By Naresh Namindla csc –
Readings: Acts 22: 3-16; Mk 16: 15-18
Today we celebrate the feast of the conversion of St. Paul. St. Paul was a persecutor of Christ and later became a proclaimer of the gospel to many regions and communities. St. Paul experienced conversion on the way to Damascus when a light shone on him and he lost his sight, and he was told to witness to what he had seen and heard. In the gospel Jesus asked his disciples to go to the whole world and proclaim Good News and baptize all human beings in his name; thus, bringing all human beings into a new way of life and making them part of his Kingdom.
Jesus clearly said to St. Paul to witness to what he had seen and heard. He responded to it positively and became a disciple to him. St. Paul’s personal experience of Christ converted him to become an instrument of Christ. As Jesus asked St. Paul and his disciples, he asks each one of us today, to witness to what we have seen and heard. How much are we prepared to witness him to our family, community, workplace, and society at large?
To witness Jesus to others, we need to experience him personally like St. Paul and the disciples. This personal experience of Christ gives us strength to do his will as it did to the disciples and St. Paul. Therefore, let us ask God for the grace that we may learn to experience him in our daily activities so that we can witness him in and around us.