Biographical dossier
Paul the Apostle
Paul of Tarsus moved from persecutor of the Church to apostle of Jesus Christ. Acts and the Pauline letters together provide an unusually rich first-century record of conversion, mission, controversy, community formation, imprisonment and witness.
Chronology and historical sequence
A careful chronology coordinates the notices in Acts with Paul’s own letters: Damascus, Arabia, Jerusalem, Antioch, the mission journeys, the council question, Corinth, Ephesus, the collection for Jerusalem, arrest and the voyage to Rome.
Primary witnesses
- The undisputed Pauline letters provide first-person evidence.
- Acts 9–28 supplies a connected narrative of conversion and mission.
- 1 Clement 5 and Eusebius, Church History 2.25 preserve the Roman martyrdom tradition.
Office, vocation and historical agency
Paul’s authority is apostolic and missionary, exercised through preaching, founding communities, correspondence and collaboration. His disputes must be read from the actual texts rather than used as proof of a Church without visible order.
Geographic itinerary
Tarsus, Damascus, Antioch, Cyprus, Asia Minor, Macedonia, Achaia, Jerusalem and Rome form the main itinerary. Routes on the atlas are comparative aids; a road segment is not proof that Paul used that exact segment unless the textual or itinerarial evidence supports it.
Source path
- Acts 9–28
- Romans; 1–2 Corinthians; Galatians; Philippians; 1 Thessalonians; Philemon
- 1 Clement 5; Eusebius, Church History 2.25
Catalogue record and limits
- Research ID
- catholon:person:person:wd:Q9200
- Catalogue ID
- person:wd:Q9200
- Indexed life span
- 5 to 66
- Source index
- PANTHEON_2_2020
The catalogue dates and point anchors support identity and navigation. They do not replace the textual chronology, doctrinal judgement or critical biography above.