SOR - Paul of Tarsus

Explain the contribution to the development and expression of Christianity of Paul of Tarsus. Analyse the impact of this person OR school of thought on Christianity. The contributions that Paul of Tarsus made to the development and expression (as well as the foundation) of Christianity were pivotal in terms of the direction that the new religious tradition took. Born in Tarsus (modern-day Turkey) around 10 CE, Paul grew up as a devout Hellenistic Jew who persecuted Christians. However, whilst travelling to Damascus, Paul had a vision of Jesus and subsequently converted to Christianity. These events are described in Acts 9:3-7. As a result Paul became the great missionary, the first recorded interpreter of the message of Jesus of Nazareth and the first writer of the New Testament. Paul of Tarsus laid the foundations for Christianity. His extensive travels and writings “to proclaim the good news” saw him establish Christian churches throughout the Eastern Mediterranean. For this contribution to the development of Christianity he is known as “The Greatest Missionary” and the “Apostle to the Gentiles” In Romans 15 he describes himself as: A minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God. Paul undertook four missionary journeys through the Mediterranean and Asia Minor as he travelled to the Gentile lands of Cyprus, Antioch, Corinth, Thessalonica, etc. On these journeys Paul preached the message that redemption came through the person of Jesus Christ. This contribution proved to be a very attractive alternative to the pagan practices of the Graeco-Roman world and the Jesus movement flourished. Pope Benedict comments: "How could we not admire a man such as this? How could we not give thanks to God for having given us an apostle of this category?" (General Audience, 25 October 2006). The success of Pauline evangelisation was predicated on a revelation that the message of Jesus of Nazareth was intended for Gentiles as well as Jews. The pivotal contribution that Paul of Tarsus made to the development of Christianity was his willingness, unlike earlier Christian preachers, to baptise Non-Jews (Gentiles). Paul interpreted that Christianity was not merely founded in the Jewish doctrine of the “Messiah” but that the sacrifice of Jesus brought about salvation for all people – Gentile or Jew, servant or free, woman or man (Gal 3:28). In the Letter to the Ephesians it is written that Christ “has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility”. By evangelising communities of Gentiles this inclusive approach was instrumental in the development of Christianity by changing the norms for being a Christian. Paul was flying in the face of the accepted understanding of belonging to the people of “The Way”. The impact of these contributions was that from what had been a sect of Judaism Paul engineered a new religious tradition. But by loosening the shackles of the Mosaic Law his impact enabled Christianity to explosively spread over the next three centuries. The argument that Paul put to the Council of Jerusalem, that Christians should not have to follow the traditional Jewish Law with regards to circumcision and the prescribed dietary habits, was foundational to the development of the Christian tradition. Man is not made holy by observance of the Law but by faith in Christ Jesus. (Gal. 2:16) By sidelining the Mosaic Law and proclaiming that faith in the risen Jesus was enough for salvation, Paul, perhaps unwittingly, engineered the break with Judaism. Christianity is now the largest religious tradition in the world and is practised on every continent. Paul’s epistles are the earliest writings of the tradition has, they predate the Gospels. The epistles are a fundamental part of the New Testament and are a lasting contribution to the expression of Christianity. Paul clarified the major teachings of the Church: 1.

The theology of Christ: Col 2:9 ‘For the full content of divine nature lives in Christ, in his humanity’.

2.

The Church 1 Cor. 12: 12 ‘Christ is like a single body which has many parts; it is still one body, even though it is made up of different parts’.

Grace and Salvation: Rom 10:4 ‘For Christ has brought the Law to an end, so that everyone who believes is put right with God’ In his letters Paul consistently taught that believers were justified by their faith in Christ: 4. Sexual morality: 1Cor 6: 19, 20 ‘Don’t you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and who was given by God? You do not belong to yourselves but to God…so use your bodies for God’s glory’. 3.

The theology of Christianity is largely the product of Paul of Tarsus. Such is his impact that his teachings about Christ as “Saviour” are at the core of Christian beliefs. Paul’s message was that humanity had been saved by the sacrifice of Christ: his death and resurrection. It is an elementary and often repeated doctrine of Paul that Jesus Christ saves us through the Cross, that we are "justified by His blood", that "we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son" (Rom 5:9-10). Today, Paul is the writer to whom Christian thinkers have turned for guidance, inspiration and the example of his faith. “Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or conceited or proud.” It is through these epistles and Paul’s expansion on the teachings of Jesus Christ that contributed to the development of Christianity.

Paul’s writings had a huge impact on later Christian theologians such as Augustine of Hippo and Thomas Aquinas who in turn have had a profound effect on Christian thought and practice. Augustine’s teachings on grace and God are the basis of Catholic doctrine. Paul’s teachings have been the basis of the theologies of the Protestant reformers. Martin Luther took the concept of justification by faith form the teaching of Paul and John Calvin also looked to Paul for fundamental understanding of Christian teaching. In conclusion the contributions of Paul of Tarsus have been integral to the development and expression of all denominations of Christianity. Through his epistles and his expansion of Jesus’ teachings, Paul allowed for the development and subsequent expression of Christianity. He continues to inspire Christian communities through prayer, use of his letters in sacred liturgy and personal prayer.