ns 5:8, Paul writes, "We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord" (King James Version [KJV]), states that he does not necessarily indicate are mutually exclusive but that can occur concurrently, as the "and to be present" suggests. It is this tension between the Christian's life on earth and his simultaneous citizenship in heaven that has caused Paul to be labeled a mystic, and this paper will examine that aspect of Paul's writings as well.
Paul was born in the Cilician town of Tarsus, in Asia Minor, as a Hebrew named Saul from the tribe of Benjamin (Milean, 2001). A descendent of Jews set free from Roman slavery, Paul was a full Roman citizen with all the pertinent rights of such citizenship (Mileant, 2001). An educated man, he was acquainted with the pagan culture, as his speeches and writings give evidence, and he studied in rabbinical school under the noted teacher Gamaliel (Mileant, 2001). Gamaliel was "considered an expert on the law and despite belonging to the party of Pharisees, was a freethinking person (Acts 5:34) and an admirer of Greek wisdom" (Mileant, 2001). It appears that Saul was preparing to become a rabbi, and after completing his education, "he emerged as a strong zealot of pharisaic traditions and persecutor of the Christian faith" (Mileant, 2001).
Saul witnessed the death of Stephen as recounted in Acts 7:48-8:1 and was then authorized to persecute Christians beyond Palestine's borders, in Damascus (Acts 9:1-2) (Mileant, 2001). However, the Lord designated Paul as a "chosen vessel," and in a miraculous event, Saul become converted on the road to Damascus. Subsequently baptized by Ananias, Saul "became a zealous preacher of the teachings he had formerly persecuted" and a committed apostle of Christ (Mileant, 2001). The predominant theme in Paul's teachings was that "man is justified by faith, independent of deeds of the law" ...