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Saint Paul the Apostle
May I never boast of
anything but the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!"
Gal 6:14
In the history of our Church, no man stands out more clearly as a zealot and
role model, than does St. Paul, the Apostle. The Church as we know it today, the
Church of the Gentiles, would not exist were it not for the unceasing pursuit of
Paul to bring the Gospel to the four corners of the earth. He took to heart,
Jesus' command, "Go into the whole world, and proclaim the good news to all
creation. "
Paul has always impressed us by his singleness of purpose, his unflinching
courage, his relentless drive, and his ability to stir men's hearts, whether by
his public speaking, or by his writings. Luke has chronicled the experiences of
Paul in the Acts of the Apostles. They read like tales of high adventure. Paul's
letters have inspired the greatest minds of our Church, including, but not
limited to St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Francis of Assisi, St.
Anthony, St. John of the Cross, and St. Teresa of Avila. Read about any of the
great Saints; you'll find the teachings of Paul. Of all the Apostles, for us, he
is the most touchable, the most approachable, the most identifiable. From this,
you can gather that we are great fans of St. Paul.
We feel very close to Paul. Although we are born Catholics, we consider
ourselves converts, or rather, we are converting. It's a never-ending process.
When we first came back to the Church, we were overwhelmed by all the exciting
people and things she had to offer. We were like kids in a candy store. There
was so much more than we could absorb; so we didn't key into Paul, and his
powerful role in the Church, right away. It wasn't until our first pilgrimage to
Rome that we met Paul in a very personal way.
I think it's important for all of us, just once in our lives, to go to the
places of the Saints, so that we can soak up their spirit, which never leaves
these areas. There is such a strong sense of the Saints at their shrines. It
permeates your skin, and goes deep into your soul.
That's what happened when we went to the Church of St. Paul Outside the Walls,
in Rome. Paul was martyred in this area. After the Church was legitimized by
Constantine, his bones were brought back to this spot, to be his final resting
place. When we walked through the gates of the courtyard, a formidable statue of
St. Paul loomed high above us. He wielded a huge sword ; he stared deep into our
souls. He was so strong! We asked our guide why he was buried outside the city
walls. The guide raised himself to his full five feet, two inches, and
proclaimed, "It was his right as a Roman citizen, Signor. The Christians were
fed to the lions in the Colosseum during the persecution. But Paul was allowed
to die outside the city walls with dignity, as was his birthright." That didn't
make any sense. He was a Pharisee from the Holy Land, as best we knew. He was
converted in Damascus, knocked down off his high horse, so to speak. How did he
get to be a Roman citizen?
Then we went to the Mamertine Prison in Rome. This was Paul's home prior to his
death. We walked down, deep into the dark, damp hole of the cave, There was a
dim light from a bare 30 watt bulb, dangling from the ceiling. An exhaust fan
made a feeble attempt to suck out the foul-smelling, humid air, which permeated
the prison. It was damp and gloomy, a very depressing scene. And that was now,
in the twentieth century! We could not begin to imagine how it had been when
Paul was imprisoned here. Our priest was well-versed in Scripture, and the
historical background of the Gospel. He shared with us the ending of Paul's
letter to the Philippians. He shared Paul's last testimony to Timothy. They are
the most touching, uplifting, beautiful letters Paul wrote. And they were
written here, in the stinking bowels of the earth. We had never known much about
this pioneer and martyr for our Faith, but here in this cell, we came to love
him very much.
That's how they get you, these Saints. You ask a little question; you discover
something that doesn't quite fit in, and the next thing you know, you're deeply
engrossed in the life of the Saint. This is how we began to learn about Paul. We
didn't do it to share with anyone. We were in love with Church. This man was our
Church! We had to know more about him. Who was he? What made him turn so
completely towards Jesus and the Gospel message, at the height of his
persecution of the Church? We know now, why the Lord gave us the gift of being
able to search out and study this man. Jesus wants us to know about those who
struggled and died for us; He wants us to be proud of our ancestors, and never
forget them! He wants us to follow in their footsteps. On that note, we invite
you to join us as we share the life of one of the most powerful men our Church
has ever known, St. Paul the Apostle.
Paul was born in Tarsus, a port city in the southeastern part of Turkey. He was
from a Jewish family, who traced their roots back to the tribe of Benjamin. This
Jewish community had been sent to Tarsus during the Diaspora . Pompey had made
Tarsus the capital of the province of Cilicia. Mark Anthony gave the people of
Tarsus freedom, immunity, and the right to become Roman citizens, which accounts
for Paul's reference to, and pride in, his Roman citizenship. He invoked his
rights as a Roman citizen many times during his ministry to get out of some
serious scrapes with the Jews.
Paul was originally named Saul, after the first king of the Jews. But the Jews
in Tarsus had assimilated so greatly with the Romans that he was probably given
the Roman equivalent of Saul, which is Paul, at birth. He was called Paul in
public, and Saul among Jewish gatherings. It was not unusual for Jews who had
integrated into foreign cultures to take on a Hebrew name, and an ethnic name.
He grew up under two cultures, that of his Hebrew ancestors, and the Greco-Roman
customs of his adopted country. He was greatly influenced by the Greek
background; Greek was a second language to him; he studied Greek philosophers.
Nothing is certain as to when he came to Jerusalem. His whole family moved there
when he was a young man. The year 30 A.D. is as good a barometer as it gets.
Scripture scholars claim there was little possibility that he ever saw Jesus
during His lifetime. There are others who believe that, while he may never have
spoken to the Lord, he may have seen Him before His death. Remember, they really
frequented the same circles. They were at different ends of the spectrum, but
they were both religious men.
Paul was a Pharisee. He studied under Gamaliel for three or four years. This
would have been during the time of Jesus' ministry, 30 to 33 AD. Jesus became
very prominent after the arrest and murder of John the Baptist, probably about a
year or so into His ministry. The temple area of Jerusalem was always abuzz with
rumors about this new Prophet. The personality of Paul was that of a zealot, a
nosy body, who had to know everything that was going on, all the time. Also, he
was a defender of the Jewish law, which he believed Jesus was breaking. Paul
would have agreed with those who considered Jesus a blasphemer and lawbreaker,
who should be dealt with accordingly.
We don't mean to imply for a minute that Paul was ever a vindictive person. He
was a passionate person. The Lord can work with people like Paul. His passion
was for God. He had committed himself to the service of God. He truly believed
he was doing the Lord's will in stamping out these blasphemers (Christians) .
The same firebrand fervor he employed in defending God against the Christians,
was put to use in proclaiming our Lord Jesus Christ, after Paul's conversion.
It's so exciting to see God in action! He chooses His people so carefully. We
believe, Paul was part of the Divine Plan from before the beginning of time . He
was groomed so well for his part in Salvation history. The area of the world in
which he was born, his knowledge of the Greek and Roman languages and cultures,
his schooling in Jerusalem, all of this was necessary for his role in
proclaiming the Gospel throughout the Roman Empire. We can't help but see the
Lord's Hand in Paul's development.
Taken from Bob and Penny
Lord's book Saints and Other Powerful Men in the Church.
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