Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul

Today we celebrate the conversion of the Pharisee named Saul who became an Apostle of Jesus and was then called Paul.

As a Pharisee, Saul studied and knew all about the events of Jesus’ life and death; he knew that Jesus’ followers recognized Him as the Messiah and that the Mosaic Law was no longer viewed as the final word of authority, that the people believed the life, death, and Resurrection of Jesus was now a part of the final word. As a Pharisee, focused entirely on the Law, this was abhorrent to him.

Yet, somehow, on the road to Damascus, Saul saw Jesus not through the eyes of a Pharisee, but through the eyes of faith, and his view of Jesus was turned completely upside down.

This new view of the one now called Paul enabled him to set aside his blinding adherence to the strictest interpretation of the Law and to recognize Jesus as the Messiah and to become His follower. It also helped him to see that the call to preach, meant the call to preach to everyone, including the Gentiles, whom some early Jewish Christians believed were to be excluded.

Let us pray that we, too, will recognize the presence of Jesus in our lives and that we will also answer the call to share our knowledge and love of God with others.+