PAUL—A MAN FOR HIS TIME AND OURS

 

Several years ago I had the opportunity to tour the Lands of Paul.  As I traveled by airliner, air-conditioned bus, and “cruise” ship (to get us from one island to another), I was very conscious of the contrast between our traveling and that which Paul must have endured as he made his way over many, many miles to establish and maintain those early Christian communities.  I had a deeper appreciation of Paul as I imagined him trudging along dusty roads, carrying his limited possessions in a sack, covering about twenty miles a day.

 

My favorite site on the tour was the excavations of the city of Philippi. This was the first location in Europe where Paul proclaimed the gospel and established a Christian community, also where he was imprisoned for a time; the cell is still there!  The remains of the first small Christian church are also still there and a group of archeologists was slowly unearthing the marble floor with its Christian symbols.

 

I was reminded of this trip when I read recently that Pope Benedict XVI has proclaimed a special year to honor St. Paul the Apostle, beginning with the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul on June 28, 2008. Though the exact date of Paul’s birth is unknown, it is believed that he was born between 5 and 10 A.D.   And so we will celebrate this most prominent personality of the New Testament, apart from Jesus himself.  More than anyone else in his time, Paul led people to understand what Jesus meant for the world.  You might consider him the first Christian theologian! 

 

Frederic Buechner (in his A Biblical Who’s Who) states that “Paul planted churches the way Johnny Appleseed planted trees.  And whenever he had ten minutes he wrote letters to those communities he had founded—sometimes scolding, sometimes complaining, sometimes coaxing—but always encouraging.”  In his letter to the Galatians, Paul is basically asking them: How could you be so stupid?  Yet he begins his letter to the Philippians: “I thank my God whenever I think of you.”  Paul saw himself as a parent to the many communities he had established and often had to practice “tough love.”

 

One question that always arises in discussing Paul is: Was St. Paul sexist?

There are those who cringe as they hear “Wives, be submissive to your husbands” or “Women should not speak in church.”  We might console ourselves with the fact that Paul’s letters may have been edited and expanded.  Or we might consider that New Testament writers, including Paul, often betray a male-dominated culture of the first century.  In Paul’s favor are the many passages in his letters that speak of his close working relationship with women and of his encouragement of women in leadership positions in the fledgling Christian communities.

 

Most of us are familiar with Paul’s letters as the second reading in our Sunday lectionary.  Over the three-year cycle, portions of 16 of the 22 letters of the New Testament are read.  The advice Paul gives to his young and struggling communities is often the same kind of advice we might need to hear today in our own Christian community. 

 

In a recent Catholic Update on Paul, Ronald Witherup, S.S. concludes: “Paul, like all of us, was a product of his era. To some degree, he believed that many influences in the surrounding culture were detrimental to the spiritual health of his communities….  Perhaps that is the challenge of Paul to each of us today.  He, who has shaped so much of our Christianity, challenges us to encounter our own culture bravely, with Christ as our guide.”

 

Sister Marie, O.P.

 

P.S. If you would like to read the fascinating account of Paul’s travels, pick up your bible and read Acts of the Apostles beginning with chapter 9.