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Introduction: Never Too Old; Never Too Young
- the Compulsion of St. Paul
Last summer, my 87 year old father received a pace-maker.
This happened in the midst of a hospital stay that lasted nearly
ten days. My Mother drove back and forth to the hospital and stayed
with Dad throughout the day. I was able to be home for a few days
during that time, to help out but mainly to be the "priest-in-residence".
I anointed my father, prayed the Rosary with my parents, and offered
Mass for him a few times.
One morning as I was putting away the Mass kit,
the technician for my Father's pace-maker came into the hospital
room. He could see that I am priest and knew that Mass had just
been celebrated. After asking my father a few questions about
his pace-maker, the technician, still a young man, sat down to
talk. The subject was not technology but religion. He told us
that he grew up Catholic but left the faith as an adult to join
an non-denominational Christian church on the edge of town. And
he began to ask me all kinds of questions about purgatory, the
role of the Blessed Mother in salvation, the cult of the saints,
and much, much, more. I did my best to answer his questions accurately
and made sure that my answers were properly grounded in Scripture.
Mom and Dad witnessed their son trying to do his
professional best and, while very supportive, they were not particularly
fazed. Without missing a beat, my 88 year old Mom and my Dad in
a hospital bed jumped in and gave personal testimony to the important
role the Sacrament of Penance continues to play in their lives
- how it heals them inwardly, and opens them to the love of Christ
and their neighbor. It was unscripted, spontaneous, and very much
from the heart. The coup de grace came when Mom looked
the young man in the eye and said, "I hope you will consider coming
home to the Church." With that his eyes filled with tears and
promised Mom and Dad that he would prayerfully consider doing
just that.
After the young man left, Dad smiled at me and said,
"If we can do it, anyone can!" It's pretty clear my parents should
be giving this keynote talk, not me! It's also pretty clear that
these two members of "the greatest generation" have removed any
excuse you or I might have for keeping the light of the Gospel
under a bushel basket! In their very low-key manner, Mom and Dad
were giving evidence that they had paid attention to St. Paul
when he spoke about the urgency of proclaiming the Gospel at all
times. As Pope Benedict put it, "Woe to me if I do not proclaim
the Gospel!" [1 Cor 9:16] - "…a cry which becomes for every Christian
an insistent invitation to place oneself at the service of Christ"
[Pope Benedict XVI, Homily, Opening of Synod, 5 X 08]
As part of our ongoing Pastoral Plan for Evangelization,
in the context of this Year of St. Paul, let us spend a few moments
reflecting on the Apostle to the Gentiles, so that, in the words
of Sister Alejandra, "…we might rekindle our zeal for transmitting
the Word of God; to be re-energized; and to learn how to be better
missionaries!"
An Unlikely Choice
In his understated way, my Father reminded me that
spreading the Gospel is hardwired into the call received at Baptism.
The question is not whether we are called to spread the Gospel
but rather through what vocation we've been called to spread the
Gospel. This is Good News but it may be unsettling news to some
who may feel they unsuited for the task or uninterested in the
task - or for any and all who feel they are an unlikely choice
to be a missionary.
Yet St. Paul's constant boast is in the power of
God's grace to change the timid and tepid into bold heralds of
the Word. To the proud and divided Corinthians he wrote: "…Consider
your call, brethren. Not many of you were wise according to worldly
standards, not many powerful, not many were of noble birth; but
God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise. God
chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong. God chose
what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not,
to bring to nothing the things that are, so that no human being
might boast in the presence of God" [1 Cor 1:26-31]. It seems
the more we protest, the more insistent the call becomes!
St. Paul is a case in point; for all his many gifts,
he seemed an unlikely choice to be the Apostle to the Gentiles.
St. Paul, who was born approximately in the year 8, grew up in
Tarsus, the capital of the Roman province of Cicilia (modern-day
Turkey) [Cf. Acts 22:3]. Tarsus, we should remind ourselves, was
not the backwoods. The Proconsul or magistrate of Tarsus was Marcus
Tullius Cicero and it is said that Tarsus is the place where Anthony
& Cleopatra first met. Saul was a Greek-speaking Jew who was also
a Roman citizen. A tentmaker by trade, Saul would eventually come
to see that not only Jews but also Gentiles were called when "the
Word became flesh and pitched His tent among us" [John 1:14].
Indeed, Christ has made the Church is the original "big tent".
In God's providence, this man who embodied three
cultures all at once would be chosen to become the apostle to
the gentiles, to all the nations. Yet Saul did not remain in Tarsus
but went to Jerusalem as a teenager and studied under the Rabbi
Gamaliel the Elder, nephew of Rabbi Hillel. Saul became a Pharisee,
which in Aramaic & Hebrew means "the separated." They were zealous
laymen who strictly interpreted the Mosaic Law and who saw Jesus
of Nazareth as a great threat to the Jewish religion. In his zeal
to counter the perceived threat, Saul avidly persecuted the Christian
religion as he admits three times in his letters [1 Cor 15:9;
Gal 1:13; Phil 3:6]. We do not know precisely how Saul did so
but we do know that Saul was present at the execution of the Deacon
Stephen, the Protomartyr. He was also on just such a mission when
He encountered the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus, which
changed the whole course of his life.
Intolerant in the extreme, Saul was a most unlikely
candidate to be a follower of Christ, let alone to be an apostle.
His intolerance covered over his gifts. Thus Paul presents himself
as "an extreme example" in which God's grace triumphed.
Conditions for Being An Apostle
Conversion - Transformation in Christ:
St. Paul's life teaches us that the first and indispensible
condition for spreading the Good News of Christ is a transformative
encounter with Christ. This is precisely what happened on the
road to Damascus. It was here that Saul - soon to be called
Paul - was to account all that he held as important in his former
way of life as "loss" and "rubbish" in light of the surpassing
glory of Christ crucified [cf. Phil 3:7-8]. What happened on
the road to Damascus is that Saul encountered the Risen Christ
who spoke to him.
Christ appeared to Saul as a brilliant light, a dazzling radiance
that blinded him, revealing his blindness to the truth, to the
light of Christ. Meeting the Risen Lord transformed Saul, changing
not just his thinking but indeed his very life. This was Saul's
death & resurrection moment when he died to a former way of
life and rose, in the grace of God, to a new and redeemed way
of life. The Risen Lord asked him "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute
me?" [Acts 26:14] "Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked. Revealing
Himself, the Risen One called Saul to the apostolate and made
of him an Apostle, that is, a witness to the Resurrection, a
disciple who received his mission directly from the Risen Lord
[cf. Gal 1:15-17]. He was sent to proclaim the Gospel to the
Gentiles, to the Greco-Roman world which the pax Romana
had solidified.
The first condition for our being witnesses to Christ and to
the Gospel is a profound conversion in, a transformation of
thought and life. Without that, we are in danger of being lukewarm
professionals, poorly paid religious workers or overextended,
harried volunteers, rather than men and woman in whom the fire
of the Holy Spirit has fanned our faith into flame [2 Tim 1:6].
So this Missionary Congress is a moment to ask ourselves some
questions:
"Where were we when the Word of God caught up with us?" Were
we immersed in our daily work, discouraged or perplexed, enmeshed
in sin, or simply going through the motions? "What direction
did the Lord lead us in?" What did he ask us to detach ourselves
from - to count as "loss" and rubbish"? What form of persecution
did he ask us to cease and desist from … perhaps those we disagree
with, those we do not like, etc.? Did the light of the Risen
One supplant the darkness of sin in our hearts? Do we find the
light of the Risen One irresistible?
Incorporation in the Church: Baptism & Communion:
In spite of the immediacy of Saul's encounter with the Risen
Christ in glory, Saul's definitive "yes" to Christ came in the
moment of his Baptism. For this is the sacrament of "sight"
- it gives the light that makes one see. For it is not enough
to want to share in the death and resurrection of Christ but
indeed one must be sacramentally incorporated into the paschal
mystery. So the first incorporation of Saul into the Church
was his Baptism As described in the Acts of the Apostles, it
took place in the house of Ananias - who said: "Brother Saul,
receive your sight….the God of our fathers appointed you to
know his will, to see the Just One and to hear a voice from
his mouth. For you will be a witness for him to all men of what
you have seen and heard. And now, why do you wait? Rise and
be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on his name" [Acts
22:13-16].
By Baptism Saul was incorporated into the Body of Christ he
had persecuted and he went off immediately to northern Arabia
to preach the Gospel. After returning to Damascus, Paul accompanied
Barnabas to Jerusalem where he conferred with Peter and James.
In spite of the immediacy of Saul's encounter with Christ, both
the content of his preaching and his mission to the Gentiles
were authenticated by the Church … and his mission was further
authenticated as he immersed himself in the vibrant church at
Antioch where, together with Barnabas, he preached the Gospel
both to Jews and Gentiles [Acts 13 ff].
Hand in hand with our own conversion, is the rediscovery of
our Baptism as well as our Confirmation in the Holy Spirit.
These Sacraments of Initiation open our eyes to the light of
Christ and remind us that we are not "lone rangers." Rather
we are members of the "Body of Christ" bound together by the
Spirit. Initiation teaches us how crucial a spirit of communion
is for mission. St. Paul later on will upbraid the Corinthians
for their factionalism even as In Ephesians he will plead with
the community as a prisioner for the Lord "to preserve the unity
of the spirit in the bond of peace." (Ephesians 4:1-3) Again,
a question is in order: Who of us feels comfortable dining at
the table of a bickering family? Who of us wants to visit again
and become a part of that family? What is the source of our
divisions? What voices do we listen to in forming our opinions?
This Missionary Congress is a graced opportunity to unmask
our divisions, to repent of our role in deepening these divisions,
and to be reconciled with those from whom we find ourselves
separated as well as from anything that separates us from the
received teaching of the Church herself. And just as Saul's
mission was authenticated by the apostles in Jerusalem, so too
our mission must be carried out in communion with the Holy Father
and with the bishops in union with him, especially, may I say,
one's own!
Prayer for the Church:
It is unthinkable, of course, that Paul would have encountered
the Risen Lord, shared in His death and resurrection, and then
began the arduous work of a missionary without prayer. In fact,
we often find St. Paul at prayer, a prayer which flows from
the transformation he experienced in his conversion. We find
in letters which describe tribulations and controversy a sense
of joy and peace in St. Paul that is not forced or overly idealized.
Paul, in fact, seems to have had a nervous disposition and may
even have been subject to discouragement and certainly to disagreements.
Nonetheless, in all these things Paul experiences a deep joy
that comes not from himself but from God. "We are troubled on
every side but not crushed; we are disturbed but not desperate;
persecuted but not abandoned; struck but not killed, always
bearing in our bodies the death of Jesus that the life of Jesus
may also be manifested in our bodies" [2 Cor 4:8-10]. And the
joy that Paul has, a fruit of the Holy Spirit, [Gal 2:20] is
not a private possession but a joy in what is happening in the
communities that he is guiding. For example, he calls the Philippians,
"my joy and my crown" [Phil 4:1]. It wasn't that these communities
were perfect - far from it - but St. Paul loved them tenderly
with a love born of prayer. That is also why Paul begins his
letters with a prayer of thanksgiving for the churches that
he is addressing: "Grace to you and peace. I always give thanks
to God for you all!" He urges his people to give joyful thanks
to the Father [Col 1:12]. Paul's thanksgiving is coupled with
praise: "Praised be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!"
[Eph 1:3] Paul knows how to give praise even in darkness and
difficulty, praising "the God of all consolation who comfort
us" [2 Cor 1:3].
A sure sign of a prayerful person is that he or she does not
fall into sadness no matter how vexing or unsettling the pastoral
situation may be. And in giving thanks Paul often prays, e.g.,
in Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, for wisdom and understanding
and the knowledge of Christ, a wisdom and understanding expressed
in good deeds [cf Eph 1:17-23; 3:14-21; Phil 1:9-11; Col. 1:1]
This is where Paul seems to draw his energy, his ability to
start again. This is the source of his liberty of spirit where
he can indeed speak and do the truth in love, even when that
brought him into some conflict with Peter. Paul's liberty is
anything but an arrogant ideology but instead a freedom to share
and proclaim the true freedom which Christ has won for us by
his death and resurrection.
On Mission Sunday, just a week ago, the parents of St. Therese
of Lisieux were beatified and we were reminded once again that
it is a contemplative religious who is the patron of the missions
"ad gentes". In referring to Therese and her parents, Pope Benedict
reminded us that "prayer is the first missionary duty".
The question for us is the depth and quality of our prayer life.
Is it a prayer life that weathers the storms of discouragement,
disagreement, and outright opposition - all of which happen in
the course of ministry? Is it a prayer life that begins with praise
and thanksgiving …. surely for the great deeds of salvation but
also for those we are serving, those we are attempting to reach
out to - a persevering prayer of praise? Do we bring to our mission
a heart transformed by joy, praise, thankfulness, perseverance,
and watchfulness, coupld with the liberty to be authentic disciples
in the Church's communion not part of a pack, a pressure group,
or an organized ideology?
On Being an Apostle
We've just described the conditions for being an apostle, that
is, for sharing in the apostolate, the mission of the Church.
Now we must spend a few minutes looking at Paul the Apostle, building
on a few thoughts already mentioned but indeed getting to the
heart of his mission to the Gentiles.
In describing the conditions for apostleship, I couldn't help
but mention something of what it means to be an apostle. Hopefully
without repeating myself too much, I'd like to indicate more precisely
what it means for St. Paul to call himself an apostle.
There are essential elements to being an apostle:
First - to have seen the Lord Jesus:
In many places in his writings, Paul refers to his encounter
with the Risen Lord, a meeting that definitively changed St.
Paul himself and the course of his life. It was not just a sudden
inspiration, nor merely a gradual insight. Rather, Paul proclaims
again and again what he has seen and heard. This unexpected
and undeserved encounter is what put him on a par with the 12.
Paul describes this encounter and why he received it in his
letter to the Galatians: "He who had set me apart before I was
born and had called me through his grace, was pleased to reveal
His Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles
…." [Gal 1:15…] Here St. Paul describes his calling terms reminiscent
of the prophet Jeremiah: "Before I formed you in the womb I
knew you and before you were born I crafted you; I appointed
you to a prophet to the nations" [Jer 1:5]. One does not appoint
oneself an apostle but only when called by God.
As Pope Benedict said of St. Paul's conversion: "St. Paul was
not transformed by a thought but by an event, by the irresistible
presence of the Risen One who spoke with Paul, called him to
the apostolate, made him a true apostle, a witness of the resurrection,
with the specific charge to proclaim the Gospel to the pagans,
to the Greco-Roman world… …This meeting was a real renewal that
changed all his parameters… …This enlarged his heart, and opened
it to all. At the same time, his reason opened to the wisdom
of the pagans." While we will not likely directly encounter
the Risen Christ in this life as did Paul we do encounter Him
sacramentally and in prayer … not a new philosophy or morality
but the Crucified and Risen Lord, whose person, whose goodness,
beauty, and love attracts us and who calls us also become authentic
disciples, capable of offering Him to others.
Second - to have been sent
The Greek term apostolos means one who was "sent", "missioned".
In describing himself as "an apostle of Jesus Christ" [1 Cor
1:1; 2 Cor 1:1], Paul makes it clear that he is not propagating
his own views but rather acts as one who is dispatched to accomplish
the mission of another. Paul gives himself other titles that
explicate what it means to be an apostle: he is a "herald" -
(Kerux) - "for I was appointed a herald and apostle,
a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth" [1 Tim. 2:7; see
2 Tim 1:11]. The herald must repeat what has been communicated
to him. Paul refers to himself as "the slave of Christ, of God"
(Doulos Christou; Theou) in Rom 1:1; Gal 1:10 and to
himself and Timothy in Phil 1:1. In his letter to Titus Paul
introduces himself as "the slave of God". And being the slave
of God, he also refers to himself as the slaves of those he
serves: "We do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord;
we ourselves are your slaves for the sake of Jesus" [2 Cor 4:5].
This echoes St. Paul's reference in the kenotic hymn in Philippians
to Christ who willingly accepted "the form of a slave". Surely
this says that the apostle is radically conformed to Christ's
obedience. Paul also calls himself a "servant" - (diakonos)
the root of which is a verb that means "to hasten after" which
adds the note of urgency to accomplishing the mission of the
sender. There are other titles such as "steward", "teacher",
"God's co-worker" but there simply isn't time to deal with all
of these now. But these are terms which unpack the rich meaning
of the term "apostle" as one who was sent and is responsible
to the sender.
Third - the task is that of proclaiming the Gospel and the
goal of preaching the Gospel is the foundation of churches.
The pattern of St. Paul's life and mission is clear: he went
on three missionary journeys - four if you count his journey
to Rome where he was martyred ... and on these journeys he preached
the Gospel, established local churches, left behind or sent
co-workers to watch over them, sent them letters to encourage
and reprove them, and sometimes returned. St. Paul was not selling
an idea but rather calling people, Jews and Greeks, "out of
darkness into the splendid light of Christ" - And isn't this
what the term "church" "ekklesia" means: an assembly called
together. In 1 Cor 9:1 Paul asks: "Am I not an apostle?" and
refers to the Corinthians as "my workmanship in the Lord"….
Being an apostle: a witness to Christ, a herald and servant
sent forth to proclaim the Gospel and to inculcate the Gospel
in local churches ? this caused Paul no end of suffering, exhaustion,
and even heartache. "We are fools for Christ's sake," Paul does
not hesitate to say! [1 Cor 4:10] In the end, the apostle becomes
so consumed with his mission that there is an identification
of the evangelizer with the Gospel, not an unhealthy sense of
ownership - my Gospel, my Diocese, my parish, my program … the
list goes own …but rather a sense of being owned, possessed
by the Gospel we preach, "for we preach Christ Crucified!"
In the course of this Missionary Congress, we might ask ourselves
whether we see our ministry as "our project" or rather as a
calling received from Christ, confirmed by the Church, and done
in communion with the Church. We might ask ourselves whether
we are good ambassadors for Christ not only within the confines
of the Church but in the broader society. Do our thoughts, words,
and deeds herald the Risen One of whom we are emissaries and
servants - and thus, the friends?
On Being An Apostle to the Nations
And our mission activity must extend beyond the borders of our
comfort zone. For Paul, being an apostle wasn't like joining a
club or capping a career. Rather, he was called to be an apostle
in order to bring the Gospel to the nations, that is to say, to
the Gentiles, to the Greco-Roman world. As noted earlier, St.
Paul's ministry to the Gentiles was received by Christ but it
was confirmed by the Apostles at Jerusalem. In an age of global
marketing, we might think it a natural move for Christianity to
go beyond the Jews to the Gentile world. After all, that growth
potential was much greater there. But that was not an obvious
move in the time of Paul and the Apostles but rather a providential,
Spirit-driven decision that has proven pivotal.
And it was a decision not lacking in tension and difficulty.
Paul found out early on, when he was still an apprentice to Barnabas,
that preaching to Jews and Gentiles at the same time did not always
work. There were deep tensions regarding the Jewish and Gentile
"converts", with respect to the Mosaic Law … were they obligated
to observe it and if so, to what degree? Paul was insistent on
that they were not and frequently makes the point the we are saved
by the grace of Christ not by observance of the Law … this too
being part of his own conversion. Paul did not hesitate to confront
even Peter when he seemed to be acting one way with Jewish converts
and other way with Gentile converts. Paul's preaching often stirred
up controversy, right from the start, and more than a few times
he was asked to leave a territory or even had to escape.
A most obvious point in Paul's life is that the Gospel must be
brought to the nations. As noted earlier, Paul himself summed
up the Jewish, Greek, and Roman culture and Paul put those gifts
to use in his three, even four missionary journeys, which were
the major work of his life … not counting his first excursion
into Northern Arabia just after his conversion. His missionary
journeys began around 50 A.D. and can be summed up in this way:
The first journey was from Antioch to Cyprus and then
to cities in Asia Minor, to Perge, Antioch of Psidia, Iconium,
Lystra and Derbe. At this point Barnabas was still "the lead
agent" but Paul was gaining fast! They preached the Good News
of the Lord's death and resurrection at first in synagogues
where Paul, trained in rabbinic argumentation, perhaps felt
he would have a bond of kinship - it did not work out that way.
So even in his first journey, Paul turned his attention to the
Gentiles in fulfillment of the call he had received from the
Risen One. Along the way he established some communities he
would later re-visit.
On the second journey Paul went with Silas to visit
communities he had established; in Lystra he met Timothy who
accompanied him during his journey as well. He continued his
travels, moving from the south, northwest to the Dardanelles
to Troas where he departed for Greece. Paul established the
churches in Philippi, Thessalonica, Beroea, Athens, Corinth
and then back to Antioch which was his main base, and then spending
time at Ephesus and Caesarea.
The third journey was undertaken by Paul to strengthen
those churches that he had started in Asia Minor and Greece.
He was accompanied by Timothy and Titus. He went again to Tyre,
Caesarea, and Jerusalem, where he was arrested.
The fourth journey was to Rome as a prisoner. It was
not a missionary journey as such but Paul did not cease to proclaim
the Gospel even while in chains! "There is no chaining the Word
of God!"
Two points can be drawn out from this. First is that Paul did
not hesitate to bring the Gospel into an environment which was
diverse, often hostile, contentious, and confused. He did not
have the language of enculturation developed so well by the late
Pope John Paul II, but St. Paul knew how to proclaim the authentic
Gospel in a way that could be understood by his hearers. His talk
to the Athenians was a masterful piece of apologetics but in the
end, it was not effective because the "newness" of the Risen One
was too much for them. Nonetheless, we will find in Paul's letters
a fascinating ability to use to the tools of the classical world
to proclaim the radically new message of the Gospel.
In Fairfield County we are less than 700 square miles but we
have the world at our doorstep. You and I serve in a place where
Mass is offered in 14 languages each week and where there is a
growing diversity as we welcome, or hopefully welcome, newly arrived
from Mexico, Central & South America, Haiti, Africa, Asia & Europe.
St. Paul, in his discussions with the other apostles, makes clear
that there is only one Gospel but it must be expressed in ways
that enable those we serve to grasp it and live it. Today we have
arranged workshops designed to help us improve our ability to
communicate in general but also to communicate to a very large
and growing Spanish-speaking population.
Second, while St. Paul had a home base, sometimes in Antioch,
sometimes Ephesus, finally in Rome, St. Paul did not wait for
people to come to him rather he brought the Gospel out. The Church
is well established here. We may be tempted to think that, since
people have the obligation to show up, we need only to run our
programs and wait for them to come. Clearly not, as the workshop
on increasing parish attendance will show. A recent Pew Foundation
study showed that while 90% of Americans believe in God and think
of themselves as religious, more and more are scrapping dogma
for spirituality and we see this here - where about 1/3 of our
people go to Mass regularly. Clearly we need to reach those who
feel no hunger and thirst for Eucharist, those who are living
their lives with no guidance from the Word of God, those who are
oppressed by an overwhelmingly secular culture. Like Paul, we
must have "the soul of a diamond", as John Chrysostom said of
him, brilliant, beautiful, lightsome - but also durable!
Conclusion
I sincerely thank you for attending this Congress even as I thank
you for your daily labors for the Gospel. I am grateful to my
brother priests, heralds and stewards of the mysteries; grateful
to deacons, who are servants of the Word; thankful to those in
consecrated life for your witness to Christ; grateful as well
to DRE's, catechists, lay ecclesial ministers. Parents for all
of the ways you proclaim Christ & offer systematic instruction
in the faith. In the words of St. Paul to the Thessalonians: "We
keep thanking God for all of you and we remember you in our prayers,
for we constantly are mindful before our God and Father of the
way you are proving your faith, laboring in love, and showing
constancy in hope in our Lord Jesus Christ!"
St. Therese of the Child Jesus - pray for us!
St. Francis Xavier - pray for us!
St. Paul - pray for us!
Thanks for listening! God bless you!
Return to the Writings of Bishop
Lori
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