Originally Posted by storytime

Paul may have earned high enough status among his fellow Pharisee priests being educated with that sect and being a Roman citizen also, and could have been seen by Roman officials as a very beneficial fellow to them.

This is speculation on Paul's being a double agent. I can imagine that he was, partly due to his "Israel [Jew] first" policy and his knowing his laws and tradition. For Paul to claim himself being an educated Pharisee, "a Pharisee of the Pharisees" and not know the Jewish laws and tradition that could not accept any man not circumcised and unwilling to observe the laws of Moses, is stranger than fiction. For Paul to seek a means of protecting Jerusalem and his brethren Jews by giving Gentiles hope in a sky kingdom but not inheritance with the Jews in land rights seems a perfect conspiracy, imo, at the moment - because I may speculate a little differently later on.

But ask yourself, in those days, why would a Jewish Pharisee travel throughout the Roman Empire teaching a gospel of hope to Gentiles when his Jewish laws and tradition strictly prohibited uncircumcised and lawless people from inheritance rights equal to Jews? The "promised land" was given to Jews. Nothing was given to Gentiles. But to detour the Gentiles away from Jewish rights in land, to erect a wall of defense against the Gentiles, Paul gives the Gentiles a heavenly home to satisfy their desire for a place to call their own. They would have a place in the world to come as Paul directed their attention skyward. Would Paul's gospel then be of benefit to Rome also?

And why didn't Jewish leaders see Paul's gospel as a barrier of protection for their Jewish tradition and land rights? Maybe some did. Keeping the Gentiles busy looking skyward for their heavenly reward as their inheritance, while the Jews continued doing their Jewish thing maintaining their land and worship practices seems like a pretty good conspiracy plot for building a fence around Jerusalem [Jews, Judaism] to me.

Originally Posted by mountainman

We should remember that Paul was also cast as an agent of Aesop by the unknown author of "The Acts of Paul [and Thecla]". What is as yet entirely unlcear to the world is the relationship of the author of "The Acts of Paul and Thecla" to the unknown author of the fourteen letters of "Paul". Eusebius and his continuators purport that this person "Paul" was the author of the fourteen letters however modern scholarship rejects this possibility.