Paul Christian – better known in the history books as Pablo Christiani – was born a Jew in Southern France. Although he studied in Jewish academies, Paul abandoned Judaism, converted to Catholicism and served the Church as a friar in the Dominican Order.
The Dominicans were ardent missionaries. They convinced the King of Aragon in 1263 to stage a disputation in Barcelona that pitted Friar Paul against Rabbi Moses ben Nahman, the greatest mystic, legal mind and Bible commentator of his time. The Dominican Order obviously chose to represent the Church an apostate Jew who had in-depth knowledge of biblical and Talmudic texts. Friar Paul argued that the Hebrew Bible and the Talmud predicted the Second Coming. The four-day debate ended in a draw with both the Church and Rabbi Moses declaring victory.
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