July 18 Heart of St. Paul
When we go by a business and we see the sign “under new management,” our expectation is that things there are going to be different. There are new employees, fresh ideas and a new beginning. St. Paul recognizes that this is what happens to the Christian believer at baptism. He writes in Second Corinthians 5:16-17 “From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view: even though we once regarded Christ from a human point of view, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away, behold the new has come.”
Paul’s insight into the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ has changed the meaning and destiny of the whole world. Through Original Sin, the human race destined creation for death and destruction. Of itself, humanity cannnot offer salvation. But through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the whole cosmos is under new management. God has returned in Christ what man had given away in sin. God has not only given it back, he elevates men and women to the unheard of dignity of children of God. Death now marks the beginning of everlasting life. A world that previously offered only despair now offers hope. Through Christ, God has taken created things and sanctified and transformed them into instruments of salvation known as the Sacraments.
The division brought about at the Tower of Babel has been destroyed by the Holy Spirit, who speaks the language of grace that every person is capable of hearing, if they are willing to listen to it. The new creations that we become make us forever young in the Spirit, because we know that whatever God has started in us, he will finish in us if we work with him. This is what we learn from the heart of St. Paul.
Plese pray for all priests and seminarians and support Sacred Heart Radio.
