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Activities
for
individuals or groups
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St Paul, by El Greco |
Imagine
an alternate world
What if Paul
had not been converted, but had continued rounding up and imprisoning
Christians, whom he saw as heretics?
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What
might the world look like now?
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Would
Christianity have developed in a different way?
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Just how important was
Paul to the development of the Christian church?
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How
did he shape the communities he visited? Give some examples.
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What
difference has Paul's faith in Christ made to your own life?
Analyzing
the letters
Analyze Paul’s first Letter to the Thessalonians.
Choose
one of the Letters of St Paul.
Give
the background to the Letter: when was it written? To what sort of people?
Why?
What
response did Paul give to the concern of the church members?
How
were Gentile Christians to live?
What
message does this Letter have for us today?
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Map showing
the countries through which St Paul travelled as he spread
the story of Jesus and built the early church communities |
Famous
Quotes
'There is no longer Jew or
Greek, slave or free, male and female; for all of you are one in Christ
Jesus.' (Galatians 3:28)
'For the whole Law is summed
up in one commandment: 'Love your neighbor as you love yourself.'
(Galatians 5:14)
'Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ.' Romans 5:1
'....so we, who are many, are one body in Christ....' (Romans 12:5)
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Read
and think about the 'Famous Quotes' above.
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Put each of these into your own words, and
then apply them to a particular part of your own life - as if you were one
of the early Christians receiving a Letter from Paul.
 Just
as
relevant today
Go through one of Paul's Letters and make a list of the best pieces of
advice he gives to the people to whom he is writing.
Do they apply to your own
life today?
Why not write a letter back, telling him how they've helped
you? Or complain about problems you have that he does not seem to address?
Focus
Questions
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St Paul
Writing His Epistles,
Valentin de Boulogne or Nicolas Tournier |
1.
What are the most interesting things about Paul's story?
2. Choose one of his Letters. Read it through from beginning to end. In the
Letter, who is the audience - it changes of course for each letter.
What are the characteristics of a particular audience? - you can work this
out by searching for clues in the Letter. Be a detective.
3. What is the image of God that Paul presents? What does this tell us
about Paul? Do you agree with this image?
4. What can you find out about the city/community to which Paul wrote? Its
location, its particular problems, what sort of place it was?
5. Paul does not give us all the clues we'd like. What has been left out that you would like to
know?
6. Are the characteristics and actions addressed still
present in the world? How is the Letter relevant to modern life, especially
your own?
Extra
Websites in the left column have background information
and ideas.
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