Conversion of St. Paul

The Church Unity Octave concludes today with the Feast of St. Paul's conversion. We are all familiar with the story, told by Paul himself at least twice in the Acts of the Apostles, but as Pope Benedict observed, it was not a gradual conversion in process over years of reflection and spiritual growth, but a sudden reversal resulting from an outside force: a direct contact with Jesus. It is Jesus, who changes Paul, not Paul who changes himself. Yes, this momentous confrontation with "Jesus, whom you are persecuting" was followed by prayer, fasting, and study, but the reversal had already taken place. It was just a matter of absorbing it, reflecting on the person of Jesus, his story, the experience of the Christian community, and the power of the Spirit to channel Paul's fierce attempts to destroy "the Way" into fierce (and successful) attempts to spread "the Way." Such a reversal involved incredible risks, travels into the unknown, shipwrecks, stonings, beatings, imprisonment and finally death. Paul's legacy remains in his surviving letters incorporated into the New Testament, and the communities of faith surrounding the Mediterranean basin. Paul refuted the slavery of the Old Law and replaced it by the freedom of the Spirit, which is the essence of the New Law.
It is that same Spirit which St. Marcellin followed on his path into the unknown, as his desire, "We must have Brothers" unfolded and demanded the same zeal and fortitude demonstrated by Paul. I tried to imagine what it would take to start a new religious order today. Even the practical aspects of housing, food and clothing...not to mention the formation of the members. What a huge undertaking! Yet, Mary, Paul, Marcellin and so many others show us that indeed, "nothing is impossible with God." As we journey through the day with a certain plan in mind, let us in some ways expect an illumination as Paul received, and ask for the grace to be ready to respond as he did.
Bro. Rene