There is a traditional Christian view of Paul's conversion from Judaism: once upon a time there lived a good, zealous, but misguided Jew who met Jesus on the road to Damascus and suddenly became enlightened. Resolutely, casting aside Israel and the Torah, he changed his clothes and became an exemplary Christian. However, this view cannot stand up to historical criticism.
As a matter of fact, Paul did not get any new texts, no New Testament scroll fell on him from heaven (it was not even written yet). Shaken and blinded, Paul mentally sorted through the same very Scriptures upon which he had been raised. With piercing clarity, Paul understood that Jesus was the Messiah and that His teaching revealed the true meaning of these Scripture, saying no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said (Acts 26:22).
What is striking is that even Paul who was Jewish, born and raised, had to go back and explore his own Jewish background in order to understand the message told by Jesus. The only way to fully get Jesus' groundbreaking ideas is by exploring His Jewish background. Our course of "The Jewish Background to the New Testament" specializes exactly in that. Enroll today and start exploring with us the original message of Christianity.
