Born a Roman citizen in Turkey, Paul was an avid persecutor of the Christians in Jerusalem. Traveling on the road to Damascus, he was thrown from his horse when he had a vision of Christ. After his sudden conversion, he traveled extensively, preaching, writing, and organizing churches, to the dismay of local authorities. He was sent to Rome to be tried for sedition and his ship ran aground at Malta, where he was bitten by a snake and survived. He was later beheaded in Rome.