THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ST. PAUL. 101 



on isolated texts divorced from their context and foundation, 

 passages of Scripture, and some of those texts mistranslations. 



Archdeacon Potter said that it seemed to him that one of the 

 principal causes of the conversion of St. Paul was the fact that he 

 had come into contact with followers of our Lord who showed in 

 their lives the influence of His teaching and life (as, e.g., St. Stephen). 

 Previously fco such experience we can imagine him in all seriousness 

 thinking of the early Christians, as Tacitus and Suetonius wrote of 

 them : "a class hated for their abominations," " a most mischievous 

 (exsecrabilis) superstition," "hating mankind," "a new and impious 

 superstition " (nova et malefica). But that the Apostle's heart was 

 ready for conviction, when evidence appealing to it was forthcoming, 

 Ave see in his broadhearted and noble speech later at Athens. 



The CHAIRMAN thanked Mr. Marston for the new and interesting 

 confirmation which he had placed before them of the fact that 

 St. Paul was sane. St. Paul's sanity could indeed take care of itself 

 as well as his character. It was difficult to read with patience much 

 that was written about St. Paul. The article in the Quarterly 

 fieview to which Mr. Marston referred was an outrage, not only on 

 St. Paul, but also on all those who had ever written about him. If 

 no one had understood St. Paul until that article was written, then 

 certainly no one at the present day could be said to understand him 

 either. A simple way in which to decide whether St. Paul was sane 

 or no was to read his Epistles. In his (the Chairman's) opinion no 

 controversial literature could be put on a level with the Pauline 

 Epistles, so straight and forcible and with arguments so powerful 

 concentrated into such small space. 



There was one other thought which he would wish to lay before 

 them. Christian theology was alleged to be Pauline; it was 

 suggested that Christianity was originated by St. Paul. But this 

 was to forget that St. Paul did not come after the cult of Christi- 

 anity had been started and divert it into new lines. He was a 

 contemporary of Christ. When he was converted, he was converted 

 into the belief that a contemporary of his own, a Man of his own 

 generation, was God Incarnate. It was not only on the Damascus 

 road that he held interviews with our Lord and received instruction 

 from Him. Witness what he received from our Lord with respect to 

 the Communion. He received instruction and revelation from Him 

 many times. It had been urged that there was a great difference 



