January 25th marks the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul. Before his encounter with Christ on his journey to Damascus, Saul of Tarsus was a blasphemer, a persecutor and a fervent enemy of Christ. St. Paul's conversion exemplifies the pure miracle of God's grace and is a great example for us.
Like Saul, we each carry a “hardness of heart". We must trust in Him, fully willing to listen to Him and to follow Christ and his Precepts. He left his old ways for the Lord's call, and took the name Paul upon his baptism.
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St. Paul, the Apostle Statue“… it was not simply a conversion … but rather a death and a resurrection for Paul himself. One existence died and another, a new one was born with the Risen Christ.”, (Pope Benedict XVI) |
St. Paul, the Apostle Statue"Jesus converted Saul on his way to Damascus to persecute the Christian there. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?'" (Act 9:4) |
