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."
On that road to Damascus, Saint Paul explained that "Christ made me his own" (Phil. 3:12). In that spectacular moment, the center of Saint Paul's life shifted from the Jewish law to Jesus Christ! His conversion wasn't the product of learning theology or philosophy, but rather, it was the product of an encounter with the Living Christ, which left Paul zealous to please Christ in everything. As he matured in his Christian faith, Paul was able to eventually say such bold things as, "It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me" (2 Cor. 2:20) and "Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ" (1 Cor. 11:1).
Today, as we celebrate Saint Paul's conversion, I invite us to reflect on our own conversion. How did we become a follower of Christ? What used to be the center of our lives? What/Who is the center now?
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