) by P., who dwells at length on the happiness of the just. The protagonist of these final events will again be Christ, who, once His work is completed, “will hand over the kingdom to God the Father” (1 Cor. 15:24-28).

### IV. “Pauline Christianity”
The term “Pauline Christianity” often refers to the entire theological doctrine of P., which is said to have vivified—or rather, altered—the teaching of Jesus with foreign elements drawn from Judaism or Hellenism, according to the preferences of various authors. The issue is further complicated by the fact that “criticism” regarding the Pauline personality is influenced by often antagonistic positions on the authenticity and reliability of sources, on the relationship between P. and Jesus, on primitive Christianity, and other elements connected with the history of religions.

The importance of P., not as an apostle but as the creator of Christian theology or even as the founder of Christianity, has been so exaggerated that the need to return to the simplicity of the Gospel has been felt. “Let us free ourselves from Paul” (*Los vom Paulus*) or “Back to Christ” is the watchword that still guides certain scholars of Christianity. In reality, such an invocation can only be explained after the violent separation of P. from Jesus, of whom the former always considered himself a devoted follower and imitator (cf. 1 Cor. 11:1).

After the timid attempts of L. Usteri (1824) and a few other authors, “Pauline Christianity” became a favored topic from the time of the Tübingen school. Its founder, F. C. Baur, following Hegel’s philosophical conception, described P.’s teaching—which he claimed derived from Hellenism—as the antithesis of the Judaizing thesis (= Petrinism). Among his more or less direct followers, it suffices to mention A. Hilgenfeld, O. Pfleiderer, C. Holsten, H. J. Holtzmann, C. Weizsäcker, and F. Ferrari. The basis of their reconstruction, at least originally, was the recognition of the authenticity of only the letters to the Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, and Galatians. For the vociferous Dutch school (A. Pierson, W. C. van Manen, S. A. Naber, D. Völter, etc.), which denied the authenticity of all the epistles, “Pauline Christianity” would be the late (2nd century) doctrine of a progressive Christian group that sought to place its ideas under P.’s aegis.

Such an absurd position of criticism provoked a vigorous reaction in all circles. Among the effects of this reaction, one may note a greater respect for tradition regarding the authenticity of Pauline writings, some skepticism about the claim to identify P.’s teaching in a single master idea, a greater interest in P.’s life as well as his doctrines, and the almost total abandonment of the simplistic manner of explaining “Pauline Christianity” as deriving from Hellenism. Thus, scholars investigated more rigorously the relationship of P. with the Old Testament, contemporary Jewish literature, the teaching of Jesus, and the other Apostles. From such inquiry, it has emerged that the original direction of Protestant exegesis—which generally placed as the foundation of “Pauline Christianity” the idea of the “righteousness of God,” drawn from the letter to the Romans—is untenable. In general, greater emphasis is now placed on the importance of Redemption or soteriology. The quintessence of Pauline thought would be the redemptive work of Christ.

Regarding the sources of “Pauline” thought, excluding the exaggerated influence of Greek thought (the Tübingen school and its followers) and of the mystery religions (R. Reitzenstein, P. Wendland, H. Böhlig, J. Weiss, F. Cumont, A. Loisy),