Princeton speaker series kicks off with Bishop on topic of St. Paul
September 25, 2024 at 10:11 a.m.
Addressing those gathered in the St. Paul Parish spiritual center Sept. 24, Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., talked about the Apostle Paul from a three-fold perspective: the man, his mission and his message.
“St. Paul the Apostle defines much of what we believe and teach in Christianity and much of what we have believed and taught for over 2,000 years,” he noted. “He is often considered the most important person in Christianity after the Lord Jesus himself.”
The Bishop gave his talk, “In the Footsteps of St. Paul,” as the first of a four-part speaker series launched by the Princeton parish. The series, which will include a new speaker quarterly, was inspired by feedback from the recent Synod listening sessions, which revealed that many in the parish were seeking expanded adult faith formation.
“He could not be shaken from his conviction … St. Paul traveled over 10,000 miles preaching, teaching, baptizing and evangelizing, rallying communities and churches around the message of the Gospel,” Bishop O’Connell pointed out. “And he wanted everyone to know why. We read in his letter to the Galatians, ‘I want you to know, brothers, that the Gospel preached by me is not of human origin, for I did not receive it from a human being, nor was I taught it; it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.’”
Example of Evangelization
Comparing Paul of Tarsus to President Abraham Lincoln, Bishop O’Connell noted how the upbringing of each pivotal historical figure was influenced by his upbringing.
St. Paul, Bishop O'Connell says to those gathered in St. Paul Parish spiritual center Sept. 24, is probably best known for his New Testament letters written to both Gentiles and the Jews. EmmaLee Italia photoLincoln’s humble beginnings in a rural log cabin, impoverished and suffering many career failures and personal melancholy, “all these experiences fill in the picture of the ‘Great Emancipator.’ They help us understand his speeches and decisions because his early life … provided a context for understanding his thought. And so, with St. Paul.”
Although not much is known about Paul’s early life, the Bishop explained, his own writings indicate that he was both a devout Jew and a Pharisee, strictly adhering to the law, and that he persecuted Christianity with a vengeance. He was also a tentmaker by trade, as well as a Roman citizen; Saul was his Hebrew name, while Paul was his Roman name.
St. Paul’s writings “constitute the major portion of the New Testament … 13 letters out of 27 books, as well as 17 chapters about him in Acts,” Bishop O’Connell emphasized. “It is through his letters in particular that God reveals to us how to live as individual disciples and as a Christian community, and how to engage the world around us with a confident faith.”
Paul’s mission, he said, was two-fold: pre-conversion, when his mission was the destruction of Christianity, and post-conversion, when his mission shifted to spreading the Gospel of Christ.
“From that point, from the conversion forward, Paul’s life became a tireless heralding of the message of the Lord Jesus,” Bishop O’Connell said. “He set out with courage, facing all kinds of dangers, to witness to his faith in, as he calls him, ‘Christ Jesus’ – putting his saving title before his birth name. The post-Damascus Paul could not be shaken from his conviction of faith.”
The Bishop pointed to St. Paul’s three missionary journeys before his mission to Rome – an amazing feat, given the limitations of transportation and the travel conditions.
“He encountered several physical hardships – hunger, thirst, cold, inadequate clothing,” he said. “He was opposed by the Jews, he was opposed by the Romans, even thrown in jail and stoned. He also had spiritual and emotional issues, anxiety … but despite all these challenges along the way, Paul exhibited unwavering faith and perseverance.”
Catholics hear St. Paul’s message nearly every Sunday in the second Reading at Mass, he said, as these are mostly taken from Paul’s letters, either authored by him or by his closest associates.
“The message reflects the themes of St. Paul’s theology,” the Bishop continued, “… the centrality of the redemptive suffering and Cross of Christ; grace and salvation sustains all we do; unity and community; [and] mission, purpose and evangelization.”
Bishop O’Connell emphasized that a single talk could not do justice to St. Paul’s message, but he encouraged those present to “try to be very attentive to the second reading at Mass … and to make an effort to read St. Paul’s letters as well as the Acts of the Apostles … his words are so near; become familiar with them.”
Sparking an Interest
Further curious about their parish patron, those gathered followed the Bishop’s talk with interested questions about St. Paul’s life and message.
One attendee asked whether there was any speculation on why Paul became such a huge persecutor of Christians.
“He was so deeply immersed in the Torah and Hebrew Scriptures and tradition that he never made any room whatsoever for the possibility that there could be anything else,” Bishop O’Connell responded. “So, when these other Jews came along who had met and walked with Jesus and started preaching … this really rankled him … he wanted to end it … Then he saw the vision of Christ, and everything changed.”
St. Paul parishioner and adult choir member Pat Callahan commented on how much she appreciated Bishop O’Connell’s presentation.
“I love history, and I really enjoyed his talk from the historical as well as the spiritual perspective,” she said. “I knew he was converted, but it seemed like it was instantaneous – very dramatic … because he was so bent on torturing Christians, God really had to show him, to say something to make a difference.”
“He’s a teacher at heart,” said Father Christopher Dayton, St. Paul’s pastor, of the Bishop. “One of the biggest roles of being a bishop is to teach, and seeing him in action is, as a priest, always something really profound for me.”
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Addressing those gathered in the St. Paul Parish spiritual center Sept. 24, Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., talked about the Apostle Paul from a three-fold perspective: the man, his mission and his message.
“St. Paul the Apostle defines much of what we believe and teach in Christianity and much of what we have believed and taught for over 2,000 years,” he noted. “He is often considered the most important person in Christianity after the Lord Jesus himself.”
The Bishop gave his talk, “In the Footsteps of St. Paul,” as the first of a four-part speaker series launched by the Princeton parish. The series, which will include a new speaker quarterly, was inspired by feedback from the recent Synod listening sessions, which revealed that many in the parish were seeking expanded adult faith formation.
“He could not be shaken from his conviction … St. Paul traveled over 10,000 miles preaching, teaching, baptizing and evangelizing, rallying communities and churches around the message of the Gospel,” Bishop O’Connell pointed out. “And he wanted everyone to know why. We read in his letter to the Galatians, ‘I want you to know, brothers, that the Gospel preached by me is not of human origin, for I did not receive it from a human being, nor was I taught it; it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.’”
Example of Evangelization
Comparing Paul of Tarsus to President Abraham Lincoln, Bishop O’Connell noted how the upbringing of each pivotal historical figure was influenced by his upbringing.
St. Paul, Bishop O'Connell says to those gathered in St. Paul Parish spiritual center Sept. 24, is probably best known for his New Testament letters written to both Gentiles and the Jews. EmmaLee Italia photoLincoln’s humble beginnings in a rural log cabin, impoverished and suffering many career failures and personal melancholy, “all these experiences fill in the picture of the ‘Great Emancipator.’ They help us understand his speeches and decisions because his early life … provided a context for understanding his thought. And so, with St. Paul.”
Although not much is known about Paul’s early life, the Bishop explained, his own writings indicate that he was both a devout Jew and a Pharisee, strictly adhering to the law, and that he persecuted Christianity with a vengeance. He was also a tentmaker by trade, as well as a Roman citizen; Saul was his Hebrew name, while Paul was his Roman name.
St. Paul’s writings “constitute the major portion of the New Testament … 13 letters out of 27 books, as well as 17 chapters about him in Acts,” Bishop O’Connell emphasized. “It is through his letters in particular that God reveals to us how to live as individual disciples and as a Christian community, and how to engage the world around us with a confident faith.”
Paul’s mission, he said, was two-fold: pre-conversion, when his mission was the destruction of Christianity, and post-conversion, when his mission shifted to spreading the Gospel of Christ.
“From that point, from the conversion forward, Paul’s life became a tireless heralding of the message of the Lord Jesus,” Bishop O’Connell said. “He set out with courage, facing all kinds of dangers, to witness to his faith in, as he calls him, ‘Christ Jesus’ – putting his saving title before his birth name. The post-Damascus Paul could not be shaken from his conviction of faith.”
The Bishop pointed to St. Paul’s three missionary journeys before his mission to Rome – an amazing feat, given the limitations of transportation and the travel conditions.
“He encountered several physical hardships – hunger, thirst, cold, inadequate clothing,” he said. “He was opposed by the Jews, he was opposed by the Romans, even thrown in jail and stoned. He also had spiritual and emotional issues, anxiety … but despite all these challenges along the way, Paul exhibited unwavering faith and perseverance.”
Catholics hear St. Paul’s message nearly every Sunday in the second Reading at Mass, he said, as these are mostly taken from Paul’s letters, either authored by him or by his closest associates.
“The message reflects the themes of St. Paul’s theology,” the Bishop continued, “… the centrality of the redemptive suffering and Cross of Christ; grace and salvation sustains all we do; unity and community; [and] mission, purpose and evangelization.”
Bishop O’Connell emphasized that a single talk could not do justice to St. Paul’s message, but he encouraged those present to “try to be very attentive to the second reading at Mass … and to make an effort to read St. Paul’s letters as well as the Acts of the Apostles … his words are so near; become familiar with them.”
Sparking an Interest
Further curious about their parish patron, those gathered followed the Bishop’s talk with interested questions about St. Paul’s life and message.
One attendee asked whether there was any speculation on why Paul became such a huge persecutor of Christians.
“He was so deeply immersed in the Torah and Hebrew Scriptures and tradition that he never made any room whatsoever for the possibility that there could be anything else,” Bishop O’Connell responded. “So, when these other Jews came along who had met and walked with Jesus and started preaching … this really rankled him … he wanted to end it … Then he saw the vision of Christ, and everything changed.”
St. Paul parishioner and adult choir member Pat Callahan commented on how much she appreciated Bishop O’Connell’s presentation.
“I love history, and I really enjoyed his talk from the historical as well as the spiritual perspective,” she said. “I knew he was converted, but it seemed like it was instantaneous – very dramatic … because he was so bent on torturing Christians, God really had to show him, to say something to make a difference.”
“He’s a teacher at heart,” said Father Christopher Dayton, St. Paul’s pastor, of the Bishop. “One of the biggest roles of being a bishop is to teach, and seeing him in action is, as a priest, always something really profound for me.”