Cornelius

Cornelius (meaning of a horn) was a Roman centurion of the Italian band stationed at Caesarea Maritima, whose conversion is narrated in Acts 10 as a watershed event in the early church's understanding of its Gentile mission. He is described as a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave generously to the Jewish poor, and prayed to God continually. An angel directed him to send for Simon Peter at Joppa, while Peter simultaneously received a vision of a sheet bearing clean and unclean animals and the divine command to eat — a vision he came to understand as signifying that no person should be called common or unclean.

When Peter arrived at Cornelius's house and began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word before they were even baptized — a development Peter cited at the Jerusalem Council (Acts 11; 15) as decisive proof that God had granted Gentiles repentance unto life. The conversion of Cornelius effectively opened the door for the Gentile mission that Paul would carry to the ends of the Roman Empire. His household baptism is frequently cited in discussions of household and infant baptism.