Saul of Tarsus was a devout Pharisee who fiercely persecuted the earliest Christians, until the risen Christ appeared to him in a blinding light on the road to Damascus. From that moment he became Paul, the tireless apostle who carried the Gospel across the Mediterranean world and wrote many of the letters in the New Testament. He was martyred in Rome around the year 64-67.
Paul's conversion shows that no heart is beyond the reach of God's grace — the Church's greatest enemy became her greatest missionary. His life reminds us that God can meet us suddenly, even on an ordinary road, and turn our whole story toward love. Nothing we have done places us outside His mercy.
Lord, who turned Saul the persecutor into Paul the apostle, shine Your light into our hearts and turn us ever more fully toward You. Amen.