Editing Paul the Apostle (section)

===Persecutor of early Christians===
[[File:Conversion on the Way to Damascus-Caravaggio (c.1600-1).jpg|thumb|upright=1|''[[Conversion on the Way to Damascus]]'', a 1601 portrait by [[Caravaggio]]]]
Paul says that before [[Conversion of Paul the Apostle|his conversion]],<ref>{{Bibleverse|Galatians|1:13–14}}, {{Bibleverse|Philippians|3:6}}, {{Bibleverse|Acts|8:1–3}}</ref> he persecuted early Christians "beyond measure", more specifically Hellenised diaspora Jewish members who had returned to the area of [[Early centers of Christianity#Jerusalem|Jerusalem]].{{sfn|Dunn|2009|pp=246–47, 277}}{{refn|group=note|name="persecution"|Acts 8:1 "at Jerusalem"; Acts 9:13 "at Jerusalem"; Acts 9:21 "in Jerusalem"; Acts 26:10 "in Jerusalem". In Galatians 1:13, Paul states that he "persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it," but does not specify where he persecuted the church. In Galatians 1:22 he states that more than three years after his conversion he was "still unknown by sight to the churches of Judea that are in Christ," seemingly ruling out Jerusalem as the place he had persecuted Christians.<ref name="dalemartin">{{Cite web |title=Introduction to the New Testament History and Literature – 5. The New Testament as History |url=http://oyc.yale.edu/religious-studies/rlst-152/lecture-5 |website=Open Yale Courses |publisher=Yale University |year=2009 |first=Dale B. |last=Martin}}</ref>}} According to [[James Dunn (theologian)|James Dunn]], the Jerusalem community consisted of "Hebrews", Jews speaking both Aramaic and Greek, and "Hellenists", Jews speaking only Greek, possibly diaspora Jews who had resettled in Jerusalem.{{sfn|Dunn|2009|pp=246–47}} Paul's initial persecution of Christians probably was directed against these Greek-speaking "Hellenists" due to their anti-Temple attitude.{{sfn|Dunn|2009|p=277}} Within the early Jewish Christian community, this also set them apart from the "Hebrews" and their continuing participation in the Temple cult.{{sfn|Dunn|2009|p=277}}