Posted on 01/24/2014 9:34:06 PM PST by Salvation
January 25, 2014
Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul, Apostle
Reading 1 Acts 22:3-16
Paul addressed the people in these words:
“I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia,
but brought up in this city.
At the feet of Gamaliel I was educated strictly in our ancestral law
and was zealous for God, just as all of you are today.
I persecuted this Way to death,
binding both men and women and delivering them to prison.
Even the high priest and the whole council of elders
can testify on my behalf.
For from them I even received letters to the brothers
and set out for Damascus to bring back to Jerusalem
in chains for punishment those there as well.
“On that journey as I drew near to Damascus,
about noon a great light from the sky suddenly shone around me.
I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me,
‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’
I replied, ‘Who are you, sir?’
And he said to me,
‘I am Jesus the Nazorean whom you are persecuting.’
My companions saw the light
but did not hear the voice of the one who spoke to me.
I asked, ‘What shall I do, sir?’
The Lord answered me, ‘Get up and go into Damascus,
and there you will be told about everything
appointed for you to do.’
Since I could see nothing because of the brightness of that light,
I was led by hand by my companions and entered Damascus.
“A certain Ananias, a devout observer of the law,
and highly spoken of by all the Jews who lived there,
came to me and stood there and said,
‘Saul, my brother, regain your sight.’
And at that very moment I regained my sight and saw him.
Then he said,
‘The God of our ancestors designated you to know his will,
to see the Righteous One, and to hear the sound of his voice;
for you will be his witness before all
to what you have seen and heard.
Now, why delay?
Get up and have yourself baptized and your sins washed away,
calling upon his name.’”
Or Acts 9:1-22
Saul, still breathing murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord,
went to the high priest and asked him
for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, that,
if he should find any men or women who belonged to the Way,
he might bring them back to Jerusalem in chains.
On his journey, as he was nearing Damascus,
a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him.
He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him,
“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”
He said, “Who are you, sir?”
The reply came, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
Now get up and go into the city and you will be told what you must do.”
The men who were traveling with him stood speechless,
for they heard the voice but could see no one.
Saul got up from the ground,
but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing;
so they led him by the hand and brought him to Damascus.
For three days he was unable to see, and he neither ate nor drank.
There was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias,
and the Lord said to him in a vision, AAnanias.”
He answered, “Here I am, Lord.”
The Lord said to him, “Get up and go to the street called Straight
and ask at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus named Saul.
He is there praying,
and in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias
come in and lay his hands on him,
that he may regain his sight.”
But Ananias replied,
“Lord, I have heard from many sources about this man,
what evil things he has done to your holy ones in Jerusalem.
And here he has authority from the chief priests
to imprison all who call upon your name.”
But the Lord said to him,
“Go, for this man is a chosen instrument of mine
to carry my name before Gentiles, kings, and children of Israel,
and I will show him what he will have to suffer for my name.”
So Ananias went and entered the house;
laying his hands on him, he said,
“Saul, my brother, the Lord has sent me,
Jesus who appeared to you on the way by which you came,
that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
Immediately things like scales fell from his eyes
and he regained his sight.
He got up and was baptized,
and when he had eaten, he recovered his strength.
He stayed some days with the disciples in Damascus,
and he began at once to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues,
that he is the Son of God.
All who heard him were astounded and said,
“Is not this the man who in Jerusalem
ravaged those who call upon this name,
and came here expressly to take them back in chains
to the chief priests?”
But Saul grew all the stronger
and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus,
proving that this is the Christ.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 117:1bc, 2
R. (Mark 16:15) Go out to all the world and tell the Good News.
or:
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Praise the LORD, all you nations;
glorify him, all you peoples!
R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
or:
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
For steadfast is his kindness toward us,
and the fidelity of the LORD endures forever.
R. Go out to all the world, and tell the Good News.
or:
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Mk 16:15-18
Jesus appeared to the Eleven and said to them:
“Go into the whole world
and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved;
whoever does not believe will be condemned.
These signs will accompany those who believe:
in my name they will drive out demons,
they will speak new languages.
They will pick up serpents with their hands,
and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them.
They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
Saturday, January 25
Liturgical Color: White
Today is the Feast of the Conversion of St.
Paul. He persecuted Christians until a vision
of Jesus caused him to convert. He went on
to be one of the greatest missionaries of the
Church. Many of his letters have become
books in the Bible.
Daily Readings for:January 25, 2014
(Readings on USCCB website)
Collect: O God, who taught the whole world through the preaching of the blessed Apostle Paul, draw us, we pray, nearer to you through the example of him whose conversion we celebrate today, and so make us witnesses to your truth in the world. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
RECIPES
ACTIVITIES
o Nameday Prayers and Ideas for St. Paul the Apostle
o St. Paul and the Epistle Charades
o St. Paul's Day, St. Paul's Cathedral, London
PRAYERS
o Litany of Saint Paul the Apostle
o Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity
o Prayer to St. Paul the Apostle
o A Prayer to St. Paul for the Printing of Good Books
o The Holy Apostles Peter and Paul
LIBRARY
o Life of Saint Paul before and after Damascus | Pope Benedict XVI
o St Paul and the Church | Pope Benedict XVI
o St. Paul and the Apostles | Pope Benedict XVI
o St. Paul Apostle to the Gentiles | Unknown
o St. Paul's New Outlook | Pope Benedict XVI
o The Keys of Forgiveness: The Loving Power of the Successor of Peter | Sandro Magister
o The Life of St. Paul | Salvatore J. Ciresi
o Ut Unum Sint (That They May Be One) | Pope John Paul II
· Ordinary Time: January 25th
· Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, Apostle
Old Calendar: Conversion of St. Paul
St. Paul, named Saul at his circumcision, a Jew of the tribe of Benjamin, was born at Tarsus, the capitol of Cilicia. He was a Roman citizen. He was brought up as a strict Jew, and later became a violent persecutor of the Christians. While on his way to Damascus to make new arrests of Christians, he was suddenly converted by a miraculous apparition of Our Lord. From a fierce persecutor he became the great Apostle of the Gentiles. He made three missionary journeys which brought him to the great centers of Asia Minor and southern Europe, and made many converts. Fourteen of his Epistles are found in the New Testament. He was beheaded in Rome in 66, and his body is kept in the Basilica of St. Paul near the Ostian Way.
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
St. Paul
St. Paul was born at Tarsus, Cilicia, of Jewish parents who were descended from the tribe of Benjamin. He was a Roman citizen from birth. As he was "a young man" at the stoning of Stephen and "an old man" when writing to Philemon, about the year 63, he was probably born around the beginning of the Christian era.
To complete his schooling, St. Paul was sent to Jerusalem, where he sat at the feet of the learned Gamaliel and was educated in the strict observance of the ancestral Law. Here he also acquired a good knowledge of exegesis and was trained in the practice of disputation. As a convinced and zealous Pharisee, he returned to Tarsus before the public life of Christ opened in Palestine.
Some time after the death of Our Lord, St. Paul returned to Palestine. His profound conviction made his zeal develop to a religious fanaticism against the infant Church. He took part in the stoning of the first martyr, St. Stephen, and in the fierce persecution of the Christians that followed.
Entrusted with a formal mission from the high priest, he departed for Damascus to arrest the Christians there and bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he was nearing Damascus, about noon, a light from heaven suddenly blazed round him. Jesus with His glorified body appeared to him and addressed him, turning him away from his apparently successful career.
An immediate transformation was wrought in the soul of St. Paul. He was suddenly converted to the Christian Faith. He was baptized, changed his name from Saul to Paul, and began travelling and preaching the Faith. He was martyred as an Apostle in Rome around 65 AD.
— Excerpted from Lives of the Saints
Patron: Against snakes; authors; Cursillo movement; evangelists; hailstorms; hospital public relations; journalists; lay people; missionary bishops; musicians; poisonous snakes; public relations personnel; public relations work; publishers; reporters; rope braiders; rope makers; saddlemakers; saddlers; snake bites; tent makers; writers; Malta; Rome; Poznan, Poland; newspaper editorial staff Archdiocese of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Diocese of Covington, Kentucky; Diocese of Birmingham, Alabama; Diocese of Las Vegas, Nevada; Diocese of Providence, Rhode Island; Diocese of Worcester, Massachusetts.
Symbols: Book and sword; three fountains; two swords; scourge; serpent and a fire; armour of God; twelve scrolls with names of his Epistles; phoenix; palm tree; shield of faith; sword; book.
Often portrayed as: Thin-faced elderly man with a high forehead, receding hairline and long pointed beard; man holding a sword and a book; man with 3 springs of water nearby.
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
Day Eight: Together... we proclaim the gospel
Together we proclaim anew the good news prophesied in Isaiah, fulfilled in our Lord Jesus, preached by the Apostle Paul, and received by the Church. Facing honestly the differences we have and the labels of denomination we embrace, we must never lose sight of the common mandate we have in proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Paul is sent "to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power" (1 Cor 1:17). The path to unity is to be found in the power of the cross.
The Gospel we proclaim is made tangible and relevant to us as we bear witness to the work of Jesus Christ in our own lives and the life of the Christian community.
The Conversion of Saint Paul the Apostle
Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? (Acts 22:7)
The Scriptures are filled with miraculous stories about people whose lives were changed when they had a personal encounter with God. Most of these people were introduced to the Lord by someone else. Andrew took his brother, Peter, to Jesus. Peter reached out to Cornelius. Samuel anointed Saul and David. Philip evangelized an Ethiopian official. And the list goes on and on.
But Paul didn’t have a middle-man. Jesus miraculously appeared to him on the road to Damascus. And what a conversion it was! Paul must be the patron saint of dramatic conversions because his is one of the most dramatic before-and-after stories in the whole Bible.
So what is conversion? First and foremost, it is a grace from God. People experience conversion because the Holy Spirit reveals God’s love, his mercy, and his holiness to their hearts. But there is a human dimension to conversion as well. Conversion happens as a person decides to turn away from sin and turn to the Lord.
Paul’s conversion came when he realized that what he thought was a good thing—persecuting believers in Christ—was really a sin. God made it clear that he had been persecuting Jesus as well as innocent Christians. And that revelation moved him to devote his whole life to spreading the good news that he had just experienced. From that moment on, the primary goal of Paul’s life was to bring as many people as possible to conversion.
If St. Paul were here today, he would not hesitate to ask us if we have given our lives to Christ. But he wouldn’t stop there. He would also urge us to run the race every day, living a life of holiness and service to the Lord (2 Timothy 4:7). He wouldn’t stop there, either. He would also tell us to get out into the world and share our faith with everyone we meet. It’s how Paul lived, and it’s how God wants us to live.
“St. Paul, pray for us. May we all become like you, disciples who witness to Jesus everywhere we go.”
Psalm 117:1-2; Mark 16:15-18
HIS NAME WAS PAUL [ACTS 9:1-22] – CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL, 25 JANUARY
Of all the women and men we read about in the Bible, who more fully lived Jesus command in todays reading than Paul? He went from hating Jesus to loving Him and giving his life so that everyone would come to know His wonderful love.
The story of Pauls conversion can fill us with great hope. He was guilty of a very serious wrongdoing, i.e. persecuting the followers of Jesus. Yet Jesus showed him mercy and turned him into one of the greatest saints of all time. If He could do that for the Terror of Tarsus, imagine what He can do for us! Today we celebrate the conversion of a man who was arrogant, pushy, stubborn, and sometimes violent. His conversion is an encouraging sign that the mercy and grace of Jesus can change the worst of sinners.
With Paul, however, we celebrate not only the dramatic conversion at the beginning of his walk with Jesus but also the ongoing work of conversion in his life. We might imagine Paul as a man who never lost his temper, was always kind and gentle, and never made a mistake. But the New Testament gives us a rather different picture. Paul publicly confronted Peter in Antioch (Galatians 2:11-14). He got into a fight with Barnabas over John Mark that led to a division between these once-close brothers (Acts 15:36-40). He even called the Galatians people he was called to pastor with the love of Christ foolish (Galatians 3:1).
Like all of us, Paul had some character faults that took years for God to iron out. He was not always a model of perfection. Rather, he was a real human being who developed from self-love to love for Jesus. It may have taken a lifetime, but God remained faithful. And Paul kept fighting, pressing on to become more like Jesus. No matter where we are in our walk with the Lord, even if we fail miserably over and over again, God will work in us if we keep turning back to Him. We can all be transformed just as powerfully as Paul was.
Daily Marriage Tip for January 25, 2014:
Today we celebrate the conversion of St. Paul. Conversion is an ongoing process for all of us. Talk with your beloved today about conversion moments youve experienced big or small.
Led on by God’s Providence
Saturday, 25 January 2014 17:42
Catherine de Bar, now Sister Saint John the Evangelist, novice in the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Annonciade, turns to Our Lady and asks to be enlightened with regard to her true vocation. Catherine is troubled by persistent doubts. It is noteworthy that, already, whenever Catherine is troubled, or in crisis, or doubt, or fear, she turns spontaneously to the Blessed Virgin Mary as to her ordinary recourse. She speaks to the Mother of God with a brutal honesty:
Would it not have been better for me to remain in the world, if I am not going to find here the means to serve you with more purity and holiness?
In the grip of her crisis, Catherine ponders in her heart what manner of response Our Lady might make to her; with intense devotion she prays the Ave Maria. She waits for light to be given her. Shall she make profession or return to the world? As she meditates the Ave Maria, Catherine discovers spiritual benefits of the religious life that, until this point, she had not seen. The Angelic Salutation (the Ave Maria, or Hail Mary) seems to be illumined for her from within.
Staying the Course
Paradoxically, Catherine is also haunted by something her parents said when she, as a small girl, hesitated to obey: “You will never be a religious!” Is this, in fact, coming true? Is she not suited to this way of life? Should she perhaps content herself with being a laysister? In any event, her eyes are giving her some trouble again; will she be able to read the Divine Office? Is she not too vivacious for the monotony of claustral life? All of these contradictory thoughts confuse her. She opens up to her her superior. “What? A laysister? Certainly not. Monotony? My dear child, would that you might have the luxury of always doing the same thing!”
Sister Saint John the Evangelist has to make up her mind. She obtains permission to spend forty days in solitary retreat! (Today this would be considered most extraordinary for a novice. It might even be seen as a sign of eccentricity, or imbalance, or a ploy for attention.) During this time Sister Saint John prays almost constantly; she adds the hairshirt and other austerities to her supplications. Finally, on the night before she is to pronounce her vows, she has a dream that she will later relate to her director, Father John Chrysostom. She sees herself led by angels into the presence of the Virgin Mary, Queen of Heaven, seated upon a throne. Humbly she pays her respects to the Mother of God, who, in turn, offers them to the Most Holy Trinity. Christ Jesus receives her as His spouse and signs the contract of this alliance in His own Blood. Sister Saint John wakes up, hurries to the monastic church, and spends the rest of the night there, her heart all ablaze with love.
Professed as an Annonciade
The next day — was it 25 March 1633? We are not certain — Catherine de Bar makes her profession as an Annonciade, amidst the customary solemn rites. A multitude of people, attracted by the beauty of the ceremony, are in attendance. The curé of the parish of Bruyères assists at the celebration. He relates that, at a certain moment, the sun shone through the stained–glass windows of the church, causing a wonderful light to surround the head of the newly–professed Annonciade, and to reflect on the wall. The Venerable Henri–Marie Boudon, later archdeacon of Évreux, spoke of it in 1654 as an extraordinary mark of the graces that God held in reserve for His handmaid.
The Broken Ring
Immediately after her profession, Catherine, now Mother Saint John the Evangelist, enters into ten days of retreat; in the Order of the Annonciade, these days of profound recollection are known as The Silence of the Bridegroom. It is a time of spousal intimacy with Christ. During Catherine’s post–profession retreat something happens that, once again, troubles her sensitive soul. Inexplicably, the ring of profession, placed on her finger as a sign of her bridal covenant with Christ, breaks apart. Not wanting to violate her sacred silence, Catherine shows the broken ring to her superior, Mother Angélique, indicates by signs that she is not responsible for its being broken. Newly professed, Catherine’s peace is already perturbed; she imagines that the broken ring signifies that God has rejected her. Wisely, Catherine’s superior suggests that the broken ring may well signify that this profession is not Catherine’s final one. Could it not perhaps mean that she will pass into another Order? When Mother Angélique hands the ring back to Catherine, it is once again intact. It is the same ring, broken for a time, and now effortlessly put back together.
Ups and Downs
Any reader who has taken the time to follow Catherine’s journey thus far will have noticed the richness and complexity of her personality, as well as her weaknesses. Catherine de Bar is given, in some way, to extreme emotions. She wants certain things intensely and, once she has them, experiences dissatisfaction and ennui. Only months before her profession she wonders if she is not to return to the world. She passes from consolations to desolation and back again. She goes back and forth between wanting the life of an Annonciade in Bruyère and craving the solitude of a recluse. She can be winning and cheerful and, just as easily, disconcerting and troubled. She believes in dreams and premonitions. She sees very few things as mere happenstance.
The Gift of Authority
It would seem that Catherine de Bar is her best self when she is in charge of things. Responsibility does not crush her; it seems to stimulate her creativity. Responsibility brings out her best qualities as it did when, for example, while still a novice, she assumed the care of the community struck down by the plague, and assured the regularity of the Hours. This trait of personality is often found in those whom God has destined to undertake a new work in the Church. One can hardly imagine Saint Teresa of Avila, or Mother Yvonne–Aimée, or someone like Abbot Marmion in a subsidiary position with naught to do but execute orders from above. This is not to say that such holy people are not obedient; it is, rather, to affirm that they flourish most when invested with authority and able to organise their own energies, time, and initiatives while, at the same time, stimulating others and calling forth their gifts.
This does not mean that Catherine de Bar is not humble. Her humility is profound and real; with the passing years it will become an uninterrupted indentification with the humble Jesus, silent and hidden in the Sacred Host. She will protest, even into the last years of her life that she wants to be freed from the burden of authority. At the same time, being in authority gives her the space, and time, and freedom to bow beneath the overshadowing of the Holy Ghost and to be extraordinarily fruitful for souls.
In the Care of Lady Abbess Mary
The one constant that emerges from Catherine’s life thus far is her confidence in the maternal care of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In every crisis she goes to Mary. Mary is Catherine’s counselor, her comforter, her teacher and, already, her Lady Abbess, the mother, gentle and wise, to whom she can, and does, tell everything.
Caught by the Mission | ||
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Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul, apostle
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Mark 16:15-18 Jesus appeared to the Eleven and said to them, "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents with their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." Introductory Prayer: Lord, I renew my faith in the power of your word. I come to you today to listen to you and allow you to lead me. I renew my trust in your mercy: You are constantly looking upon me and the world with love. I want to love you in return and lead others to love you. Petition: Fill me with the power of your good news, Lord. 1. The World Needs Messengers of Hope: Jesus Christ is the message that everyone vitally needs. He is God’s message to man, the message that tells people that God loves them deeply and offers them a way to true life and salvation. Our world often looks for love in the wrong places; it needs to find the answer to its deepest desires in Christ. But who will spread this message? Those like St. Paul who take Christ’s love seriously and see that they, too, can become messengers of hope. Am I meant to be a messenger of hope? 2. God Acts Powerfully in Those Who Trust Him: St. Paul is an example of what God can do through someone who trusts in him. St. Paul valued the grace Christ gave him. He put his life totally in the hands of Christ and was not afraid to proclaim him to everyone he met. Even though Paul faced many difficulties, his work produced enormous fruit and helped extend the number of Christian communities. Do I believe that Christ can work through me as I participate in the New Evangelization? In what ways can I trust him more? 3. Our Opportunity Is Now: St. Paul and the first apostles did not wait until all the circumstances were right before beginning evangelization. Once Christ had touched their lives and once he had given them the command to begin, they began right away. The Church has asked us to begin again today. Like St. Paul, we must feel that the fire of Christ’s love impels us (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:14). We cannot wait until the circumstances are favorable; we must do whatever we can now. We have already experienced Christ’s love. Why are we waiting to share it? What holds me back from a greater surrender to the work of evangelization? Conversation with Christ: Lord, like Saint Paul I have been touched by your love, and I have heard your command to go out and spread the good news. I renew my trust in your companionship, and I resolve to do all I can to bring your Gospel to others. Help me to keep my eyes on you. Resolution: Today I will share a thought from the Gospel or from the Holy Father’s teaching with at least two people whom I encounter. |
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