Cornelius explains the circumstances that compelled
him to send for Peter.
Peter
then began to speak and said: " I truly understand that God does
not have special regard for any particular people, but in every
nation he who fears Him and whose acts are just is pleasing to Him.
He has sent word to the sons of Israel, announcing to them the good
news of peace through Jesus Christ; He is the Lord of all men. "
Acts
X, 34 - 36
According to Christian tradition, Cornelius was the first uncircumcised
man to be baptized. Caesarea is also known as the place that Paul (ex-Saul)
was detained. Accused by the rabbis in Jerusalem of fomenting trouble,
he awaited the verdict of the Roman authorities that deliberated his
fate for two years. He presented his case, in particular, to the king,
Agrippa, to whom he related his activities against the early Christians
and his own conversion to their doctrine:
The conversion of Paul
To this end, I went to Damascus, with the
authority and the permission of the high priests. Around mid-day,
your highness, while on the road, my traveling companions and I were
surrounded by a light brighter than the sun, descending from the sky.
We all fell to the ground and I heard a voice telling me in Hebrew:
" Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is difficult for you to
resist the prod. " I replied: " Who are you, Lord? " And the Lord
said: " It is I, Jesus, whom you persecute. Rise and stand; for this
is why I have appeared to you. I have destined you to be a servant
and a witness to what you have seen (of me) and to what you will see.
I took you from the midst of this people and the pagans, to whom I
will send you to open their eyes so that they may turn away from darkness
to the light, from the power of Satan to God and so that they may
receive forgiveness for their sins and a heritage along with those
who are sanctified by faith in me. " Consequently, King Agrippa, I
did not disobey the celestial vision; but I imparted the good news
of repentance and conversion to God
through good actions worthy of repentance.
For this reason, the Jews seized me in the Temple and have tried
to put me to death. But thanks to God's protection, I have survived
until today and I bear witness before the small and the great, without
saying anything beyond what the prophets and Moses announced would
happen, that is, that Christ would suffer and that, as the first
to rise from the dead, he would declare the light to the people
and to the pagans.
Acts
XXVI, 12 - 23
In the end, Paul would be taken to Rome and condemned to submit
to Nero's judgment.
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