3 missionary journey of the apostle Paul. The Third Missionary Journey of the Apostle Paul

But such a tireless figure as the ap. Pavel could not enjoy peace for long. He was attracted by the scope of broad activity, even if associated with extraordinary labors and dangers, and he, feeling the responsibility of pastoral leadership of the numerous churches he founded, during a few days of rest, drew up a plan for the third great missionary journey, precisely with the goal of visiting all the churches he founded. And so he, “having spent some time in Antioch, went out and walked through the country of Galatia and Phrygia in order, confirming all the disciples.” In Galatia, he ordered that alms be collected on Sundays for the benefit of the poor of Jerusalem, and then, after visiting the surrounding churches, he headed to Ephesus, which he chose this time as the center of his apostolic activity. And it was impossible to choose a better city than this, from which the Gospel could easily spread throughout Asia. Ephesus, as the capital of Ancient Ionia, was the center of that famous Ionian civilization, which, after being transplanted to Greece, found its highest development in Athens. Located near the bay of the Mediterranean Sea, between Smyrna and Miletus, Ephesus was that famous city where East and West, Asia and Europe met, and many merchant ships made constant voyages between it and Corinth. But despite the influx of Western views into him, he maintained with extraordinary fidelity the religion of the ancient Asian gods, and his most revered deity was Artemis.

This was the famous Asian Astarte, only under a Greek name, and her cult, as based on the idolization of the crude productive forces of nature, was distinguished by the most unbridled licentiousness. The Temple of Ephesus Artemis was famous throughout the world and was considered one of the wonders of the world. Burnt by Herostratus, it was rebuilt with even greater splendor, so that Artemis overshadowed other deities of Asia with her glory. Since this temple enjoyed the right of refuge, everything criminal and dirty usually gathered around it, and this, together with the corrupting influence of the cult itself, made Ephesus one of the most corrupt cities in the world. Like Corinth, it was one of the largest cities of the pagan world, and in it all kinds of religions and ideas met and coexisted. As in other large cities, there was also a Jewish synagogue, and next to it there were also schools that were something between Judaism and Christianity; there was, for example, a school of disciples of John the Baptist who, having accepted his preaching of repentance, considered it final and formed a special community. The variety of religious schools and communities contributed to the extraordinary excitement of religious thought, and preachers often spoke in the Jewish synagogue, shining with the eloquence and power of their preaching. Particularly remarkable among them was Apollos, who, being from Alexandria and having been educated in its famous philosophical and religious schools, delighted the synagogue listeners with his sermons. The peculiarity of his teaching was that, under the influence of Alexandrian scientists, considering the usual view of the Old Testament Jewish religion too crude, he tried to reconcile it with philosophy and therefore gave symbolic meaning to biblical stories. At the same time, he apparently already had some information about Christian teaching, from which he also borrowed some parts. In general, he was an extremely educated man, a deep connoisseur of Holy Scripture and a highly gifted speaker. During the absence of ap. Paul, he met Aquila and Priscilla and, having become more familiar with Christianity from them, completely leaned towards his side and then decided to go to Corinth. Rejoiced at acquiring such a glorious preacher for the church and noticing how his preaching activities could be useful among the subtle and developed Greeks, they wrote a letter of recommendation for him to the Corinthian elders. In Corinth, his eloquence made a huge impression, and he became a strong support for his brothers. He used the sermon of the apostle with such skill. Paul, as far as he could get to know her from conversations with Priscilla and Aquila, that in his public disputes with hostile Jews with irresistible force, on the basis of their own Scripture, he proved the messiahship of Christ and thus was as pleasant to Christians as terrible to the Jews. He watered what he planted. Paul.

Ap. Paul arrived in Ephesus after Apollos had left and, according to custom, became a regular visitor to the synagogue, where he also preached the Gospel. Here he first of all turned to those who were prepared for Christianity by the brilliant sermons of Apollos, and then in general began to preach the truths of Christianity to the Jews. Since he taught Christianity not in a tempting philosophical form, but in all its simplicity and directness, then, naturally, his preaching aroused hostility among the obdurate Jews, and things got to the point that the apostle, after three months of labor, found himself forced to leave the synagogue and hired meetings of his students and listeners to the school of a certain Tyrannus, one of the pagan sophists, of whom there were many in Ephesus at that time. This new place of worship gave the apostle the opportunity to see his brethren every day, whereas in the synagogue this was possible only three times a week. His works and preaching were not without success. For two whole years, Ephesus served as the center of his missionary activity, and since the fame of his preaching began to spread everywhere, he, undoubtedly, himself undertook small trips to the surrounding places, so that, according to the testimony of St. Luke: “All the inhabitants of Asia heard the preaching of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.” In Ephesus itself, his fame reached an extraordinary degree - especially due to the great miracles "which God performed by the hands of Paul." Even his scarves and aprons had healing powers, and his fame spread so much that many of the Jewish spellcasters who practiced magic and all kinds of lamentations (superstitious Ephesus was filled with such spellcasters) began to envy him.

One of them, Skeva, tried to imitate him in the hope that, using the name of Jesus, which was obscure to him, he would perform miracles as successfully as the apostle performed them. Paul. But two of his sons, who were engaged in spells, suffered complete failure, which led to the complete eradication of such charlatanism in Ephesus. They were called to perform a spell on a man who apparently suffered from violent demons. Addressing the evil spirits, they exclaimed: “We adjure you by Jesus, whom Paul preaches.” This time, however, the spell had no effect. The demoniac with an evil grin answered them: “I know Jesus, and I know Paul; and who are you? And then, rushing at them, with incredible force he tore their clothes and inflicted such beatings on them that they barely escaped from the house - beaten and naked.

Such a remarkable event could not go unnoticed. The rumor about him spread like lightning among the chattering Ephesians and caused a lot of horror and confusion, the consequence of which was one extremely beneficial event. It turned out that in Ephesus not only pagans, but also some of the newly converted Christians were engaged in spells. Frightened by what had happened, they openly repented of their sin and, as proof of the sincerity of their repentance, brought their expensive Kabbalistic books, which served as tools for them in their craft, and publicly burned them. This secret warlock was practiced on such a wide scale that the value of the books thus burned by the warlocks in a fit of repentance rose to fifty thousand drachmas of silver, which was no less than 12,500 rubles in gold. This extraordinary bonfire, which probably lasted for quite some time, was such a striking exposure of the prevailing gullibility that this, undoubtedly, was one of the circumstances that gave the preaching of the apostle. Paul is so widely known throughout Asia.

During his two-year stay in Ephesus, the apostle not only preached orally, but also in writing. Through his associates he maintained constant relations with various churches, and for the edification of two of them, namely Corinth and Galatia, he wrote two epistles known as the Epistles to the Galatians and the First Epistle to the Corinthians. The first of them was caused by the sad rumor that the Galatians, who so willingly accepted the faith from St. Paul, in their usual frivolity, became carried away by other preachers, namely the Judaizing opponents of the apostle. The latter, in order to destroy the work of the apostle they hated, began to so temptingly portray to the Galatians the advantages of the sons of Abraham that they even had a desire to “be under the law” (Gal. 4:21). At the same time, the very authority of the apostle was undermined in their souls. Pavel. To warn them against this dangerous error, the apostle wrote them a letter in which with amazing clarity he sets forth the advantages of the New Testament over the Old and says that the sons of Abraham are not those who trace their carnal lineage from him, but namely those who believe in Christ (Gal. 3: 7, 29). In defense of his apostleship, he reminded them of his extraordinary conversion, adding that the Gospel he preached was not a human one, for he “received it and learned it, not from man, but through the revelation of Jesus Christ” (Gal. 1:11-12). The Epistle to the Corinthians was prompted by completely different circumstances. The apostle heard a sad rumor that the Corinthian Christians, having violated fraternal unity, were divided into several parties and, like the Greek schools that bore the name of one or another sophist, some considered themselves followers of Paul, others of Apollos, others of Cephas, and some of Christ. Some of the brethren reached such an error that they began to deny the resurrection of the dead. Moral debauchery, which was generally characteristic of Corinth, also invaded the environment of the church, and the community tolerated in its midst one vile sinner, from whom even the pagans turned away with disgust. All these sentiments forced the apostle to turn to the Corinthians with an extensive letter, in which he, with apostolic authority, exhorted them to leave their divisions, since the same Christ was crucified for all of them, and all other preachers are just simple ministers of the word: they plant and water , but God returns. “Therefore he who plants and he who waters is nothing, but God who makes everything grow.” The source of these divisions was the mental pride of the Corinthians, and the apostle reminded them that for them, as Christians, earthly wisdom should take a back seat, “for the foolish things of God are wiser than men” (1 Cor. 2:25). Having then refuted the error of those who denied the resurrection of the dead, and commanded that the grave sinner be severely punished, the apostle gives a whole series of instructions on various issues of church and social life and concludes with his own loving greeting: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ is with you. And my love is with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen".

After two years, the apostle, considering his work in Ephesus completed, drew up a plan for his further journey. He intended to leave Ephesus after Pentecost to once again visit the churches of Macedonia and Achaia, founded by him during his second journey, and to sail from Corinth for a fifth visit to Jerusalem, after which he hoped to see Rome, the great capital of the then civilized world. In accordance with this plan, he had already sent two of his employees, Timothy and Erastus, who had been converted by him in Ephesus, to Macedonia with orders for them to join him again in Corinth. Erastus, the former treasurer of the city, was an influential man and therefore could best take care of both the preparations for the reception of the apostle and the implementation of the weekly collections, with which the apostle was very busy at that time. Paul. A visit to Jerusalem became necessary in order to deliver alms to the poor Christians of this city, which the Apostle now collected from among the pagan churches they had founded. But this plan was upset by one event that exposed the very life of the apostle to terrible danger and accelerated his departure from Ephesus.

The month of May arrived, in which the famous Ephesian fair took place in Ephesus, marked by a number of festivities dedicated to Artemis. During these celebrations, a wooden image of the goddess, which according to popular legend descended from heaven, was exhibited in the temple for public worship. For a whole month the city was overflowing with people, flocking from all the surrounding countries, and groaning with every kind of rejoicing. Magnificent and elegant processions constantly moved to the temple, priests and various spellcasters reaped a rich harvest in the field of popular superstition; All kinds of amusements and games were organized, and all this was accompanied by the wildest drunkenness and revelry. Under such circumstances, outbursts of popular fanaticism were inevitable, which often marked celebrations in Ephesus. The same thing happened now. This year there was a visible decrease in the reckless revelry during Ephesia, and the reason for this decline was well known. Not only in Ephesus, but in all the main cities of proconsular Asia, deep interest was aroused by the preaching of a certain Paul, who, in the very capital of idolatry, as we know, calmly preached that those who are made by human hands are not gods at all. Many people were inclined to accept this sermon; There were even more of those who, at least under her influence, began to be indifferent to meaningless rituals and lamentations, and even to temples and idols. The consequence of this was that in Ephesus “there was no small rebellion against the way of the Lord.”

Paul and his sermon, the "brothers" and their meetings were on everyone's tongue, and many murmuring curses were uttered against them by the priests and priestesses, as well as by hundreds of hangers-on who gather around every great institution. Finally, this thinly concealed anger burst out. The one who suffered the most losses from the decrease in reverence for the goddess and her sanctuary was a certain silversmith named Demetrius, who sold fans small silver models of the temple and images in memory of their visit to Ephesus and its temple. And not only in Ephesus, but also in every famous center of pagan cult, the demand for these things caused many offers from industrialists. Demetrius found that his industry was beginning to be undermined, and he, hiding behind jealousy of the temple and the goddess, decided, as far as possible for him, to take measures to stop the ruin that threatened him. Calling to a meeting all the artists and simple workers engaged in this craft, he addressed them with a speech in which he first aroused their passions with a warning about the ruin that threatened them, and then appealed to their dormant fanaticism for vengeance for the insulted grandeur of their temple and the fallen splendor of the goddess , which was idolized by all of Asia and the whole world.

This speech was like a spark for combustible material. A furious cry was heard among the listeners: “Great is Artemis of Ephesus!” - and confusion began throughout the city. Burning with vengeance against the main culprit of the losses incurred, the rebel artists and artisans wanted to seize the apostle himself. Paul, but not finding him personally, they seized two of his employees, Gaius and Aristarchus, and dragged them to the theater for revenge and desecration of the crowd. Having learned about the danger that threatened his beloved co-workers, the apostle wanted to go to the theater himself to sacrifice himself, but the city authorities restrained him, as they feared increasing popular unrest. This confusion threatened the danger of massacre not only for Christians, but also for Jews, whom the people did not distinguish from Christians. To ward off this danger, a certain Alexander came out from among the Jews and tried to address the crowd with a speech that the Jews were not at all to blame for this matter.

But as soon as the crowd saw the Jewish features of the speaker, they drowned out his speech with a furious cry: “Great is Artemis of Ephesus!” - and was ready to begin one of those terrible massacres that the Jews endured more than once in Alexandria and other large cities of the East. The danger was terrible, but, fortunately, it was averted by the courage of the city guardian of order, who enjoyed the general respect of the population. Disregarding all personal danger, he boldly stepped forward in the face of the angry crowd and addressed them with a calm but impressive speech that brought the crowd to reason. “Ephesians! - he exclaimed. – What person does not know that Ephesus is the servant of the great goddess Artemis and Diopetus? If there is no dispute about this, then you need to be calm and not act rashly. And you brought these men who neither robbed the temple of Artemidin, nor blasphemed your goddess. If Demetrius and other artists with him have a complaint against someone, that is, there are judicial meetings and there are proconsuls: let them complain against each other. And if you are looking for something else, it will be decided in another meeting. For we are in danger of being accused of indignation for what has happened now, since there is no reason by which we could justify such a gathering.” This speech immediately had a striking effect. The confusion stopped. The intelligent speech of a well-respected man made the crowd repent of their foolish rebellion and fear its possible consequences, as the guardian of order hinted in his speech, alternately acting with flattery, intimidation, admonition and reassurance. She vividly reminded them that since Asia was a senatorial and not an imperial province and was therefore ruled by a proconsul with a few officials, and not by a propraetor with a legion of soldiers, they themselves were responsible for maintaining good order and would probably be considered the culprits for disturbing the peace . A day of disorder could negatively affect their privileges for years. And in general, such confusion on the part of the Ephesians was (as the guardian of order argued) unworthy, since the greatness of their temple was not subject to any insult; it was not justified by anything, since nothing could be proven against these persons; it was unnecessary, since other, more legal means of retaliating against them were at hand; finally, if neither pride nor justice could influence them, then at least the fear of the Romans could restrain them. The people were extremely ashamed of their action, and the guardian of order was given the opportunity to dismiss him from the theater.

Thus, the danger for Christians and Jews was averted for a while, but personally for the apostle. Paul's further stay in the city became impossible, since his mere appearance would be enough to re-ignite the wild fanaticism of the Ephesians. Therefore, he hastened to leave the city and headed to Macedonia.

Having worked there preaching the Gospel for about two years, after a rebellion raised by the pagans, the Apostle Paul went to Macedonia, then to Greece. The apostle stayed here for three months. In the city of Corinth, he wrote one of his main works - a letter to the Roman Christians. This message had a huge impact on all Christian thought.

From Greece, the “apostle of the pagans” - as St. Paul was called - returned to Macedonia. From the Macedonian city of Philippi, Paul headed overland to Palestine. In Troas, he and his companions made a seven-day stop.

On Sunday, in a high, bright upper room, the Christian community of Troas gathered to celebrate the Sacrament of the Eucharist. After this, the feast of brotherly love began. The Christians gathered around their teacher. The spiritual conversation continued past midnight. Neither the teacher nor the students wanted to interrupt it: Pavel was leaving the next day.

During the conversation, a young man named Eutychus, who was sitting on the window of the third floor, fell asleep and fell down. They picked him up already dead. Everyone present was extremely upset by this tragic death. But the apostle embraced the deceased and, by the power of his prayer, brought him back to life.

In sacred history, this is not the first case of resurrection from the dead. In a similar way, the prophets Elijah and Elisha brought the departed youths back to life...

After that, everyone went upstairs again and continued the conversation. Soon Eutychus joined them, alive and unharmed. Those present, as the author of the book of the Acts of the Apostles narrates, were greatly consoled by the fact that their teacher, before his departure, performed such a great miracle - he raised the dead.

Setting out from Troas by sea, the apostle arrived in the seaside city of Ionia, Miletus. Paul hurried to Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost, but before that he wanted to say goodbye to the clergy of the Church of Ephesus. Therefore, he called his co-workers in the field of Christ to Milit.

The apostle’s farewell speech was reminiscent of Christ’s words at the Last Supper. Paul told his disciples what was most important to him at the time when the Ephesian Church was being created and established. In his speech, the apostle carried his thoughts into the future. He spoke of the dire calamities awaiting him and his readiness to meet them.

“...Ties and sorrows await me. But I do not consider anything and do not value my life, so long as I can finish my race with joy and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, preaching the Gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24).

The apostle knew that he would no longer see his Ephesian brothers and co-workers. Therefore, he said that his conscience was clear towards them, for he never missed an opportunity to proclaim to them the whole will of God.

In this speech, the apostle gave the most valuable pastoral instructions to his disciples: “Take heed therefore to yourselves and to all the flock, of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the Church of the Lord and God, which He purchased with His own blood” (Acts 20:28).

Paul warned the Ephesians about the dangers that would await them: “...After I am gone, wolf men will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among yourselves men will arise who will speak perverse things, so as to draw away the disciples after themselves” (Acts 20:29).

The Apostle foresaw the emergence of heresies that would distort the very essence of the Christian faith. And the only parting word that the apostle gave to the disciples was a call to constant vigilance. For a Christian, spiritual wakefulness is one of the main rules in life. And at the same time, it is the most difficult to accomplish, because it requires constant tension of spiritual and mental strength.

As the father of the Ephesian community, the Apostle Paul uttered a heartfelt prayer: “And now I commend you, brethren, to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to edify you more and to give you an inheritance with all those who are sanctified” (Acts 20:32). Finally, the apostle brought them the words of Christ: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).

Paul proved with his life that these words are not so much about material values, but about everything that a person has - about his time, mental and physical strength. At the end of his speech, he knelt down and prayed with everyone. The farewell was very touching. Everyone cried, hugged and kissed Pavel, grieving that they would no longer see him. The chief apostle had a path to Jerusalem, where he was to be delivered into the hands of the pagans...

What were Paul's various missionary journeys like? Where did the Apostle Paul go on his missionary travels?

The Apostle Paul was one of the most devoted Christian missionaries in the entire history of Christianity. He zealously followed the commandment of the Lord Jesus Christ, which is still relevant for all Christians today: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you...”. Paul began three long missionary journeys to different cities and regions, mainly passing through the territory of present-day Greece and Turkey, from the city of Antioch.

Paul's First Missionary Journey

Paul went on his first missionary journey around 47; his companions were Barnabas and young John Mark. When they arrived in Perga, John Mark left them and returned to Jerusalem. Paul and Barnabas returned to Antioch in 49.
Acts 13-14

Paul's Second Missionary Journey

Around 50, Paul set out from Antioch on his second missionary journey. From the very beginning he was accompanied by Silas, in Lystra they were joined by Timothy, and later in Troas by Luke. After spending a year and a half in Corinth, Paul returned to Antioch in 53.
Acts 15:36 - 18:22

Paul's Third Missionary Journey

Around 53, Paul set out alone on his third and longest journey. He spent two years in Ephesus. In Troas he was joined by representatives of several church communities; together with him they went by sea to Jerusalem, bringing gifts for needy Christians.
Acts 18:23 - 21:16

Paul's journey to Rome

After his arrest and two years in prison in Caesarea, Paul declared that he demanded the trial of the emperor. In August 59 he was brought by sea to Myra, where he had to transfer to another ship. This new ship was shipwrecked off the coast of Malta, but eventually, around 60, Paul arrived in Rome.
Acts 21:17 - 28:16

Some Bible scholars believe that there was a fourth missionary journey, and the history of the Early Christian Church seems to support this idea. At the same time, there is no clear evidence for this in the Bible; it is possible that it could have occurred after the end of the period described in the book of Acts.

The goals of all of Paul's missionary journeys were the same: to proclaim God's grace in the forgiveness of sins through Christ. God used Paul's ministry to bring the gospel to the Gentiles and establish new churches. His messages to the Church, recorded in the New Testament, continue to support Church life and teaching. Although Paul sacrificed everything, his missionary journeys were worth it (Philippians 3:7–11).

About the third journey of the ap. Paul the Writer narrates in the passage 18:23-21:17. Narrative of Acts. allows completion on the basis of the messages of St. Paul, written during this journey. Both letters to the Corinthians are of particular importance.

Evangelist Luke does not say who accompanied the apostle. Paul as he set out from Antioch (Acts 18:23). Having passed through Asia Minor from East to West, Paul visited the Churches he founded and came to Ephesus by dry route, not by the lower, southern road, which led through the valleys of the Lycus and Meander, but by the upper, northern road, which ran through the mountainous terrain (cf. Acts 19:1). The activity of the apostle was concentrated in Ephesus. Paul for two years (cf. Acts 19:10), and perhaps even longer (cf. Acts 20:31) if we add the episodes of 2 Cor. into the framework of Acts, where a place for them can be found only after the Ephesian rebellion. In Acts. 20:1 the story of the Writer is extremely sketchy, and we have every reason to assume that he left the apostle’s trip without mention. Paul to Corinth, after which he returned to Ephesus. This trip brought the Apostle to the sad fact that the Church he founded had fallen away from him (cf. 2 Cor. 2:1). We do not know the details, but it seems very likely that he himself suffered a severe insult (cf. 2 Cor. 2:5-10, 7:12). We also do not know how much time the Apostle spent in Ephesus, having returned there from Achaia. He was overwhelmed with grief (cf. 2 Cor. 1:8), and even the success of the gospel in Troas (cf. 2 Cor. 2:12), where he went from Ephesus, did not bring him any consolation. He calmed down only in Macedonia (vv. 13, 7:5 et seq.), when Titus, whom he had sent to Corinth, returned to him with good news. Paul's stay in Macedonia is noted in Acts. 20:1-2.

From there he moved to Hellas, i.e., presumably, to the same Achaia with which he had so many griefs. He stayed there for three months. In Acts. 20:3 mentions "the indignation made against him by the Jews." It apparently hastened his return to the East. Text of Acts. 20:3 comes to us in several parallel forms. And we don’t know what exactly the Writer meant when he wrote about “outrage”, actually: intrigues, an ambush. From the text of the most ancient manuscripts one can get the impression that St. Paul was informed of an attempt on his life that was being prepared on the ship on which he was thinking of sailing to Syria, and that this forced him to change the route. But since the apostasy of the Corinthians, as will be shown in due course, was caused by the agitation of the Judaizers, the question inevitably arises whether the short remark of the Writer does not contain an indication of a new apostasy. This is all the more likely because in the Epistle to the Romans, which St. Paul sent to his destination just before leaving Achaia, the warning 16:17-20, which in no way follows from what is discussed in the letter, reflects the bitter experiences of the Apostle himself, under the impression of which he was. According to the testimony of Acts, the Apostle’s return route lay through Macedonia and Troas and further by sea, along the shores of Asia Minor. Paul hurried to Jerusalem for Pentecost (cf. Acts 20:16). Not wanting to linger in Ephesus, he summoned the Ephesian elders to Miletus, where he gave them farewell instructions (cf. vv. 17-36). After stopping at Tire and Ptolemais, Paul and his companions landed at Caesarea and from there continued on to Jerusalem (Acts 21:1-17).

Unlike his first two missionary journeys, Paul on his third journey did not preach in areas where the word of Christ had not yet been heard. During the long stay of the Apostle in Ephesus, which was the center of a densely populated region, new communities undoubtedly arose. These probably include the three Churches of the Lycus Valley - Colossian, Laodicean and Hierapolis (cf. Col. 4:13). The founding of new Churches was an inevitable consequence of Paul's work in Ephesus and the personal connections he and his co-workers formed. But it is remarkable that even within the Lycus Valley, not very far from Ephesus, Paul never visited, as he testified much later in Col. 2:1. Paul's task was different. He did not think about the founding of new Churches, but about the organization of already founded ones. This work was centered in Ephesus, but extended to the Churches in Troas, Macedonia and Achaia. Suffice it to recall what was said above about the relations of the ap. Paul, with the Corinthian Church. In Macedonia they were also given abundant instruction (cf. Acts 20:2). We have good reason to understand the meeting in Troas, on the first day of the week, as a liturgical meeting, during which the Eucharistic meal was offered (cf. 20:7). But the Apostle devoted the greatest attention to the Church of Ephesus. Having founded it at the end of the second journey (Acts 18:19-21), Paul left his Corinthian colleagues, Aquila and Priscilla, in his place in Ephesus (cf. vv. 24-26). Having returned to prepared ground and having worked in Ephesus for over two years (Acts 19), the Apostle turned for the last time to the Ephesian Church through its elders, whom he called in Mi-let (Acts 20:17-34). According to the testimony of the Writer, Paul's work in Ephesus was accompanied by an abundant outpouring of the gifts of the Holy Spirit (cf. 19:1-20). It is not surprising, therefore, that the Church of Ephesus very soon acquired special significance in the Christian world. She, like the Roman Church, did not inherit the hierarchical significance of Jerusalem. However, in the fourth period of the history of the Apostolic Age, the vital center of Christendom was undoubtedly in Ephesus.

But the task of the ap. Paul during his third journey was not limited to the establishment of individual Churches. It was during these years, perhaps in fulfillment of the council’s decree (cf. Gal. 2:10), - St. Paul held a collection among the Churches he cared for in favor of the Jerusalem Mother Church. In Acts. this fee is mentioned only once in Paul's testimony during the interrogation of the procurator Felix (cf. 24:17). We get information about how it was produced from the epistles (cf. 1 Cor. 16:1-4; 2 Cor. 8-9). From 1 Cor. we conclude that the collection extended to the Churches of Galatia. In 2 Cor. The apostle praises the sacrifice of Macedonia. Even the Roman Church, with which Paul did not yet have a personal relationship (cf. Rom. 1:8-15; 15:20-24), he tried to attract prayerful participation in this church-wide matter (cf. 15:25-28, 30-32). When going to Jerusalem, Paul took with him representatives from the Churches who were supposed to perform control functions (cf. 2 Cor. 8:18-23). Perhaps these were those of his companions who are mentioned in Acts. 20:4 (cf. also Rom. 16:16c, 21), and to which the use of the first person plural makes Luke included. Persons mentioned in Acts. 20:4, belonged not only to the Churches of Macedonia and, perhaps, Galatia (Gaius the Dervian and Timothy?), but also to the Churches of Asia, in other words, the proposed interpretation of Acts. 20:4 shows that these latter were also included in the gathering. Some of those mentioned in Acts. 20:4 names are also found in the story of the bonds of St. Pavel. These are the names of Trophimus (Acts 21:29) and Aristarchus (27:2), and the repeated forms of the first person in this narrative expose the presence of Luke (cf. 21:17-18; 27:1 et seq.). If the care of the Jerusalem Church could be entrusted to St. Paul's cathedral, then the significance of the collection he made did not end there. We see that he tried to attract All Churches of pagans. This common participation in the gathering actively revealed the unity of the Christian world around its single hierarchical center, the Jerusalem Church. The task of the ap. Paul during his third journey was not only the establishment of individual already existing local Churches, but also the unification of them all into a single Universal Church.

It was a crucial historical moment. Firstly, the attitude of the pagan world to the Christian gospel became even more clear than in the days of the second journey of St. Pavel. His activity in Ephesus in a pagan environment - and this time after a break with the Jews (cf. Acts 19:8-10) - was accompanied by exceptional success. But for the broad masses of paganism, Christianity was unacceptable. This follows from the story of the riot in Ephesus (Acts 19). The story is extremely vivid. The reader seems to be present at the development of events, but a careful analysis allows us to highlight the factors that determined the attitude of pagans towards Christians. First of all, the speech of the silversmiths (cf. vv. 23-27a) shows that the successes of Christian preaching adversely affected the material interests of certain groups of pagan society. The correspondence between Pliny the Younger and Trajan gives grounds to assert that a similar attitude towards Christians manifested itself at the beginning of the 2nd century in Bethany. But the awareness of material damage gave only the first impetus. Then the religious pushback began. The pagans stood up in defense of their gods (cf. vv. 27-28, 24-35, 37). Anti-Semitism, widespread in ancient times, also had an impact. The history of persecution indicates that the historical connection between Christianity and Judaism also adversely affected the attitude of pagans towards Christianity. During the Ephesian rebellion, a certain Alexander spoke out, at the suggestion of the Jews, probably in order to prove their innocence. But the crowd, having learned that he was a Jew, became even more excited (vv. 33-34). This is perhaps the first example of the influence of anti-Semitism on the attitude of pagans towards Christians (however, cf. Acts 16:19-22). But the story of Acts. It also suggests that the movement very soon took on a spontaneous character (cf. art. 29, 32, 39-40). The crowd itself did not know why it had gathered, and the boss pointed this out to them, trying to calm it down. The further development of relations between Christianity and paganism shows that the course of the Ephesian rebellion expressed the very essence of these relations, as they had been determined by that time.

But the relationship of paganism to Christianity does not exhaust the characteristics of the historical moment. Its second feature was its conflict with Judaism. Strictly speaking, we must distinguish between two conflicts: the conflict with Judaism within the Church and the conflict with Judaism outside the Church. The first took place in Corinth and in the Churches of Galatia. Judaic agitators tried to convince Christians converted from paganism that fulfilling the Law of Moses was required of them as well. That is why the apostle rises up. Paul in his letter to the Galatians opposes circumcision (cf. 5:2 et seq., 6:12 et seq.). The demands of the Judaizers nullified the achievements of the Jerusalem Council. The falling away of the Corinthian Church was, in all likelihood, also the work of the Jews. One might think that the agitators knew Christ according to the flesh, and in this they saw their advantage over the apostle. Paul (cf. 2 Cor. 5:16; 10:7, 12; 11:5, 13-15, 22-23, etc.). The Jews who violated the peace of the church in Corinth and Galatia were Christians. But Jews outside the Church also showed activity hostile to Paul. Returning from the third trip, ap. Paul knew, and it was also revealed to those close to him, that suffering and bonds awaited him in Jerusalem (cf. Acts 20:22-23 et seq., 38, 21:4-6, 10-14). At this time, he wrote to the Romans (15:30-32) about the dangers threatening him “from the unbelievers in Judea” and asked for their prayers. Of course, the conflict with the Jews inside the Church and the conflict with the Jews outside the Church was not one conflict, but two conflicts. But these two conflicts were closely related. This connection was internal. It was said above that the emergence of the Jewish problem in the Church must be understood as a reaction of Judaism. This reaction was inevitable, since the Jews who were part of the Church maintained contact with Jews outside the Church. During the third trip. Paul, Jewish agitation within the Church and agitation against the apostle. Paul among the Jews who were not members of the Church were different expressions of the same reaction of Judaism.

The third feature of the historical moment was the looming danger of heresies. About this danger. Paul warned the elders of the Ephesian Church when bidding them farewell in Miletus (Acts 20:29-30). The warning of 2 Cor. seems to have the same meaning. 6:14-7:1. It seems that Jewish agitation awakened in Corinth other centrifugal forces that had hitherto been dormant. The reference to darkness, which is opposed to light, to Belial, which opposes Christ, to idols, for which there is no place next to the temple of God, cannot refer to the propaganda of the Judaizers. At the same time, in the letter to the Romans, St. Paul raised the issue of those who are weak in the faith (14-15). The dietary restrictions to which they subjected themselves were not associated, as in Corinth, with the danger of sacrifice to idols. The weak probably bound themselves to the provisions of the Law of Moses (cf. 14:5-6), but the peculiar vegetarianism observed among the Roman Christians (14:2, cf. vv. 6, 21) went further than what it was obliged to do. compliance with the law. We are no longer present at the reaction of Judaism, but at the reaction of paganism. It was stated above that in the Hellenistic-Roman era, the veneration of eastern gods became widespread in the West. It was a time of religious syncretism, a complex crossing of different religious beliefs. Judaism and, eventually, Christianity were also involved in this flow. The complication of religious syncretism with elements of Christianity gave rise to variegated religious systems, which are designated in science by the term gnosis or gnosticism. These were the first Christian heresies, the emergence of which was felt by the ap. Paul. In the days of his third journey, Gnosticism was in its infancy. However, Simon Magus, mentioned in Acts, can be considered the first Gnostic. 8. Be that as it may, in the fifties we are present only at the beginning of the process. When ap. Paul was in chains, the process became clearer. We conclude this from the Epistle to the Colossians. In recent years, ap. Paul, his letters to Timothy and Titus show that the Gnostic movement has already developed into concrete forms. In the fourth period of the Apostolic Age, the Gnostic danger constituted the main concern of the Apostles. Peter (cf. 2 Pet.), Judas and John (cf. 1-2 John, Apk. 2-3) reckon with her. The emergence of Gnostic heresies indicates the beginning of a new era.

"To me, the least of all saints,

this grace has been given - to preach the gospel

to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ

and reveal to everyone what the economy consists of

secret hidden from eternity in God"

• (Apostle Paul's Epistle to the Ephesians, 3:8-9)
• 1. “Paul (translated from Latin - small, lesser), before converting to Christianity - Saul (longed for), one of the greatest teachers of the Church of Christ, who, after the other Apostles, turned to faith in Jesus Christ, but more than each of them contributed to the conquest His power throughout the world."

Paul, after his conversion, made three missionary journeys, during which he founded a number of Churches in Asia Minor and on the European continent. All journeys had Antioch (Syrian) as their starting point. It should be noted that during the time of St. Paul, this city was considered the third most important in the Empire after Rome and Alexandria. “The city was located 300 miles north of Jerusalem, where the Lebanese mountains and the Asia Minor Taurus meet. Antioch was founded around 300 BC. on the banks of the Orontes about twenty miles from the sea. Thanks to its port, called Seleucia, it maintained constant communication with the west, while it was visited by trade caravans from all over the Middle East. In the 4th century A.D. its male population was 150-200 thousand; one can assume that in Paul's time it was no less. The city was famous for its schools of philosophy, medicine and rhetoric, a library and various kinds of public entertainment establishments: theaters, amphitheatres, stadiums and baths." The inhabitants of Antioch had a reputation for rude wits and inventors of nicknames, and it is no coincidence that the name “Christians” appeared here (Acts 11:26). And it was this pagan city, overwhelmed by passions, that became the main center of Christianity outside Palestine. American archaeologist J. Wright indicates the probable reason for this. There once was a large Jewish colony in Antioch, with which a large number of “God-fearing” Greeks were in one way or another connected. Apparently, most of the newly converted Christians came from them.

The purpose of the travels of the Apostle Paul, as is clear from their definition, was the spread and establishment of Christianity. Paul traveled on foot, as well as along the Mediterranean Sea. So, on 1 trip (approx. 47-49). Paul and his companions Barnabas and John Mark walked on foot to the seaside city of Seleucia, lying opposite the island of Cyprus, and from there they sailed to the island. Cyprus. Having passed all of Cyprus to the city of Paphos, the apostles reached Asia Minor from it by sea. Here again we went on foot “to Perga, then to Pisidian Antioch, then to Iconium, then to Lystra, Derbe and Lycaonia, then to Pamphylia, then again to Perga,” from where we sailed back to Antioch (Syrian), (Acts 13 -14). On the second journey (c. 50-53), Paul and his companions walked on foot through Tarsus, Derbe, Lystra, Iconium, Antioch (Pisidian), Galatia and Phrygia all the way to Troas. From there across the Aegean Sea “to Naples, then to Philippi, a Macedonian city; then, passing through Amphipolis and Apollonia, he came to Thessalonica, then to Beria,” by sea to Athens, by land to Corinth, by sea to Ephesus, and then again by sea through the islands of Rhodes and Cyprus to Caesarea (Acts 15:36 -18:22). The third journey of the apostle (c. 53-57) took place along almost the same route: by land a path was made from Antioch to Ephesus, through the Aegean Sea to Macedonia, where Paul visited: Philippi, Beria, Thessaloniki, etc., then he went down to Hellas and stopped in Corinth (Acts 20:1). “... then, having passed through Macedonia, he again arrived for the second time at Philippi and from Philippi again to Troas, ... then he arrived at Asson, then to Mytilene; then he landed on the shore opposite Khiy; then he arrived in Samos and from there to Miletus,” then by the Mediterranean Sea through Rhodes and Patara he reached Tire; having passed Ptolemis and Caesarea, he returned to Jerusalem (Acts 18:23-21:16).

The results of the travels can be summed up according to the following criteria: the geography of the spread of Christianity, the initial religion of converts and their status in the Church (Jews and pagans), the development of pastoral practice, the formation of doctrinal provisions and dogmas, the creation of preconditions for the emergence of a conciliar, united Church.

The results of the 1st trip were the following:

• 1) the founding of Christian communities with elders who received apostolic succession in the Asia Minor cities of Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe, i.e. expansion of the area of ​​spread of Christianity beyond Palestine;
• 2) the beginning of the mass conversion of pagans;
• 3) a dispute about the Law and the equality of pagans with Jews in the Church and the convening of the first apostolic council in the history of the Church;
• 4) “confrontation” ap. Paul ap. Peter regarding communication with the pagans and the beginning of Paul's dissemination of the idea of ​​​​the unity of believers in Christ;
• 5) recognition of Paul as the apostle of the pagans by the pillars of the Church - Peter, James and John.

The results of 2 trips were:

• 1) the founding of European Churches in Macedonia (Philippi, Thessaloniki and Beria (Beria)) and Corinth, the further spread of Christianity to the West;
• 2) the beginning of preaching Christianity among learned pagans and philosophers (Paul’s speech in the Athens Areopagus);
• 3) Paul’s dissemination of the doctrine of justification by faith, and not by works of the Law of Moses (about freedom from the Law) and unity in Christ - this became one of the prerequisites for the creation of a single, conciliar and apostolic Universal Church;
• 4) awareness of up. Paul's need for regular pastoral leadership of the Churches, his writing of 2 Epistles to the Thessalonians and Epistle to the Galatians.

Results of the 3rd trip:

• 1) the founding of the Ephesian Church;
• 2) preaching and doctrinal activity of St. Paul: writing two letters to the Corinthians, letters to the Romans;
• 3) 1st known in the history of the Church, pastoral conversation of St. Paul, addressed to the clergy;
• 4) the beginning of the formation of a single Universal Church.

During all the travels, the opposite attitude towards the preaching of Jews and pagans is obvious: in most cases, the former rejected the good news (and persecuted Paul), and the latter joyfully accepted it. Although there were cases when Jews converted to Christianity, and pagans did not adequately perceive the evangelist and his teaching (the case in Lystra, when Barnabas, as the eldest in years, was revered as Zeus, and Paul, distinguished by the gift of speech, as Hermias (Hermes) (Acts. 14:11) or rejected him with mockery and contempt (as in Athens). Therefore, “Paul, as can be seen from Acts (Acts 17:23), considered it necessary to first know the spirit and morals of those people to whom he intended to preach.”

2. Missionary activity of the ap. Paul began on the day when the Spirit of God called him to serve during the Lord's Supper celebrated by the apostles in Antioch: “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them” (Acts 13:2). It was clear what kind of work we were talking about - preaching the good news. “Philip, Peter and John converted people to Christianity in Samaria, an area where devout Jews avoided going...Peter and Philip preached the gospel in the coastal plain of Judea, all the way to Caesarea in the north.” They didn't go any further. Saul and Barnabas, having been called, did not know where to start, understanding only that Christianity must spread throughout the world, as the Lord commanded. Therefore, the first “trip to Cyprus was not yet recognized as the beginning of a mission among the pagans. The plan for such a mission finally matured only during the trip and took shape in 49 after a meeting with the apostles in Jerusalem.” apostle paul missionary christianity

Paul began his preaching in Asia Minor with the Jews. When they rejected him, he realized his calling to be an apostle to the Gentiles: “... but because you reject it (the word of God) and make yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles” (Acts 13:46). The first pagan to favorably accept Saul's preaching was the proconsul of Paphos (on the island of Cyprus) Sergius Paulus. Connected with his conversion is the use in Acts of the name by which the apostle is known - Paul. Prot. Smirnov writes on this occasion: “It can be assumed that the fullness and power of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, revealed by Paul in the appeal of the Roman proconsul, indicated in him the chief apostle of languages ​​and placed him above Barnabas. He adopted the name Paul either in grateful remembrance of this great success of preaching, or according to the meaning of this word, which favored the great humility of the supreme apostle (paulus - small); According to some, he had this Roman name before, only he did not use it among the Jews, but began to use it after he finally entered the field of preaching to the pagans.” .

In Paphos, on the southwestern coast of Cyprus, Italian archaeologists have discovered what they believe is the earliest evidence of the apostle's presence on the island. This is a fragmented Greek inscription on a fragment of a marble slab found in the ruins of an early Christian basilica. Two incompletely preserved lines are reconstructed as PAYLOY APOSTOLOY -- “Paul the Apostle.” This basilica was built after 394 on the ruins of the ancient pagan temple of Apollo and Artemis (it existed from the 4th century BC). The found inscription, according to archaeologists, can be dated to the 2nd century. from R.H. Not far from the basilica where the inscription was found stands a stone pillar to which, according to local tradition, the Apostle Paul was once tied and scourged. This episode is not mentioned in Acts.

On his first missionary journey, Paul preached in Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe (Acts 13:13-14:24), located in the Roman province of Galatia.

Galatia owes its name to a group of Gauls from Europe who settled in the northern regions of this province in the 3rd century. BC . At the beginning of the 2nd century BC. Galatia was a client state of Rome in 25 BC. became a Roman province. Antioch, the main city of the province, was founded by the Syrian king Seleucus I around 300 BC. Around 189 BC. the Romans turned Antioch into a free city, and in 11 BC. - to a Roman colony. During its time as a free city, Antioch had an effective system of self-government, a national assembly and an educational system with a characteristic Hellenic spirit. In this city the political assembly was called the Greek word ekklesia, which was later used by Christians to designate the Church.

Paul's preaching in Antioch was probably accompanied by the atmosphere of searching for the “chief god” that reigned among the pagans. J. Wright in his book “Biblical Archeology” provides the following information: “In Asia Minor there were many religious sects of various kinds, but it was difficult to “adapt” the old gods to the new era. One of the most important documents circulating in Asia Minor, a fragment of a copy of which was discovered during excavations in Antioch, was the Monumentum Ancyranum, which narrated the “Acts of the divine Augustus (Caesar).” Another copy of the same document was carved on the walls of the Augusteum, a white marble temple erected in Ancyra (Ankara) in northern Galatia. The text, which may have belonged to Augustus himself, was composed in 14 AD. He describes the life and works of the emperor, who strove to fulfill the religious, or even messianic, aspirations of the time. These aspirations were also typical for the time of Paul’s life...” Archpriest A. Men notes that “the first century AD is usually portrayed as a time of religious decline and indifference, but in fact it was distinguished by the spirit of God-seeking and thirst for truth.” In addition, at that time, the wars that had raged for centuries had subsided, and life was returning to a peaceful course. These are the subjective and objective reasons due to which the words of the new sermon found favorable soil in Galatia.

In Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe, despite the opposition of the leaders of the Jewish communities, Paul and Barnabas managed to unite the first circles of Christians, the core of the future church: “... in the main thing they succeeded: they not only supported the spirit of Christians, but appointed elders and presbyters for them. The presbyter was not the leader of the Church; such leadership appeared later; his main ministry was to preside over the sacred Table... it was believed that the apostles conveyed to the elders... the gift that they, in turn, received from Christ Himself.” . “The name “presbyter”...shows that the apostles elected elders to this position, either by age or by time of conversion, as more experienced and reliable, so that they could be leaders of others.” This act marked a new stage in their apostolate. With him begins the history of the further rooting of the Church on pagan soil.

One of the most important tasks facing the Antiochian community created by Paul was determining the status of baptized pagans. Paul's news that the converts were not circumcised and did not observe other rites of the Law of Moses, strictly revered by the Jews, caused disapproval and even indignation among the Judeo-Christians of the Jerusalem community. Their point of view was this: entry into the Church of the New Testament (and therefore salvation) is possible only through circumcision and observance of other rites of the Law.

"The position of St. Paul's attitude to the Law was determined, on the one hand, by the prophetic formula: “mercy is higher than sacrifice,” and on the other, by his view of sacred history. Since the new messianic era has come, when God “makes everything new,” the old Law becomes “old”... For those in whom the Spirit of the Savior has reigned, the magical sacred rites of polytheism are garbage, and even the sacred symbols of the Old Testament are, for the most part, a passed stage..." . After his first missionary journey, Paul realized that unity with God in Christ no longer requires, as a prerequisite, the old signs of belonging to the people of God, especially for non-Jews. “In Christ Jesus,” the apostle would say a few years later, “neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has power, but faith that works through love... is a new creation” (Gal 5:6-7; 6:15).

The dispute about the Law was resolved at the Apostolic Council in Jerusalem in 49. Speaking at it, Paul “told the congregation the story of his apostolic journey, from which it was most clearly revealed that the Holy Spirit, in pouring out His gifts on Paul’s disciples, did not consider any difference between the circumcision and uncircumcised, and that, therefore, circumcision is not a necessary part of the New Testament." He was supported by the ap. Peter and the ap. Jacob, brother of the Lord. It was decided that Jewish Christians would remain with the principles of their fathers, and that others should be limited to minimal rules: that they should abstain from desecration by idols, from fornication, strangulation and blood (Acts 15: 19-20). By the way, “to abstain from blood and strangulation is a ritual law, but not that of Moses, but the oldest one - Noah’s, given to all people, and not only to the Jews (Gen. 9:4), which therefore has not been abolished along with other ritual the laws of Moses." Thus, "the Mother Church of Jerusalem recognized that converts from paganism are indeed in covenant with the Lord, even if they have not undergone the rite of circumcision."

“The meeting of the Apostolic Council marked the transition from the original state of affairs, when the Church existed only in Jerusalem, to a new situation when the Church was destined to become the same in Antioch, and in Corinth, and in Rome. This meeting not only made a momentous decision, proclaiming the universal character of the Christian Gospel, but also tacitly recognized a radical change in the structure - and therefore in the meaning - of the Jerusalem Church itself." “...By liberating the converted pagans from the Jewish law - from their inclusion in the Jewish people - the Church showed that it was already fully aware of its worldwide calling and purpose, and that the preparatory, Judeo-Christian, period of its history was over.”

In the Jerusalem meeting, it turned out to be important for Paul personally that the pillars of the Church Peter, James and John openly and before everyone recognized his right as an evangelist of the nations and commissioned him to preach to the Gentiles (Gal. 2:9).

Soon before Paul's 2nd journey, an incident occurred that showed that in Jerusalem all the i's had not yet been dotted. Arriving in Antioch, Peter, communicating with pagans, violated ritual regulations regarding food, and, fearing to tempt the Jews, stopped going to pagan meetings. Barnabas did the same. “Paul was indignant: we cannot allow dilapidated partitions to separate those who are united in Christ. At the Table of Christ all differences must be forgotten!” . He was not afraid to publicly expose Peter’s hypocrisy, desiring with all his heart the true unity of the brothers in Christ.

From the second trip. Paul begins preaching Christianity in Europe. The first cities in the Balkans to hear the Good News were Philippi and Thessalonica (Thessalonica). The main street of these two cities was a paved Roman road: the so-called Ignatian Way (Via Egnatia), leading through Macedonia to the Adriatic. In the western part of the city, archaeologists discovered a large arched gate through which this road went, crossing a small river about a mile from the city. . This is the only place in the district that corresponds to the description given in Acts. 16:13: “And on the Sabbath day we went out of the city to the river, where, as usual, there was a house of prayer.” Obviously, the city's Jewish community was too small to build a synagogue there. “The Apostle Paul was not one of the people who knew how to ignite the masses with his preaching... His talents were revealed most of all in personal contact or in the circle of a small community... The situation in Philippi contributed most to this. Moreover, the spirit of civil unity and order that reigned there made his tasks easier. In a few months, Paul created a strong community and appointed overseers for it: bishops and deacons.” .

In Thessalonica (modern Thessaloniki, the second largest Greek city after Athens) there were many Jews and Greek Macedonians “and some of them believed and joined Paul and Silas, both of the Greeks who worshiped God, a great multitude, and of the noble women not a few ” (Acts 17:4). As a result, a large community was formed. The neophytes were especially impressed by the prophecy about the imminent coming of the Savior. They were ready to get involved in preaching the Gospel themselves in order to save others. “The Thessalonian church became the first preaching church. Subsequently, Macedonians, mainly from this community, would often accompany Paul on his wanderings."

The next city on Paul's journey was Athens, the city of philosophers. “Philosophy at this time was already in complete decline, and the so-called philosophers, without giving anything new, were engaged only in an empty and pompous retelling of the teachings of their great predecessors, while distorting them to the point that everything turned out, as Cicero put it, upside down.” . Therefore, when ap. Paul preached a teaching that was striking in its novelty, originality and vitality; it immediately attracted attention, and many began to listen to it. The philosophers invited Paul to the Areopagus - the supreme council of Athens - apparently partly out of curiosity, partly out of fear of popular unrest that could arise because of his preaching. Paul's speech in the Areopagus apparently made a great impression on his listeners, but as soon as he got to the resurrection of Christ and the dead, confusion occurred in the ranks of those present. Many of the philosophers left the meeting, considering Paul's speech crazy and simply not worth attention. “The arrogance of the skeptics turned out to be more impenetrable than the fanaticism of the zealots of the Law.” However, it cannot be said that Paul suffered a complete defeat: “Some men, having joined Paul, believed; among them was Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damar, and others with them” (Acts). "This was the first trophy of the gospel in the center of philosophical paganism". But there were so few believers that they could not form even a small community.

Unexpected success awaited the apostle further: “in dissolute and frivolous Corinth there were more souls seeking faith and salvation than anywhere else before.” “Corinth stood on the route that ran along narrow isthmuses connecting central Greece with the Peloponnese, and therefore was a natural center of maritime trade, uniting western Lechaeum and eastern Cenchreae. Caesar Augustus declared it the capital of the Roman province of Achaia and the seat of its proconsul. During the time of Paul, the city experienced a period of restructuring and prosperity." In the center of the city there was an agora, or market square, where the main buildings for civil and religious purposes were located. The wide space of the agora was divided into two levels. The well-built upper level Rostra was probably the platform on which Paul appeared before Gallio (Acts 18:12-17). Reused paving stones found by archaeologists near two of the city's theaters bear an inscription stating that the pavement was laid by Erastus, the public works official (aedilis). He is usually identified with Erastus, who became Paul's disciple and co-worker (Acts 19:22). To Rome. 16:23 Paul calls him oikonomos, or “city treasurer.” “Thus, he was a prominent official and, accordingly, the words of the apostle that among those who were called there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many strong, not many noble (1 Cor. 1:26), did not apply to him.”

Paul lived for a year and a half in Corinth, where his pastoral gift developed in full force. From here he wrote his first pastoral letters to the Thessalonians: with their help, the apostle continued to guide the lives of the converts from a distance.

On the way back. Paul visited Jerusalem, where he received a lukewarm reception. Rumors had already spread about him as a blasphemer of the Law, a violator of Jewish foundations. To “correct” what Paul preached, Christian Jews went to the cities of Galatia where he founded churches and convinced the pagans to accept circumcision. Paul writes a letter to the Galatians, in which the thought of freedom from the Law in Christ runs like a red thread: “Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Jesus Christ... Stand therefore in the freedom which has been given to us Christ, and do not be subjected again to the yoke of slavery.” (Gal. 4:6-7; 5:1).

Paul planned the third journey, the longest, as a full circle around the Oecumene (the inhabited parts of the earthly circle according to the Greeks), because he already had the idea of ​​a universal Church - one, holy, catholic and apostolic. He later expounded this idea in his letter to the Ephesians. According to Paul's teaching, “all Christians are united together through union with the Lord in faith and baptism; By him the Church becomes a holy society, called out of the world to perform priestly service, to preach the Good News to all humanity.” . “When the Gospel, thanks to the ministry of St. Paul, began to spread among the pagans, and new communities were founded throughout the Roman world. Each of these communities was to become the same most Church. In each of them the same Eucharistic meal was celebrated, transforming the community into the Body of Christ ... each of these communities was considered as a Catholic Church ... ".

Three years ap. Paul lived and preached in Ephesus, founding the Ephesian Church. Subsequently, Paul was especially revered by the local Christian community. “The Austrian archaeologist Renat Pillinger discovered in 1995 in a cave, about one and a half kilometers from the ruins of ancient Ephesus, a painting depicting the Apostle Paul and about three hundred inscriptions left by pilgrims. Many of them are appeals to the apostle asking for help and intercession.” Ephesus, with a population of at least a quarter of a million inhabitants, was the main city of the Roman province of Asia. The port of Ephesus was a link in the maritime trade between the West and the East. Judging by the available literary and documentary evidence, this city possessed untold wealth. According to the Roman Strabo, this was where the main market of Asia Minor was located. The city owed much of its wealth and glory to the cult of Artemis, the mother goddess identified by the Romans with Diana. Her cult was associated with the fertility of the human race and livestock. This cult was nationwide, as evidenced by the words of the silversmith Demetrius, who speaks of the greatness of her “whom all Asia and the world reverence” (Acts 19:27). The Temple of Artemis at Ephesus was considered one of the “seven wonders of the world.” The month of Artemisium (March-April) was a time when the temple and local merchants received huge funds from travelers and pilgrims. Perhaps it was this abundance of people that prompted Paul to remain in Ephesus until Pentecost (1 Cor. 16:8-9). It was at this time that discontent could flare up, caused by the economic consequences of his preaching and the “jealousy of the gods.” The crowd, set up by the silversmith Demetrius, gathered in a huge theater located on the western slope of Mount Pion, facing the city. It is believed that this theater could accommodate up to 24,550 people.

Despite the fact that the sermon in Ephesus ended in a riot by the fanatics of the goddess Artemis, in general it can be said that the time Paul spent in this city was not in vain. The fact that the Asian bosses (“ asiarchs- managers of religious ceremonies and spectacles... were elected by the councils of Asian cities, and in their position they were, as it were, trustees of the emperor, the supreme high priest") during the rebellion stood up for Paul, convinced him that Christianity had established itself in this city.

During his travels, Paul appointed bishops in the cities (Titus, Timothy), as well as his proteges, disciples (Erastus, Aquilla and Priscilla, Apollos, etc.), who prepared the ground for further preaching, monitored the mood and situation in the communities, and conveyed messages and Paul's commissions. Thanks to this arrangement of the work, ap. It was easier for Paul to exercise pastoral leadership over the Churches, maintain unity and communication between them and ensure the preservation of the apostolic faith. “Paul’s letters testify to his constant and living connection with the communities he founded... every line he wrote shows how strongly he felt responsibility for souls, for the Church, for each of those “for whom he was in the throes of birth, so that he could be portrayed as them Christ."

During the period of the apostle's stay in Ephesus, the Corinthian Church experienced a crisis of division and morality, which was successfully healed through the efforts of Paul (epistles and visit to Corinth). The Apostle again called the Corinthians to unity in Christ, saying: “...you are the body of Christ” (1 Cor. 12:27). During this crisis, the debate about the Law moved to another level: whether the Law of Moses was still binding or had already been abolished. Paul answers this question unequivocally: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; The old things have passed away, the new things have come” (2 Cor. 5:17).

Having established the Ephesian Church, Paul intended to go to Corinth, then to Jerusalem (2 Cor. 1:15-16), from Jerusalem he thought to take a trip to Rome, and from there to Spain (Acts 19:21; Rom. 15:24- 28). Most likely, Paul wrote his letter to the Romans from Corinth. “Since the disagreements between the Jews and the pagans were almost a common illness from which the then Churches suffered, the teacher of languages ​​in the Epistle to the Roman Church, as the most famous among the newly established Churches, expounded at length his teaching regarding the relationship between circumcised and uncircumcised Christians, and this led him to an explanation dogmas about the spiritual impotence and irresponsibility before God of the entire human race, about the properties of justifying faith and about the responsibilities that it imposes on Christians.” . The Epistle to the Romans is considered the most important of Paul's epistles and, as it were, briefly sets out his teaching.

Having collected the offerings of all the Churches he founded in Greece, Paul went to Jerusalem, where his journey ended with his arrest. On the way, he stopped at Miletus, calling the elders of Ephesus for a farewell conversation (Acts 20:17). This conversation became the first speech addressed to pastors in the history of the Church. In it up. Paul calls on the clergy to be vigilant and take care of the spiritual state of the flock, to support the poor and wretched, the “weak.” Paul's words about the suffering ahead of him were supposed to remind the elders of the sacrifice of their service, which involves, if necessary, laying down their souls for their flock. In fact, this is an instruction to all clergy in general for all times, in which the words of Paul “I commend you, brethren, to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to edify you more and to give you an inheritance with all those who are sanctified” (Acts 20:32) sound like apostolic blessing.

According to legend, the Apostle Paul was executed on the same day as the Holy Apostle Peter in Rome, June 29, under Emperor Nero, who, according to St. Chrysostom, for turning his cupbearer to the faith of Christ, ordered his soldiers to seize the apostle and kill him. The title of Roman citizen freed the ap. Paul from death on the cross, which in Rome was considered the most shameful execution, and he was beheaded by the sword in 67 A.D., 68 years from birth.

3. The first three journeys of the ap. Paul, according to very probable calculations, lasted twelve years. Paul testifies about what he had to endure during the period of his apostleship: “I was in many labors, in wounds even more, several times on the verge of death, three times I was beaten with sticks, once with stones, three times the ship with me capsized , so I spent day and night in the depths of the sea, while traveling I constantly experienced troubles: from robbers, from relatives, from pagans, in cities, in deserts, by sea, among false brothers, I was in hunger and thirst, in labor and exhaustion , often in fasting, in cold and nakedness” (2 Cor. 10:23-29). The space measured by the feet of the Apostle begins with Arabia and ends with Illyria (Gal. 1:17; Rom. 15:19). The main place of its action was Asia Minor and Greece, because many people flocked here from all over the world, which could serve to quickly spread Christianity. “A deep conviction in the truth of the teachings he preached, a clear understanding of Christian truths, calm courage in the face of all kinds of dangers, an extraordinary knowledge of the human heart and the naturally captivating power of eloquence with the grace-filled gifts of the Holy Spirit contributed to his extraordinary successes. Many Christian communities throughout almost the entire Roman Empire from east to west consider him their founder” [Evgraf Smirnov, “History of the Christian Church,” cit. according to 8, p.11]. Christianity was so successfully spread by the preaching of Paul that in the Epistle to the Romans one could already say: “The voice of the preachers spread throughout all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world” (Rom. 10:18). Saint Justin Martyr in the 2nd century wrote: “There is no longer a people in the world among whom praises would not be raised to the Father and Creator of all in the name of Jesus Christ” [Conversation with Tryphon, ch. 17., op. to 6, p. 23].

The spread of Christianity was facilitated by the union of many peoples in one Roman Empire. The Roman world into which it came was distinguished by the same diversity of religious schools and views as our time. The inhabitants of the Empire were, for the most part, polytheists. Polytheism, with its host of gods, always tolerated new gods, and the triumph of Hellenic culture was largely a consequence of this syncretism. Rome had countless secret cults of Greek, Asian and Egyptian origin, which went back to the ancient religious cult of nature with its veneration of the dying-reborn god of life. Since the time of Alexander the Great, it has been customary to deify rulers not only after death, but also during life. The cult of the emperor was perceived as a means of strengthening the unity of the empire.

Judaism in the Roman world was treated with contempt and suspicion as a harmful religion, for what seemed holy and sublime to the Roman pagans was rejected by the Jews as abominable. Nevertheless, the Romans considered the Jews to be a people and, as a result, gave them special privileges. The laws of Moses in one way or another influenced the lives of many inhabitants of the Empire, and yet Judaism, unlike Christianity, never posed a particular threat to paganism.

The attitude towards Christianity from the very beginning was much less favorable, since it was considered nothing more than a sectarian teaching that broke away from Judaism, and had no legal status, since Christians could not be called either a nation or a people. Jews were exempted from the obligatory worship of the Roman gods and the emperor, but this freedom did not extend to Christians, which could not but lead to persecution of them as persons guilty of high treason.

Despite the fact that educated people were suspicious of the new religion, considering it a kind of strange superstition, and broad sections of the population hated Christianity, seeing in it an “atheistic” teaching and considering all national troubles and adversities to be a consequence of its spread, which aroused the wrath of the gods, Christians nothing could stop it. “At the end of paganism, the Gospel gave people - especially the poor and disadvantaged - hope and a sense of security. Over time, it was able to conquer the minds of pagan intellectuals. Already in the 3rd century, the dreams of Emperor Augustus about a new world order, based on classical idealism, came to an end: the old culture was dying, and the Christian teaching about man and society became the teaching about salvation." Tertullian at the beginning of the 3rd century wrote to the pagans: “We we have only existed, so to speak, since yesterday and are already filling everything: your cities, islands, castles, suburbs, councils, camps, tribes, dicurias, court, senate, forum; We leave you only your temples.” [Apology, ch. 37., op. to 6, p. 23-24].

What happened next? “Post-pagan Christianity was finally freed from its Judeo-Christian roots... The factors of the fall of Jerusalem and the constant influx of converts from paganism themselves resolved the issue of freedom from the Law, for which the Apostle Paul had fought for so long. The sheer number of converts and the geographical spread of the Church throughout the Mediterranean world gave it a complete identity and sense of catholicity. The awareness of being in the apostolic succession also no longer necessarily and exclusively connected her with Jerusalem: throughout the East there were many churches founded by the apostles, and in the West there was a capital - Rome, consecrated by the martyrdom of Peter and Paul.

Thus, Paul, through his labors, laid the foundation of the One Universal Church. He fulfilled his mission as the apostle of the tongues: he truly revealed the mystery of God’s economy, which is “that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, members of one body, and partakers of the promise... in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 3:6).

List of used literature

• 1. Georgy Orlov. Church of Christ. Stories from the history of the Christian Church. Publishing house "Satis", S-P. 1996 - 198 p.
• 2. Dvorkin A. Essays on the history of the Ecumenical Orthodox Church. Christian Library, Nizhny Novgorod, 2006 - 935 p.
• 3. J. Ernest Wright. Biblical archaeology. G. Ernest Wright. Biblical Archaeology, Philadelphia, 1960, translated from English by A. Czech - 115 p.
• 4. Archpriest Alexander Men. The first apostles. Internet edition of the Omega Web Center, 2003 (PSTGU Electronic Library) - 231 p.
• 5. Archpriest Alexander Shmeman. The historical path of Orthodoxy. Chekhov Publishing House, New York, 1954 (PSTGU Electronic Library) -260 p.
• 6. Archpriest Peter Smirnov. History of the Church. According to the 1903 edition, St. Petersburg. Revised edition, 2004. ©Holy Trinity Orthodox Mission. Under the general editorship of His Eminence Alexander (Mileant), Bishop of Buenos Aires and South America. - 142 p.
• 7. Saint Innocent of Kherson. Life of Saint Apostle Paul. Moscow Compound of the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, M., 2000, Internet edition of the Omega Web Center, 2001 (PSTGU Electronic Library) - 43 p.
• 8. Talberg N.D. History of the Church. Kyiv, 2004 - 170 p.
• 9. Tim Dowley. Biblical atlas. Russian Bible Society, 2003 -31 p.
• 10. Theophylact, arch. Bulgarian. Interpretation of the Acts of the Holy Apostles. Internet edition of the Omega Web Center, 2003 (PSTGU Electronic Library) -108 p.