THE LIFE OF PAUL

Men, brethren, and fathers, listen to my defense, that I present to you now. (He spoke in Hebrew to them, so they paid even closer attention, and he said,) I am truly a man of Jewish heritage, born in Tarsus, a city of Cilicia, but brought up in this city with the instruction of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as you all are today. I persecuted this new church (Christians) to the death, imprisoning both men and women. The high priest, and all the elders will tell you, I requested letters from them to the brethren, and went to Damascus, to bring those who were bound there, to Jerusalem to be punished. And it came to pass, that, as I made my journey, and was nearing Damascus about noon, suddenly there shone from heaven a great light around me. I fell to the ground, and heard a voice say to me, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? And I answered, Who are you, Lord? And He said to me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you persecute. The people who were with me saw the light, too, and were afraid, but they didn't hear the voice of Him who spoke to me. And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said to me, Arise, and go into Damascus; and you will be told then of all the things that are determined for you to do. And when I was blinded because of the glory of that light, I was led by the hand of them that were with me, and I came into Damascus. And a man named Ananias, a man devoted to the law, having a good reputation of all the Jewish people living there, came to me, and said, Brother Saul, receive your sight. And that same hour I could see again. And he said, The God of our fathers has chosen you, that you should know His will, and see that Just One, and should hear the voice of His mouth. For you shall be His witness to all men of what you've seen and heard. And now, what are you waiting for? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord. And it came to pass, that, when I returned again to Jerusalem, while I prayed in the Temple, I was in a trance, and I saw Jesus say to me, Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they won't believe you, concerning me. And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat those who believed in you, in every synagogue, and when the blood of your martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing nearby, and consenting to his death, and kept the clothes of those who stoned him. And He said to me, Depart: for I will send you far from here, to the Gentiles.