RBWords

     Exactly one month after we celebrate the birth of the founder of Christianity, we celebrate the conversion (or rebirth) of someone many church historians and theologians consider to be the second founder of Christianity,, Paul of Tarsus!  In what sense would this be true?  The words from the Gospel According to Mark give us a hint, and the Acts of the Apostles, from which we learn of the conversion of Paul, demonstrates the remarkable influence of this one man.  He took the message of Christ from a small Jewish sect, centered in Jerusalem, to make it an international movement.  His own martyrdom occurred in Rome, which was considered the center of the known Mediterranean world!  His ministry impacts us almost every day because his letters are read aloud at the celebration of the Eucharist over and over again, as they might have been when he wrote them.  The very fact that these letters were preserved by the early and expanding church is a testimony to the power of his presence.  He was one remarkable preacher and theologian.

     His conversion should remind us of what he did before that conversion, which was to act as a kind of bounty-hunter, arresting Christians and bringing them before Jewish authorities.  The story of the martyrdom of St. Stephen tell us that Paul (then named Saul) was the guy who guarded the cloaks of those who were stoning Stephen to death!  The same zeal that made Saul a persecutor, make Paul a zealous preacher!  

     The "Pauline" side of the church celebrates the preaching of the gospel in a variety of settings and not just the official liturgical or formal acts of the church.  It is the "charismatic" and missionary side of Christianity.  This means that all of us are called by our baptism to be preachers.  [cf. Romans 6].  One person can make a big difference, but many persons can make a bigger one.  Paul's life and missionary journeys are a challenge to all of us.  AMEN