Question

section 2: st. paul: from persecutor to apostle

1. stephen, a _______________ in the early church, was the first christian

_______________. he was put to death by jewish authorities
_______________ by his preaching, which they considered
_______________ teaching about jesus. in the face of cruelty, he
_______________ those who stoned him to death. in doing so, he followed the
_______________ of jesus on the cross and set an example for all
_______________ martyrs who would follow.

1. saul, whose _______________ name was paul, was a strict

_______________ who fiercely supported the effort to wipe out christianity.
he stood by as _______________ was executed. he received an excellent
_____________ education and studied to be a _____________ under the
famous jewish teacher gamaliel. his upbringing in _______________ exposed
him to gentile religions, _______________, and customs.

1. read the sections on the preaching of st. paul and the writing of st. paul and circle

true or false appropriately based on your understanding of this section.
31a true false st. paul had a profound influence on the church in the way he
spread the gospel by both preaching and teaching, and writing.
31b true false when paul preached in public, it was often to gentiles who were
attracted to jesus’s message of love, forgiveness, and freedom
from sin and death.
31c true false st. paul, was one of the twelve apostles called personally by jesus
even though he is not mentioned by name in the gospels.
31d true false paul wrote his epistles to christian communities throughout the
roman empire which had been established by some of the other
apostles.
31e true false most of st. paul’s preaching was limited to the area of palestine,
with an important focus on converting the jews in jerusalem to
christianity.
31f true false paul would routinely preach to the jews in synagogues,
attempting to persuade them that jesus was the long - awaited
messiah.
31g true false one of the most profound images st. paul uses to describe the
church is the vine and the branches.
31h true false st. paul’s missionary zeal meant that he closely shared in the
apostolic ministry of the twelve.
31i true false the titles of many of paul’s letters are the names of the cities to
whom he was writing.
31j true false st. paul wrote a majority of the new testament epistles which
complement the gospels and that propose powerful images of the
church.

Explanation:

These questions relate to early Christian history and figures from the New Testament, focusing on the first Christian martyr Stephen and the apostle Paul. The fill-in-the-blanks are based on biblical accounts, and the true/false questions test knowledge of Paul's ministry, writings, and role in the early Church.

Answer:

1. Stephen, a deacon in the early Church, was the first Christian martyr. He was put to death by Jewish authorities angered by his preaching, which they considered blasphemous teaching about Jesus. In the face of cruelty, he forgave those who stoned him to death. In doing so, he followed the example of Jesus on the Cross and set an example for all future martyrs who would follow.

1. Saul, whose Roman name was Paul, was a strict Pharisee who fiercely supported the effort to wipe out Christianity. He stood by as Stephen was executed. He received an excellent Jewish education and studied to be a rabbi under the famous Jewish teacher Gamaliel. His upbringing in Tarsus exposed him to Gentile religions, cultures, and customs.

31.
31a. True
31b. True
31c. False (Paul was not one of the original Twelve Apostles)
31d. True
31e. False (Paul preached widely across the Roman Empire, not just Palestine)
31f. True
31g. True
31h. False (Paul worked independently from the Twelve Apostles on his missionary journeys)
31i. True
31j. True