Paul the Apostle

Born Saul of Tarsus around 5 AD, he lived as a Pharisee and helped hunt down early followers of Jesus. On his way to arrest Christians in Damascus, he saw a bright light, heard Christ speak, went blind, and was later healed by Ananias - after which he was baptized and immediately began preaching that Jesus was the messiah. From the mid-40s to mid-50s AD he made three missionary journeys, founding Christian communities across Asia Minor and Europe and personally knowing Jesus's closest disciples and brother by the mid-30s AD. Fourteen New Testament books bear his name; seven are undisputed as his, the rest debated or considered written by followers. His letters remain foundational to Christian theology in both Western and Eastern traditions, though he's been accused of corrupting the faith with Hellenistic ideas - a view shifting recently toward seeing him as fundamentally Jewish, aligned with the original Jerusalem circle.