Jesus had told his disciples to “go out into the world and preach the Gospel.” That was precisely what Paul set out to do, acting with as much enthusiasm as he had in his former persecution of Christians. He believed that he was called to reach the Gentiles, or non-Jews, for Christ, and this belief brought him into a dispute with the disciples Peter and James. These disciples both believed that Gentiles had to become Jews before they could become Christians. Surprisingly, it was the former Pharisee who insisted that there was no need to embrace Judaism now that Christ had shown the true way of salvation.
Paul's view seems to have won out in the Council of Jerusalem, held in about a. d. 49. By that time, Paul had completed nearly five years of ministry in Syria and Cilicia and had embarked on the first of four missionary journeys. The journeys took him throughout the Mediterranean world, primarily to churches in Asia Minor and Greece. The locations of these churches can be found in the names of various epistles, such as the two letters to the church at Corinth in Greece, 1 and 2 Corinthians (koh-RIN-thee-uhnz), or the letter to the church as Ephesus in Asia Minor, Ephesians (eh-FEE-zhuhnz).
Paul wrote thirteen epistles in all, or fourteen if he is counted as the author of the Book of Hebrews, the authorship of which is disputed. The epistles were written to take the place of Paul himself, who could not always be present in the churches themselves because of the difficulties of travel in the ancient world—not to mention his later imprisonment. Usually the epistles were read aloud to the congregation.
Most of the epistles deal with specific problems. The Galatians (guh-LAY-shuhnz), for instance, were too concerned about abiding by religious law and failed to appreciate the gift
Ezana and Frumentius
The Book of Acts recounts that the apostle Philip led an "Ethiopian" official to convert to Christianity. In those days, the term referred to a number of nations, though it is quite possible the African came from the coastal land of Aksum. More than two centuries later, a Christian missionary from Syria would bring the Gospel to the Aksumite king, Ezana (AY-zah-nah; ruled A. D. 325-360).
There are somewhat conflicting stories, but it appears that a merchant named Meropius (meh-ROHP-ee-uhs), from Tyre in Phoenicia, was on his way to India. With him were two Syrian boys, whom he intended to provide with an education. The younger of the two, Aedesius (i-DEE-see-uhs), was a simple-minded lad, but the elder, Frumentius (froo-MEHN-shuhs), was quite bright. They happened to be shipwrecked off the coast of Aksum. Meropius was killed, and the two boys were taken as slaves to the palace of the Aksumite king, Ella Amida (el-AH AHM-ee-dah).
The king died soon afterward, having given the boys their freedom, but
The widowed queen begged them— Frumentius in particular—to stay and help educate her infant son, Ezana. Frumentius agreed, and over the years that followed, he became a trusted advisor to the young prince.
Frumentius, who was a Christian, went on to receive an assignment as Bishop of Aksum. Meanwhile, Ezana grew up and was crowned king in a. d. 325. He became a conqueror, controlling an empire that stretched from southwest Arabia to Meroe in the west. In about a. d.335, he embraced the Christian faith. He replaced pagan symbols on the coins of the nation with the cross. These coins were some of the first in the world to carry the symbol of Christianity.
Ezana and Frumentius began a tradition of Christianity in the nation of Ethiopia, as the area of Aksum came to be called, that would extend to the present day. Rumors persist that the fabled Ark of the Covenant found its final resting place there as well.
Of divine grace that Paul stressed as one of the central ideas of Christianity. The Book of Philemon (fie-LEE-muhn), on the other hand, is concerned with the issue of a runaway slave named Onesimus (oh-NEHS-i-muhs), whom Paul had encouraged to return to his master. The letter urges the master, Philemon, to exercise kindness toward the slave.
World History
