All about St. Paul the man
He is the patron saint of our church, but how much do we really know about the man originally known as Saul of Tarsus? Below are some interesting facts:
- Paul was born in the Roman city of Tarsus, located in what is today South-Central Turkey. (Acts of the Apostles 21:39)
- Paul was not physically impressive, nor was he a very good speaker. (1 Corinthians 2:1 and 2 Corinthians 10:10; 11:6)
- Paul had a sister and a nephew. (Acts of the Apostles 23:16)
- Paul was educated in Jerusalem under the famous Jewish teacher Gamaliel. (Acts of the Apostles 22:3)
- Paul was a Pharisee (Acts of the Apostles 26:5) and a tentmaker. (Acts of the Apostles 18:3)
- Paul was a Roman citizen from a wealthy family. (Acts of the Apostles 22:25–28)
- Paul was the most prominent apostle in the early Church because he was so effective at forming Christian communities
- Paul participated in the stoning of Stephen, the first Christian martyr. (Acts of the Apostles 7:58)
- Although Paul wrote the most books of the New Testament, Luke, who only wrote two books, still gets the prize for writing more words than any other writer in the New Testament
- Paul’s conversion is among the most well-known
- Johnny Cash wrote a book about him, called 'Man in White'
- His surviving letters have had enormous influence on Christianity and secure his place as one of the greatest religious leaders of all time
- 14 of the 27 books in the New Testament are attributed to St. Paul
- The feast day of St. Paul is January 25th
- Born AD5. Died AD67
- Probably died in Rome
- Had big falling out with Peter in Antioch over the way that Gentiles should be treated
- Several sources claim that Nero personally had Paul executed
- It is claimed that St. Paul is buried in the Ostian Way, Rome
- Many churches throughout the world bear him as their patron saint and, in fact, St. Paul is the patron saint of writers, publishers, authors and the press because of his numerous writing contributions to churches he founded or visited
Various depictions of St. Paul: