Sorry to have to throw some Christianity on you: only God may judge. Saul was a Roman soldier who literally roamed the Holy Land in search of Christians to imprison, maim and/or kill. Yet, God chose him to work as his soldier and spread the word of God, which he did for the rest of his life (most of those "Letters" you may have head about in the Bible were written by Paul fka Saul). No matter how far any have strayed, there is always the chance for redemption.