16 January 2024: Legion Handbook Chapter 24.10

Today’s reading speaks of St. Paul as one of the patrons of the Legion, whom we invoke in our concluding prayers. Hugely vital in the early Church’s evangelisation and the proclamation of the good news, St Paul is the patron of the apostolate and missions. You might have heard of the Daughters of St Paul and how their charism is through evangelisation and the media. As a lay apostolate, how very fitting it is for him to be invoked and be a patron of the Legion. He embodies the essential spirit of the Legion, and many chapters of the handbook are directly based on his teachings. As the apostle of the Gentiles, St. Paul proclaimed the Gospel both to Jews and to those not of the Jewish religion. St Paul remains for us as one of the most excellent examples and role models of being a disciple of Christ, and hence, as Legionaries, if we want to live out our apostolate well, we need to imitate his qualities and virtues that make him such an effective evangeliser.

Today, let me share some qualities of St Paul that we can reflect on and imitate.

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1. Conversion of Heart

First, let me talk about the conversion of St Paul. As you already know, before he became Paul, he was Saul,  Pharisee who relentlessly persecuted the early Christians.  After Jesus’ crucifixion, Saul zealously devoted himself to persecuting those who were Jesus’ followers.  The earliest martyrdom in the Church after Jesus’ death took place with Saul’s consent, who stood by as St. Stephen was stoned to death.  And yet, with God’s grace, the most amazing conversion happened. Our Lord appeared to him saying  ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’ He said, ‘Who are you, sir?’ The reply came, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting’” (Acts 9:3–5). With that, Saul was blinded and had to be led into the city of Damascus, where he stayed for three days, fasting, praying, and pondering this encounter. This encounter marked the start of the drastic and glorious conversion of St Paul, reminding us that no matter how evil, depraved or sinful we are, when we encounter the Lord and cooperate with his graces, we can do wonderful things and still become a saint. His conversion story did not stop there, for conversion is a lifelong process. From our past sinfulness, we can imitate St Paul in always being converted to Christ every moment of our life. 

2. Zeal for the Gospel

St Paul reminds us that  God can transform us, and use our habits, our talents and temperaments, to do better. From that time on, the zeal that he had poured into persecution became zeal for the spreading of the Gospel. His zeal is so evident in so many instances in the New Testament, and is an example for us to follow in our apostolate. He wished more than anything else, to bring the good news of Christ to those who did not believe or yet know Him. Throughout his journey, he remained tireless in his efforts, despite enduring much suffering: .In his apostolate, He was as wise as a serpent and innocent and gentle as a dove. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.  All in all, his apostolate was so successful because Saint Paul lived in Christ Jesus so completely, that he could truthfully say, "Christ lives in me" 

3. Humility and Selflessness

And with this zeal, and even with the great contributions he had, founding so many churches, he remained humble and selfless. (Romans 9:3). Indeed, one of the trials Paul faced was the temptation of many: to make it all about him, a sort of spiritual pride. But whether or not people accepted or shunned him, Paul was the same: The focus had to be on Jesus. Paul’s apostleship was for one purpose — to glorify God, not himself.  He continues to say that “I am the least of the apostles, not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me has not been ineffective. Indeed, I have toiled harder than all of them; not I, however, but the grace of God [that is] with me.”  In the letter to the Romans, Paul even mentioned that he cared so much about his Jewish brothers that if it was possible, he was willing to give up his own salvation if it meant they could have the opportunity to be saved. That is another level of selflessness! 

How did St. Paul remain humble and selfless? If you might recall, in the  second letter to the corinthians, Paul states that “because of the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, an angel of Satan,

to beat me, to keep me from being too elated.” Some say that this thorn in the flesh may refer to different temptations, such as impiety or purity, or the extreme sufferings he had to go through. Whatever they may be, St. Paul's struggle with carnal temptation "vaccinated" him against sinful pride.  He continues to write that “Three times I begged the Lord about this, that it might leave me, but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses, in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me. Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and constraints, for the sake of Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” 

I found this explanation from Catholic Answers very eye-opening: “In our times especially there are many souls who are sincere believers, and yet they are caught in the grasp of habits of impurity in thought and deed. They pray the rosary, they go to adoration, they promote the Faith, they perform works of charity, they want to become holy, and yet they fall repeatedly. The devil would like them to believe that they are abandoned, doomed to die in grave sin, but this is not the case. God is infinitely more powerful than sin and the devil. He is so powerful that he can use our grave sins and besetting faults to make us reach a deeper level of love for God and neighbor. He can even make us humble and protect us from pride by the undeniable evidence of our sins. Christ Jesus is the Great Physician of Souls, and could it be that his permission of our sins is part of his great therapeutic strategy to make us humble and holy? God will allow us to fall into great weaknesses and temptations in order to keep us from the sin of pride, “the root and beginning of all vice.”.”

4. Faithfulness

Finally, St Paul remained faithful til the end. St. Paul's faithfulness is seen in his unwavering commitment to preaching the Gospel, even in the face of persecution and challenges, until the very moment of his martyrdom. Elsewhere in the Legion handbook, it is said that we must finish the race. This we should do to the last , so that we can eventually say like saint Paul '...I have fought a good fight, I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. What is left is to be crowned with the crown of glory'. 2 Tim. 4:7.

As we ponder on St Paul's life and teachings,  let us reflect on our own conversion. Are we as zealous for God as was Saint Paul? Do we allow God to fill us with zeal so that He may use us in glorious ways? Let us hence ask God and the intercession of St. Paul, to provide us with opportunities to introduce Christ to others. Let us adopt St Paul’s zeal in our apostolate, being flexible and adapting to effectively share the message of Christ and to win others to Him. Finally, let us also remember to be humble and selfless as he was, remaining faithful til the end.

Allocated Work: Share with someone about your conversion story/the conversion of St, Paul!