.....................Tarsus Born and Brought up a Jew....................

Paul had a respectable past. Born in Tarsus in asia minor. a city of not little importance , in a Jewish family that could still remember after centuries of diaspora- the name of tribe to which it belonged , Paul received  his education in Jerusalem at the feet of Gamaliel II, one of the greatest masters of Pharisaic Judaism during the 1st century, whose name is recorded in the Mishnah.

Paul transformed after his conversion , considered what could have been his boast and gain as a loss and as rubbish. What became crucial in his life was Knowing his Lord, unconditionally trusting in Him, and living like the One who gave His life for man's freedom(cf. Phil 3:7-14)

 

......................Jerusalem Barnabas Presents Paul to the Apostles....................

In Jerusalem, on Mount Zion, was the Mother Church, presided over by the Apostle James.

Paul joined this community, presented with authority by the apostle Barnabas , a Jew originally from Cyprus.

The Mother Church , centre of the Judeo- Christian community, was the place where the Apostle's mission was verified.

Paul preached to the Jews of the diaspora present in the Holy City with complete freedom, but soon the first objections began to arise.

 

.....................The First Mission.....................

Antioch - Paul and Barnabas are Chosen for the Mission

Antioch was a Church with many proohets and doctors, and among them was Barnabas . Since he had known Paul personally and appreciated his missionary qualities, Barnabas went to look for him in Tarsus.

The Church of Antioch soon became  a point of reference for the mission to the pagans, just as Jerusalem was for the mission among the Jews.

Called by the Holy Spirit to evangelise the gentiles, Paul left Antioch for his three missionary journeys.

In the city, Christ's disciples were given a name still in use today, to identify them as those who believe in Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah: they were called "Christians."

 

..........................Missionary Journey..........................

Paphos - Saul - Paul and the Proconsul Sergius Paulu

 

Paul's first missionary journey, together with Barnabas, had the island of Cyprus as its first stopping point.

The Roman proconsul Sergius Paulus was fascinated by the word of God proclaimed by the Christians.

In spite of the powers of evil working to suffocate the seeds of the words, the pegan proconsul became a believer.

Paul once again experienced opposition and suffrings  every kind, as he himself tells us: scourging, stoning, shipwreck, dangers...and "my daily

Preoccupation: my anxiety for all the Churches" (cf. 2 Cor 11:24-28).

But "they cannot chain up God's news"(2Tim 2:9)

 

Antioch capital city of Syria, was the base from which Paul set off on his three missionary journeys, during which he travelled roughly three thousand Kilometers, often on foot.