From the reading of Morning Prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours:
I have appeared to you to designate you as my servant and as a witness to what you have seen of me and what you will see of me. I have delivered you from this people and from the nations, to open the eyes of those to whom I am sending you, to turn them from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God; that through their faith in me they may obtain the forgiveness of their sins and a portion among God’s people. (Acts 26:16b-18)
What a call! What a weight! And yet, St. Paul turns on his spiritual heel and begins to follow this commission that has since probably seen no equal. This, to me, approaches equivalent weight to “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” It’s also a microcosm of conversion in any case – first you are informed, then you are converted. Sometimes it’s instantaneous, sometimes the lag between step 1 and step 2 is well nigh to forever. St. Paul, pray for us!
(Image from catholicculture.org.)
Fr. Z outdoes me by a long shot with his patristiblogging of Paul’s conversion.
