If "the typical universalistic view of the personality of Saint Paul, at least that of the Christian Paul, after the event on the road to Damascus, was certainly boosted by his faith in Jesus Christ", went on the Pope, "even the historical and cultural situation of his time and his milieu must have certainly affected his choices and his work". "Someone defined Paul ‘the man of three cultures’ pointed out the Pope in this respect , considering his Judaic origin, his Greek language and his privilege as a ‘civis romanus’, as is also proven by his Latin name". Another important factor was the influence of the Stoic philosophy, "which prevailed in Paul’s time and that also affected, even if marginally, Christianity", which assimilated its "extremely lofty values of humanity and wisdom". Of these, the Pope mentioned "the doctrine of the universe as one big harmonious body", that of the "equality of all men, with no social distinctions", the equivalence "at least in principle between man and woman". In Saint Paul’s time, concluded the Pope, "the traditional religion was going through a crisis, at least in its mythological and even civilian aspects", but "the differences between the pagan cults and the Christian cult are quite substantial".
