Cornelius, a centurion and God-fearing man, has a vision from God telling him to find Peter. Peter himself falls into a trance, as God shows him the new way of relating to those previously seen as "unclean" now that Christ has come. Through the conversation between Peter and Cornelius, it becomes clear that the vision and trance were meant to communicate that all people are able to access God now through the forgiveness of Jesus Christ. The principle of this encounter is that God has orchestrated His new plan, that through the church, the gospel of Jesus Christ can break through prejudices, traditions, and arbitrary absolutes.