THE   CONVERSION 

OF  ST.  PAUL 

INTRODUCTION 

Today, January 25^th we’re  focusing on the conversion  of St. Paul. 

Today’s first reading - Acts 23: 3-16 - gives us one of  the two versions of his conversion that are in the  Acts of the Apostles.  We could read either. [Cf. Acts  9: 1-22.]

We don’t know what day it was that this actually happened – but January 25^th is as good as any.

Any day is a good day to get new insights, change, convert, grow.

DETAILS

Saul’s name changed to Paul. Paul’s brain changed.  He had been against  Christians – arresting them – chaining them – dragging them to Jerusalem - having them imprisoned – having them killed.

He was there for the stoning to death of Stephen the deacon.

His thought patterns changed.

He realizes his wrongness.

He describes it as a blindness.

He realizes what he was doing.

He gets baptized and becomes a great voice that adds new  Good News to the history of religion in our world.

He does what today’s gospel [Mark 16: 15-18] challenges us to do: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature.”

Paul  is still doing this.  People are still reading and hearing and thinking about his messages.

Today’s a good day to say: I have to think about this.  He made quite a change.

To me that’s one of life’s big questions. Can a person change?  We’ve all experience people we wondered about.  We inwardly asked: Can he or she ever change?

Saul – Paul did. Buddha and Augustine changed?

Every Lent – on Ash Wednesday – every Christian hears the words: Change and believe in the Good News – or Remember you are dust and into dust you shall return.

 

WHAT PAUL GIVES US

Besides messages in the Acts of the Apostles, his letters give us messages that people have received and in this way - now with Christ in their lives - they end up becoming new in new and newer ways. 

HOMEWORK

We could do some homework.

I think a good practiced is to take a book of the Bible for the year.  It’s still January.  One of these years pick a letter of Paul – read it and then line up say 1 key message in that letter that is worth making one’s own.

Like picking Galatians.

Like I like Galatians 6: 2: "Bear one another’s burden. In this way you'll be fulfilling the Law of Christ."

CONCLUSION

Then at the end of the year you'll hear someone say, "Wow you’ve changed."

January 25, 2020

TENSION  ON  THE  TABLE 

He placed his glass of scotch – with ice – 

on the table top - on rich antique wood - and 

she -  the woman of the house -  spotted this 

from the other side of the room – and it stopped 

the flow in the conversation she was having. 

A loud inner scream erupted from within, “No! No!” 

And she sped across the room – picked up his 

glass and said, “We have better scotch than this. 

Let me get it for you.” She did and she napkin 

wiped the table top with an inner, “Phew!” 

Her husband noticed the whole scene, thinking 

“I wish I was an antique table and I got some of 

her attention to some of these details. Hey we’re 

only married 24 years. She’s no antique but let me 

tell you how I feel at times. Good thing I don’t drink.” 

 

© Andy Costello, Reflections

January   25,   2020

Thought  for  Today 

 “If you dam a river it stagnates.  Running water is beautiful water.”  

English proverb

January 24, 2020

KNOCK,  KNOCK, 

WHO’S  HERE?

Make a statement, 

leave an impression, 

make a memory, 

create, imagine …. 

Ooooooopppps,  

I walked into the

wrong room. 

These are not 

my kind of people. 

But I guess I had 

to walk in here 

to find this out. 

I’ve done this before. 

Deja vue. I’m slow. 

© Andy Costello, Reflections

January   24,  2020

Thought for  Today 

"We must never undervalue any person. The worker does not like it when their work is disliked in their presence. Well, God is present everywhere and every person is God's work."

St. Francis de Sales

January  23, 2020

Thought for Today

 “Being bored is an insult to oneself.”

Jules Renard

January 23, 2020

I  NEED  TIME 

It takes time to “Go figure!” 

It takes time to figure out 

just what happened - and 

then it takes time to go figure - 

if what I gathered -  is close 

to what might have happened. 
Much of life is a maze! Amazing. 

Bummer! But it the long run 

it takes time to peel away 

layers - to knock down walls - 

while new walls are being built. 

© Andy Costello, Reflections

January 22, 2020

 UNDER  THE  HOOD

Stuck in traffic ….

Looking for a parking spot ….

Trying to get in or out of a parking lot

just before Christmas …. in a rush ....

These are the moments we see

what’s under another’s hood ….

Otherwise we really don’t know

another – their language or

their patience points ….

© Andy Costello, Reflections

January 22, 2020

 “Greater love has no one than this, that one  lay  down their life for their friends.”  

John  15:3-23

January  21,  2020

INSTILL

One has to become quiet –

quite quiet - quite  still ….

One has to go off to the side -

step back – sit sideways –

before one can get to essences –

before one can see still points

in their soul. It’s then – when -

they have clarity, that they

can have the calm grace

called “stillness”  – "peace".

It’s then – right then - they might

realize instillness has happened.

© Andy Costello, Reflections

January  21,  2020

Thought   for  Today

 “The most difficult thing in life is to know yourself.”

Thales

Thales of Mileto

(c. 626-545 BC)

(1906) Velos Salgado

January 20, 2020

BLACK   BALLOON

Finally, someone bought me.

I had been on the bottom of

a pile of red, blue, and yellow

baloons - unblown up – empty -

airless for four weeks now and 

nobody seemed to want a black balloon -

just red, yellow and blue. Finally, I’m

out of the store – this kid screaming

“Daddy, hurry,  HURRY, blow up

my balloon” He did and on went

the string that the store keeper

gave my dad – and the kid hung onto

that string – and I loved it, LOVED

it  – me floating up into the wind

hi and mighty – in the wind - in

the sunshine – in the scream

of a  kid – with a black  balloon –

me – high above the crowd -

that is - till he saw the ice cream

sign – and then- it was THEN –

he accidently let my string go

and I was flying, high, HIGH,

above the park, above the crowd

chanting the words of the King,

“Free at last, thank God, I’m free at last.”

© Andy Costello, Reflections

January 20, 2020

Thought for Today

“There is nothing more tragic than to find an individual bogged down in the length of life, devoid of breadth.”

Martin Luther King Jr.

January 19, 2020

UNDERNEATH

It takes effort and energy,

“elbow grease” as the cliché goes

to get to what’s underneath

whatever that ugly dark stuff is

that sticks to pots and pans.

Sometimes we have to dig,

scrub, sandpaper it,

to get to the truth

of what you’re really

saying or not saying here.

In other words,

“Are you saying

what you’re saying

or are you saying

something else?”

© Andy Costello, Reflections

January  19, 2020

Thought  for  Today

 “Not the power to remember, but its very  opposite, the  power to forget is a necessary condition for our existence.”  

Sholem Asch,  

The Nazarene, 1939