Fast Fridays: 30 Minutes for God: Difference between revisions
→Friday, Nov 8: Saint Paul: the perfect choice for Christ
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Using the notion of "contingency," which means in this sense "alternatives" or "options", we can see how Paul is the perfect Apostle for the mission Christ embarks him upon, to spread the Good News to the Gentiles: | Using the notion of "contingency," which means in this sense "alternatives" or "options", we can see how Paul is the perfect Apostle for the mission Christ embarks him upon, to spread the Good News to the Gentiles: | ||
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* Pharisee, learned under Gamaliel | * Pharisee, learned under Gamaliel | ||
* Persecuted Christians | * Persecuted Christians | ||
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* Speaks Greek and Hebrew | * Speaks Greek and Hebrew | ||
* Roman citizen | * Roman citizen | ||
Thus, Paul was the perfect vehicle for Christ -- all those characteristics of Paul were essential to | Thus, Paul was the perfect vehicle for Christ -- all those characteristics of Paul were essential to the mission, it's authenticity, and its timing. | ||
But he needed a few more qualifications, things about his character: | But he needed a few more qualifications, things about his character: | ||
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** He could swim (see [https://bible.usccb.org/bible/acts/27?43 Acts 27:43]) | ** He could swim (see [https://bible.usccb.org/bible/acts/27?43 Acts 27:43]) | ||
** He wasn't afraid of snakes ([https://bible.usccb.org/bible/acts/28?3 Acts 28:3]) | ** He wasn't afraid of snakes ([https://bible.usccb.org/bible/acts/28?3 Acts 28:3]) | ||
** Although he could be a little boring, he could talk all night and still have the energy to revive a boy from the dead ([https://bible.usccb.org/bible/acts/20:9 Acts 20:9]) | |||
----I have an additional question, though: did Paul see or even meet Jesus before the Crucifixion? We know he knew about him, as the Disciples on the Road to Emmaus tell the stranger they meet,<blockquote>“Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know of the things that have taken place there in these days?”([https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/24?18 Lk 24:18]) </blockquote>This site says he did: I like to think that Paul not only saw Jesus, but was one of the "scribes and Pharisees" who brought the adulteress to Jesus for stoning ([https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/8?1 Jn 8:1]) -- of course there's no evidence for it, but it'd be consistent with Paul's attitude. Imagine were he the last of the group to walk away!" If so, it might also give us a clue as to what Jesus wrote on the ground ([https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/8?8 Jn 8:8]) I always thought he was playing tic-tac-toe, with the final "scratch" as they walked away in shame, but maybe it was a note to Paul, "''See you on the road to Damascus!''" :) | ----I have an additional question, though: did Paul see or even meet Jesus before the Crucifixion? We know he knew about him, as the Disciples on the Road to Emmaus tell the stranger they meet,<blockquote>“Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know of the things that have taken place there in these days?”([https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/24?18 Lk 24:18]) </blockquote>This site says he did: I like to think that Paul not only saw Jesus, but was one of the "scribes and Pharisees" who brought the adulteress to Jesus for stoning ([https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/8?1 Jn 8:1]) -- of course there's no evidence for it, but it'd be consistent with Paul's attitude. Imagine were he the last of the group to walk away!" If so, it might also give us a clue as to what Jesus wrote on the ground ([https://bible.usccb.org/bible/john/8?8 Jn 8:8]) I always thought he was playing tic-tac-toe, with the final "scratch" as they walked away in shame, but maybe it was a note to Paul, "''See you on the road to Damascus!''" :) | ||