We In Rome today, Pope Benedict has inaugurated a special year honoring the life and works of St. Paul. It is a year dedicated to celebrating a man who went from hating Jesus to loving Him and giving his life, as Jesus did, so that, in Paul’s case, the Gentiles, and that’s us, would receive the Gospel, and the Church as we know it.

I’ve always concluded from what we know about St. Paul, that he was kind of the “red-neck” type of personality.  Not that all truck-drivers are this way, but Paul would have made a good one: dogged and independent as he was.

St. Paul was one of those rare people of his time who was both a Jew and a Roman freedman.

So he had some status and influential clout.

It’s important to remember that he started out as Saul from Tarsus.  As he got into the anti-Christian persecution that the Jewish leaders were engaged in, he could well have been called “The Terror of Tarsus.”

But then we remember his famous gallop into Damascus, with sword in hand, and the lightning and thunder roll in and zap him right off his horse, leaving Paul blind. 

He goes into Damascus, recovers his sight after Jesus appears to him and gives him a new job, and from then on he begins working for the Church, instead of against it.

But by no means does this conversion tame his spirit.  He continues to drive his own truck, or fly his own airplane, attracting such crew members as Timothy, Titus, Barnabas, John, Mark and others.

And then there’s his famous contentious moment with St. Peter.  He never challenged Peter’s primacy among the apostles,

But he certainly was not shy about confronting the boss with what he determined were critical issues,  Especially this business about circumcising male Gentile converts.

Paul just insisted that this was an undue burden upon adult converts to the Faith and that if the rule was not rescinded, then the Church would lose lots of potential converts.

Happily, Peter and the others apostles acceded to Paul’s persuasive insistence.

St. Paul wrote a number of books in the New Testament - letters they were to the various populations in countries where he had preached.  And in those letters, Paul gives us a lot of everyday applications to living the Christian life each day in our lives.

We hear the best of St. Paul’s writings over the 3-year cycle of Scripture readings the Church prescribes for us to hear at Mass when we come to Church.

Most of his writings are very rich in spirituality and so memorable that they quickly come to mind when we need them.

For example, there’s the passage usually used at the Wedding Mass, where he simply asks, “What profit is there for a person to gain all the things of this world, but lose one’s soul? No, rather let your love be kind, considerate, understanding, tolerant, patient, and persevering, having no limits or bounds. Otherwise, you will be no more than a bothersome noisy gong or clashing symbol.” -A nuisance.

In the funeral Mass, we hear St. Paul talk about his own life, toward its end, as being poured out like a leftover beverage.

But, he insists characteristically, I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, And I have kept the faith.

Now there awaits for me only the crown of reward promised to those who have remained faithful.”

And then he urges us to console one another with the promise from Jesus that we will all be with our loved ones together again in eternity where Jesus has gone to prepare a place for us.

Another rather comforting comment St. Paul makes is: “So often I find that the good that I want to do, I don’t , and the bad I don’t want to do, I do.”

None of us are perfect, strive however hard we may try to be.

So when we find ourselves frustrated over our sins and imperfections, at least we can pray to St. Paul, who’s been there and done that, for help.

In this Year of St. Paul, Pope Benedict has allowed a Plenary Indulgence for the remission of all our sins if we,

Go to Confession, Receive Communion, Pray for the intentions of the Pope, Actively participate in some public solemn celebration of the Pauline Year, like today’s opening liturgy, the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul next January 25, or the closing liturgy next year at this time, June 28-29 of 2009.

Or for those who cannot attend any of the solemn celebrations due to illness or other legitimate reason, who simply unite themselves spiritually to the celebrations in honor of St. Paul, and offering their sufferings and prayers to God for the unity of Christians.

The Year of St. Paul, begins today, my friends.

So, Thank you.