Jesus is the Son of God

 

To proclaim that Jesus is the Son of God. The Lord spoke to Saul from heaven, and Saul became St. Paul, a man with a mission: To proclaim that Jesus is the Son of God.

Jesus, Who reigns on high, Who pours out His Spirit through the life of His Church. Jesus, Who offered Himself on the cross for us, Who conquered death for us, and Who nourishes us with His own flesh and lifeblood from His altar. Jesus, Who teaches us how to live, by the doctrine and example He gives us in the gospels. Jesus, Who reveals that God is infinite, undying love, honest and true.

Jesus is the Son of God. That’s what we stand on. That’s what the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church proclaims by every aspect of Her life. Our Lord was born in Bethlehem twenty centuries ago, the only child of the sinless Virgin Mary. He came from heaven to fulfill His mission, which involved turning the tide of history by living His uniquely holy life. Before He ascended into heaven in the flesh, He gave us a mission: to proclaim Him–which of course requires studying Him, following Him, and receiving from Him the gift of true fruitfulness.

He is the vine on which we live; we are the branches of the vine. He is the Head of the Body; we are the members. Our peace lies in one place: His Heart. We find blessedness by doing His will.

“Spirituality,” Church politics, morality, “the Modern World,” psychological health, relationships, “fitting in”—it’s all an unmanageable mess for us sinners, except: We can solve it all, by fulfilling the mission that Almighty God has given us. To proclaim that Jesus is the Son of God.

Jesus, Who is alive, Who is real, Who has a Church that belongs to Him. Jesus, Who demands our total submission to Himself–to the point where we forget that there could ever be such a thing as life without Him. Jesus, Who gently and kindly wills heaven for everyone.

Benedict, Paul, Real Conversion

Anybody remember what happened eight years ago today? Benedict XVI was elected the 264th successor of St. Peter.

During the Pauline Year in 2008, the Pope Emeritus spoke about St. Paul’s conversion (which we read about at today’s Holy Mass). Benedict said that what happened to St. Paul teaches us what makes a conversion a conversion—a real, genuine, true conversion–away from nothingness and to God.

Happy 8th Anniversary, Papa Emérito!

Basically, the long and the short of it is:

A real conversion involves interacting with the actual living God-man Himself, Jesus Christ.

Saul did not ‘change his mind,’ or ‘embrace a new religion,’ or ‘undergo a paradigm shift.’ Rather, he was on the receiving end of some actions that Christ did.

The Lord Jesus, then, is in charge of genuine conversions. These conversions can take a while—maybe all our years on earth, plus some Purgatory time, too. Who knows? Christ is in charge of how long they take. He is completely in charge.

Maybe that’s the $10,000 question, then—the question I can ask myself, and thereby know if I am undergoing a real conversion, a conversion from bad to good, from death to life, from sin to God.

Am I undergoing a real conversion? Well, is Jesus Christ in charge? Is He in charge? If I can say, Yes, He is! then I guess I am undergoing a real conversion.

If I ask, “in charge of what?” then my answer is really No. Because Jesus Christ is in charge of everything.