Baptism In The Holy Spirit - Three

The Conversion of St. Paul

Now Saul, still breathing murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord, a went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, that, if he should find any men or women who belonged to the Way, he might bring them back to Jerusalem in chains. On his journey, as he was nearing Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” He said, “Who are you, sir?” The reply came, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. Now get up and go into the city and you will be told what you must do.” The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, for they heard the voice but could see no one. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him to Damascus. For three days he was unable to see, and he neither ate nor drank. 

PRAYER FOR GRACE:

Jesus my Lord, I confess to you and to all the world my need for your presence in my life. I am alone and in darkness without you. I am influenced and controlled by the many forces that surround me. Even though I struggle against them, it is sin that so easily dominates my life. Who can save me but you alone, my Lord and my God. Deliver me from the Evil One. Touch my life with that power which flows from your resurrection. Cause your Holy Spirit to be born in me anew. Prince of Peace and Lord of Glory reign now in my heart. Baptize me with your Holy Spirit and Fire. Raise me up to a New Life in you.

POINTS TO CONSIDER AS YOU PRAY:

• Saul/Paul was causing great suffering among the believers in Jesus.
• The first believers  were considered heretics, enemies of God.
• Paul's solution, destroy them. God's solution for Paul, convert him.
• Remember the text: "God does not desire the death of sinners, rather that they be converted and live." To harbor ill toward wrongdoers is not of the Spirit. 
• Even though our life may have been marred by sin, God's plan for us remains unchanged; conversion, healing and life in His Spirit.
• Is there a place in your heart that remains bound by guilt and the despair of forgiveness? Lord, let your light of mercy shine in my heart and set me free!  

COLLOQUY: Dear Lord ..... (here, I express the thoughts of my heart)

REVIEW OF PRAYER:

• Was there a time in your prayer that evoked a change in the way you were feeling?
• Were you able to picture the event in your imagination?
• Did you identify with any particular person in the passage?
• Was there anything in your prayer that touched your heart?
• Can you name the feelings you experienced?
• Did you hear the Spirit, in your mind's ear, speaking to you?
• What areas of your personal life seemed to be coming to mind as you prayed?
• Do you have a desire to return again to this passage and prayer?
• Described what you have learned.
• What questions do you now have following your prayer?

The New Evangelization

Much is written and spoken about the New Evangelization in the Church today. But what exactly is the New Evangelization? Evangelization is the proclamation of the Gospel of Christ. "Go out into the whole world and preach the Good News" Mark 16:15. It is the central mission given to the Church by Jesus.

Now at the time of the first proclaiming of gospels,  the  world was under the rule of the Romans. By conquest, with their mighty armies, they eventually ruled vast portion of the known world. To facilitate the speedy dispatching of their armies, they built a vast network of roads. (Some of which still remain today.) As excellent as these roads were, their central purpose was conquest and plunder.

But these same roads of conquest were to find a very different and unexpected purpose. It's on these same Roman roads that we find St. Paul and other of the disciples moving freely and efficiently, proclaiming the gospel to the people who lived throughout the Roman Empire. While the Romans used these roads to conquer, the disciples used the same roads to evangelize.

When we speak of the "New Evangelization", we are not speaking of a new gospel. The gospel remains the same and unchanged. What we are speaking about is a new way to evangelize, with new instruments of communication. Like the first evangelist, today's new evangelists are being directed to use the latest instruments of communication that are cutting edge in today's world. The media with its  sophisticated technologies of communication, is today's highly efficient equivalent of the Roman roads of the apostolic times. Computers and the internet have been used for many evil purposes, but they can also be used for great good. As Philip used the Roman roads upon which to evangelize, computers and the internet can be used today to spread the Good News of salvation.