Saturday, June 28, 2008

2000th Anniversary of the Birth of Saint Paul the Apostle: "Faith is not a theory or an opinion but the impact of love"


"His faith is the experience of being loved by Jesus Christ in a completely personal way; it is the awareness of the fact that Christ has faced death not for some anonymous person, but out of love for him - for Paul - and that, as the Risen One, he still loves him. Christ gave himself up for him. His faith comes from being transfixed by the love of Jesus Christ, a love that shakes him to his core and transforms him. His faith is not a theory, an opinion about God and the world. His faith is the impact of the love of God on his heart. And thus his faith is itself love for Jesus Christ."

--From the homily with which Benedict XVI commenced the Pauline Year in Rome at the basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, Vespers, 28 June 2008.


Art: Papal Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls; Saint Paul by El Greco

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