Paul and the Origins of Christianity : How Did a Jewish Pharisee Change the Religion of Jesus ?
✨ There are no original copies of Paul’s letters… So should we believe in an illusion ?
( Part 8 of 8 )
✨ Here begins the journey to uncover the truth...
There are no original copies of any of Paul’s letters.
All we have today are copies made centuries after his death.
The oldest complete manuscript of the New Testament
( Codex Sinaiticus ) dates back to the 4th century AD—300 years after Paul!
Did Paul really write his letters ?
Where did his handwriting disappear ?
And why do we trust copies that came centuries after him ?
❖ When we read about " Paul’s letters " in the New Testament, we imagine texts written by Paul himself — or at least dictated by him during his time.
But the shocking truth, unknown to many — even many priests don’t mention it — is that not a single original copy in Paul’s handwriting exists.
All we have today are very late copies, transcribed by unknown scribes whose identities and beliefs we know nothing about.
This isn’t just theoretical talk — it’s a fact acknowledged by leading Christian scholars specializing in biblical criticism.
❖ First Truth : No Original Manuscripts of Paul’s Letters Exist
There are no letters written by Paul’s own hand available today.
We don’t even have copies from the 1st century AD — the century in which Paul supposedly wrote.
The letters attributed to Paul were not written by him. After years of research, both Catholic and Protestant scholars agree that out of the thirteen letters attributed to Paul, only seven are genuinely his : Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, Philemon, and 1 Thessalonians.
✦ The Shocking Truth : Why Are There Forged Letters in the " Holy Bible " Under Paul’s Name ?
Despite most scholars today agreeing that at least 6 out of the 13 letters attributed to Paul were not written by him , they remain part of the New Testament—forming the basis of faith for millions.
The Six Forged ( Fabricated ) Epistles Include :
✦ 1 Timothy & 2 Timothy
✦ Titus, Ephesians
✦ Colossians
✦ 2 Thessalonians
✦ Hebrews (often not attributed to Paul even by the Church; the author is unknown)
✦ " Timothy " and " Titus " were written years after Paul's death.
According to linguistic and historical studies, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus—known as the "Pastoral Epistles"—were most likely written between 90 - 130 AD, long after Paul's death.
Yet, they contain instructions in Paul’s name regarding church organization and the appointment of priests and bishops. In other words, they portray Paul as legislating a church hierarchy that did not even exist during his lifetime!
◉ Why haven’t they been removed from the Bible even after the truth was uncovered ?
◉ Because removing them now would threaten the authority of the Church, which was built upon these texts.
◉ And because publicly admitting they
are " forged texts " would practically
mean admitting that the Bible is not divinely inspired.
◉ Paul’s " fake epistles " were a tool to solidify the Church’s authority.
This is why clergy keep them, resorting to lenient explanations or justifications, while independent scholars expose the truth.
☚ The early Church was not unanimous in accepting Paul’s epistles.
The Ebionites — one of the earliest followers of Christ — rejected all of Paul’s letters and considered him an apostate from the Law.
Even Marcion , who was among the first to compile a collection of Paul’s epistles, was deemed a heretic — despite being the first to give Paul a central status!
☚ This shows that the acceptance of Paul was not universal in the early Church but came later with the dominance of Pauline theology.
◉ Paul was not an apostle according to the definition of apostles in the Gospels
Let us not forget that Christ does not mention Paul’s name in the four Gospels. Paul never saw Christ alive, was not one of the twelve disciples, and did not witness the crucifixion. Instead, he suddenly appeared claiming to have "seen a vision."
☚ Yet, later, the Church considered him the "Apostle to the Gentiles"—even more important than Christ’s own disciples!
✦ A shocking fact many people don’t know: Paul’s letters do not mention Christ’s life, teachings, or the event of His crucifixion.
In the New Testament, Paul’s letters (also known as the Pauline epistles) are among the most important sources that shaped Christian doctrine as we know it today. However, there is a shocking revelation that many are unaware of :
❖ Paul’s letters contain almost nothing about Jesus’ life, His sayings, His miracles, or even details of His crucifixion and resurrection as described in the Gospels!
This is not an exaggeration… but a fact acknowledged by New Testament scholars themselves. Let’s examine this truth in detail :
First : Paul says nothing about Jesus’ life
While the Gospels speak of :
- Jesus’ birth
- His lineage through Mary and Joseph
- His childhood and flight to Egypt
- His miracles (healing, raising the dead, walking on water…)
- His encounters with the disciples
- His Sermon on the Mount
- His 40 - day fast in the wilderness
- His teaching of the Law
- His entry into the Temple and expulsion of the merchants
- The moments of His death and suffering on the cross
Paul, on the other hand :
❌ Mentions none of this!
❌ Does not discuss any event from Jesus’ life!
❌ Does not even mention the names
" Mary ," " Joseph, " or " Nazareth "!
In fact, Paul knew nothing about Jesus’ life.
Second : Paul Does Not Quote Jesus' Teachings
In the Gospels, Jesus presents moral teachings such as :
- " Love your enemies ."
- " If someone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also ."
- " Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy ."
- " Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth ."
- " Not everyone who says to me, ‘ Lord, Lord ,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father ."
Yet Paul does not quote any of these teachings.
In fact, scholars agree that Paul does not reference Jesus' sayings in the 13 letters attributed to him.
🔹 One of the most prominent scholars, James Dunn, wrote :
" The striking thing about Paul’s letters is the almost complete absence of references to Jesus’ sayings... Paul writes as if Jesus had never been a teacher ."
Third : Paul Does Not Mention the Crucifixion Story
Strangely, Paul :
❌ Does not mention anything about Jesus’ trial
❌ Does not mention that Jesus was crucified between two thieves
❌ Does not mention Peter denying Jesus
❌ Does not mention Jesus saying, " My God, my God, why have you forsaken me ?"
❌ Does not mention Joseph of Arimathea, Jesus’ burial, or the guard at the tomb
Instead, all Paul says is :
" Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures ." —
( 1 Corinthians 15 : 3 )
Paul’s entire focus is on " Christ’s death as an atoning sacrifice ," a concept he himself developed.
Fourth : Paul Never Knew Jesus .
Paul never saw Jesus in his life. He was not one of His disciples. He never sat with Him. He never heard Him preach. On the contrary, he was an enemy of His followers and violently persecuted them.
Then, according to his own account, he saw a vision that he claimed was Jesus appearing to him from heaven.
" But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me... I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me ."
— ( Galatians 1 : 15 - 17 )
This means he did not learn from Jesus’ disciples or from Jesus’ teachings. Instead, he derived his doctrine from a private vision that no one else witnessed!
This is an extremely critical point.
Fifth : Paul Was Not Interested in Jesus.
Throughout his epistles, Paul does not focus on Jesus as a human but presents Him as a divine being :
- " Who, being in the form of God..."
- " By Him all things were created ."
- " In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead."
- "He gave Himself as a sacrifice for us."
It is as if Paul invented a new " Christ "
—one who does not resemble the real Jesus described in the Gospels.
Jesus the Prophet was a servant of God, a human who called people to repentance, to worship God alone, to do good, and to seek forgiveness through obedience and righteous deeds.
But Paul introduced a completely different Christ :
A god who dies and is resurrected, whose death
— rather than obedience to God
—atones for sins, and whose " grace " abolishes the Law!
This Christ resembles ancient mythological heroes
—like Osiris, Dionysus, and Tammuz
—who die and rise again, surrounded by rituals that replace obedience and worship with blind faith that " His blood is enough !"
Thus, Paul transformed Christ from a prophet calling people to God… into a god crucified for sins!
This " Pauline Christ " has no connection to the message of the prophets. Instead, it is a new religion invented by a man who never knew Jesus and never heard Him speak.
This is not a message from heaven—it is a myth fabricated by Paul, which the world came to believe.
✦ Christ in Islam : Returning to the Truth
What Paul did was not preaching Christ—rather, it was the creation of a new religion, blending Greek philosophy with pagan symbols, and erasing the essence of the divine message that Jesus called to:
Returning to God, repentance, and righteous deeds.
While Paul distorted the message of Christ, Islam came to restore matters to their rightful place and to redefine Jesus , peace be upon him, as he truly was:
A noble prophet, a servant of God, among the resolute messengers, who was neither killed nor crucified—but rather, God raised him to Himself.
The call of Jesus in the Quran is the same as that of all the prophets :
" 51) Indeed, Allah is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him. That is the straight path."
( Quran 3 : 51 )
Not as Paul portrayed him : a crucified god or a human sacrifice atoning for the sins of mankind!
Allah says :
" 75) The Messiah, son of Mary, was not but a messenger; [other] messengers have passed on before him. And his mother was a supporter of truth. They both used to eat food. Look how We make clear to them the signs; then look how they are deluded. "
( Quran 5 : 75 )
On the Day of Judgment, God will question Jesus before all creation :
And Allah will say,
" 116) And [beware the Day] when Allah will say, "O Jesus, Son of Mary, did you say to the people, 'Take me and my mother as deities besides Allah?'" He will say, "Exalted are You! It was not for me to say that to which I have no right. If I had said it, You would have known it. You know what is within myself, and I do not know what is within Yourself. Indeed, it is You who is Knower of the unseen.
117) I said not to them except what you commanded me – to worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord. And I was a witness over them as long as I was among them; but when You took me up, You were the Observer over them, and You are, over all things, Witness.
118) If You should punish them – indeed they are Your servants; but if You forgive them – indeed it is You who is the Exalted in Might, the Wise.
119) Allah will say, "This is the Day when the truthful will benefit from their truthfulness." For them are gardens [in Paradise] beneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide forever, Allah being pleased with them, and they with Him. That is the great attainment. 120) To Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and whatever is within them. And He is over all things competent."
( Quran 5 :116 - 120 )
If you seek the real Jesus, you will not find him in the letters of Paul—but you will find him in the Quran, the word of God.
To become a Muslim does not mean you abandon Jesus—rather, it means you hold fast to him as he truly was: a pure prophet who called people to worship God alone. Islam does not dishonor Jesus; it saves him from the myths falsely attached to him. Jesus never said, " I am God " — he said , " I am a servant of God ." To embrace Islam is to love Jesus and follow him—not to elevate him above the station God placed him in
