St Paul: the Man, the Saint

“Paul, more than anyone else, has shown us what man really is, and in what our nobility consists, and of what virtue this particular animal is capable.” Saint John Chrysostom, with a bit of good humor, praises St Paul in such a way in a sermon read in the Liturgy of the Hours every January 25. 
For the Priests and brothers of the Legion of Christ, the Feast of the Conversion of St Paul is a moment not only to reflect on our need for conversion, but it is also a day in which we celebrate our Heavenly Patron. St Paul is taken by us to be our model of a zealous apostle. His courage to evangelize lead him through shipwrecks, floggings and imprisonments to martyrdom by the sword all because of his passionate love for Christ.
Why has Saint Paul shown us what man really is, as Saint John Chrysostom claims? The answer lies in St Paul’s famous statement “It is no longer I that live but it is Christ who lives in me.” The more we allow Christ to shine through us, the more we become truly human. We model Him who is the model of the perfect man, the Son of God.
Besides the celebration of St Paul as our patron, we celebrate the apostle that is within us all waiting for us to go out and through our lives bring the Gospel to the world that thirsts for God.