The story of Jesus's death and resurrection solidified his followers into a new Jewish sect, but someone who had never heard him preach spread his teachings throughout the Roman world. Saul of Tarsus was a Pharisee who had originally persecuted the followers of Jesus. After a dramatic conversion to the faith of his opponents, he began to use his Roman name, Paul, and devoted the rest of his life to the task of converting Jews and non-Jews alike. Though a Pharisee, Paul's early education had been cosmopolitan and strongly influenced by Hellenism. To him, the teachings of Jesus were universal. With some difficulty, he persuaded the more conservative disciples to accept converts without forcing them to observe the Jewish dietary laws or be circumcised. Had he not done so, Christianity probably would never have become a universal church. By emphasizing faith over the minute observance of the law, Paul influenced the theology of the growing church as well.

In his letters, Paul portrayed himself as small of stature and physically weak, but his efforts on behalf of the faith were heroic. While Jesus was still alive, his teachings had begun to spread through the Jewish communities of the Roman Empire. Opposition from the Jewish leadership could not prevent the formation of small, usually secret, congregations that became the organizational basis of Paul's efforts. Traveling incessantly, he moved from one to the other, prevailing upon them to accept non-Jews as converts, preaching to the gentiles, and helping individual churches with matters of belief and practice. By so doing, he not only gained converts but also provided stability and a vital link between isolated communities that might otherwise have lost contact with one another and drifted into confusion.

When he could not visit the churches in person, Paul communicated with them by letters that he seems to have composed in answer to specific questions. These Epistles, written in Greek, form an important part of the New Testament. In some, he deals with theological questions; in others, with morality, ethics, and church organization. For issues not addressed by Jesus, Paul's Epistles--logical, fervent, and rooted solidly in Scripture--became the basis of later church doctrine. Through his efforts and those of the other disciples, the Christian church grew rapidly.

In the beginning, Christianity appealed largely to women, slaves, and other people of modest social standing, for it was universal in the sense that it accepted converts regardless of gender or background. Salvation was open to all, though Paul objected strongly to women preaching and church offices were apparently restricted to men. Its high ethical standards appealed to a generation that seems to have been increasingly repelled by pagan vice, and its ceremonies were neither as terrifying nor expensive as those of the mystery cults. The most important were baptism with water--not bull's blood, as in the rites of Mithra--and a love feast or agape in which the entire congregation joined. After a common meal, the Christians celebrated communion in bread and wine. By 153 the love feast had been abandoned in favor of communion alone, which was preceded by a service that included preaching and the singing of hymns. . . .

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