Reading the Letters of St.

Paul Jubilee Year of the Apostle P

Year aul
Paul
Sr. Germana Santos, FSP
June 28, 2008 – June 29, 2009
One of the main objectives of this Pauline Year according to his plan. If we approach Scripture
is to come to a greater knowledge and prayerfully, and ask God for the guidance of his June 2008 Vol. 1
understanding of the Apostle St. Paul. And there Spirit, he will enlighten us to understand and
is no better way to enter into the mind and heart to fall in love with his Word. Pope Benedict XVI has dedicated this Two thousand years may seem too wide a gap
of Paul than to read his Letters, which make up Out of a deep rev- coming year to the Apostle Paul to of time, but as we come to know St. Paul we
a large part of the New Testament writings. erence for God’s Word commemorate the 2000th anniversary of his discover the freshness of a life consumed for God
Letter writing is as ancient as individuals have and belief in its saving birth. and others, and the interior spirit of one wholly
felt the need to communicate with each other. power, some saints on fire for the Lord Jesus.
St. Paul is a fascinating figure of the early
In general, letters can be personal, intimate, and used to carry pages of Church. A man with seemingly unbounded The Pauline Year will be celebrated in a
revealing. The letter writer may share experi- Scripture on their per- energy, he traveled thousands of miles to privileged way in Rome, at the Basilica of St. Paul-
ences, events, interpretation of those events, son; others began preach the gospel. This great Apostle wrote a Outside-the-Walls where the remains of the
their world view, spiritual insights, moral and their daily tasks by number of letters to encourage others in the Apostle Paul are buried. There will be a series of
theological understanding, and much more. St. reading one or two faith, and he experienced many forms of events that range from liturgical celebrations to
Paul did all this as he wrote to various early verses from the Bible, suffering as he pursued the goal that cultural gatherings such as music concerts and
Christian communities and to individuals. then kissing it rever- consumed him: to live Jesus Christ and to give ecumenical meetings.
There are those who consider the Letters of ently. Some churches Jesus Christ to others. “In every part of the world, similar initiatives
St. Paul too daunting, too difficult to understand. and religious commu-
nities keep a Bible open and exposed for ven- This Pauline Year is an occasion for the will be implemented in the dioceses, shrines and
Although some passages in these Letters may places of worship, by religious and by the
eration in their chapels, or in other prominent entire Church to deepen our knowledge of
be obscure and need clarification through educational institutions and social-assistance
areas. “The Church has always venerated the St. Paul by learning about his life, reading his
instructive footnotes and adequate explanations, centers which are named after St. Paul or inspired
divine Scriptures just as she venerates the body letters, delving into his spirituality,
much of Paul’s writing is rich in spiritual, by him and his teaching” (Pope Benedict, June
of the Lord,” (Dei Verbum 21). We are nourished understanding his theology, and especially
theological, and human knowledge and 28, 2007).
on our life’s journey with the Word of God and imitating his total self-giving to Christ.
understanding.
the Body and Blood of Christ.
We do not wish to
approach the reading of The Pauline Corpus consists of 13 letters—
those undisputedly written by Paul, and those (See the official website:www.annopaolino.org)
Scripture in general, or the
Letters of St. Paul in authored by other writers but attributed to Paul.
particular, with reservations While the question of authorship is debated by
and concerns, because we Scripture scholars, it does not affect our belief The centuries flow by and events
are taught that “in the in the Bible’s divine inspiration and God’s great move on, but the message of St.
sacred books, the Father desire to speak to us through his Word.
Paul remains; nothing shall ever
who is in heaven meets His During this Pauline Year, we can resolve to
invalidate it. For anyone who
children with great love and read the Letters of St. Paul daily, or as frequently
speaks with them” (Dei as possible. In them we will enter into the considers his example, for
Verbum, 22).* profound spirituality of this Apostle who loved anyone who hears his words,
The Church holds that Christ so deeply and who considered knowing there emerge lessons which
the books of the Bible are and living Christ as the only thing of worth in are ever new.... St. Paul is
“written under the this life. unquestionably the most
inspiration of the Holy
Spirit, and they have God as wonderful example of that
* The Latin title, Dei Verbum, stands for The
their author” (Dei Verbum, 11). The Bible, then, Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, one pure and ardent flame which
is God’s “letter to humankind,” as one of the of the sixteen documents of Vatican II, and an Christ Jesus can light in the souls
saints used to say. And God wrote this “letter ” official teaching of the Church on Sacred of those who love him....
to us so that we would know his heart and live Scripture.
Henri Daniel-Rops
 Who is St. Paul? From Scripture and tradition, we know
that Paul’s personality was intense,
Sr. Anne Joan Flanagan and Sr. Germana Santos passionate, convinced, ardent, whole-
hearted. He had a brilliant intellect and a
sharp sense of irony.
Having found Christ—or, as he would write
later, having “been grasped” by Christ—Paul
lived entirely for him to the point of preferring
to die in order to be with Christ. Christ was
his life, his focus, his reward.

St. Paul is one of the best-known personalities
of the early Church. What we know about Paul
comes principally from his own writings or
those attributed to his disciples. He was born in
Tarsus, a city in present-day Turkey, into an
observant Jewish family, sometime between the
years 5 A.D.–10 A.D.; the present celebration of
the 2,000 years of his birth is an approximation
to these dates.
Paul was
educated in
Pharisaic Juda-
ism at the
“school” of
Gamaliel, in
Jerusalem. He
was scrupu-
lously and suc-
cessfully obser-
vant of all the
regulations of
the Jewish Law
as practiced by
the Pharisees. He also learned a trade—that of
making tents—and throughout his life he was
able to supply for his own needs with his work.
While still a young man, Paul persecuted the
followers of Jesus, and he never forgot that he
had been “a persecutor and a blasphemer and
a man of arrogance” who had received mercy
from God. It was during a journey to imprison
the Christians that he was stopped in his tracks
by a vision of Christ. Through this encounter
with Christ, Paul was dramatically changed and
transformed.
“Henceforth, all that had constituted for him
a value paradoxically became, according to his
words, a loss and refuse (cf. Phil 3: 7–10). And
from that moment all his energy was placed at
the exclusive service of Jesus Christ and his
Gospel. Paul’s existence would become that of
an Apostle who wants to ‘become all things to
all men’ (1 Cor 9: 22) without reserve” (Pope
Benedict XVI).
Paul traveled extensively as a missionary of
the Gospel. He established Christian
communities in the areas around the
Mediterranean, and he wrote many letters—
some in response to questions, some in thanks
for gifts of money and help, some to clarify
teachings. He worked with numerous
collaborators: men, women, and couples.
As a result of his missionary work, he
suffered punishment at the hands of Jewish and
Roman authorities, he suffered from the
elements, and he suffered from people he called
“false brothers.”
More than once he was arrested for his wit-
ness and work for the Gospel. His last impris-
onment in Jerusalem
eventually led him to
be sent to Rome to
stand in judgment.
While awaiting to ap-
pear before the em-
peror, Paul remained
under house arrest for
two years, during
which he continued to
preach and perhaps
write.
Paul was martyred
in Rome by decapita-
tion, under the Em-
peror Nero around the years 62–68 A.D. He was
buried “outside the walls”— the present site of
an enormous Basilica dedicated to him. It is
here, in St. Paul-Outside-the-Walls, where we
venerate his remains.
Iconography of St. Paul
Sr. Armanda Santos
The sword is the principal attribute by which Saint Paul
is recognized, since it was by decapitation that Paul
suffered martyrdom. Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians also
refers to the sword emblematically when it speaks of the
Word of God as “the sword of the Spirit” (Eph 6:17). Along
with the sword, Paul often holds a book or scroll of
parchment representing the Word which Paul preached
and wrote. Paul’s letters make up the bulk of the New
Testament and predate the four Gospels, constituting the
first written commentary on the life of Jesus.
“The Good News I proclaimed is not a human
gospel, for I did not receive it from a man nor was I
taught it—I received it through a revelation of Jesus
Christ.”
(Gal 1:11-12)
The Daughters of St. Paul are an international religious
congregation serving the Church in more than 50 countries.
The core of our mission is to proclaim Christ as Paul did;
to share Jesus’ message of love and salvation with the world.
BOOKS & MEDIA
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