SAINT PAUL’S TITLES FOR CHRIST

 

SAINT PAUL’S TITLES FOR CHRIST

The apostle to the Gentiles was so caught up in the love of Jesus that he could write to the Galatians

and claim, without boasting or exaggeration, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live,

but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved

me and gave himself for me.” In his letter to the Philippians he expresses his burning love for Christ:

“Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.

For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as refuse, in order that I may gain

Christ and be found in him...”. Paul opens most of his epistles by referring to himself as an apostle, but

in several of them he refers to himself as a “bond-servant” or “slave” of God. In a letter written during

one of his incarcerations he begins by calling himself “a prisoner for Christ Jesus.”

From this brief review of Paul’s manner of identifying himself we see how deeply he was in love with

Christ and desired nothing else than to serve him. Indeed, in his letter to the Philippians, during which

he was awaiting a trial which could end in his martyrdom, he expresses his love both for God and for his

people: “My desire is to depart and be with Christ for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more

necessary for your account.” Christ was everything to Paul, and he would rather be with him in heaven,

but his love for Christ caused him to love his fellow believers and for their sake to remain in his current

predicament.

These thoughts about Paul came to my mind the other day while praying the Office of Readings of the

Liturgy of the Hours, the official prayer of the Church which is said every day by priests. After the psalms

and an extended reading of a passage from Scripture the Office concludes with an excerpt from a Father

of the Church, a Saint or holy person, or a papal or conciliar teaching. The day’s selection was from a

treatise on Christian Perfection by Saint Gregory of Nyssa, who writes of the love of Saint Paul for

Christ. He reveals it by listing the titles which Paul used for Christ, although the list is not exhaustive, as

St. Gregory admits. The titles themselves are moving, and I present them here for your meditation. To

Saint Paul, and to us, Christ is:

the Power and Wisdom of God -- our Peace -- the Unapproachable Light where God dwells -- our

Expiation and Redemption -- our great High Priest -- our Paschal Sacrifice -- our Propitiation -- the

Radiance of God’s glory -- the very Pattern of God’s nature -- the Creator of all ages -- our spiritual

Food and Drink – the Rock and the Water -- the Bedrock of our faith -- the Cornerstone -- the

Visible Image of the invisible God -- the mighty God -- the Head of his Body (i.e. the Church) -- the

Firstborn of the new creation -- the First Fruit of those who have fallen asleep -- the Firstborn of the

dead -- the Eldest of many brothers -- the Mediator between God and man -- the Only-begotten

Son crowned with glory and honor -- the Lord of glory -- the Beginning of all things -- the King of

Justice and of Peace -- the King of the whole universe ruling a realm that has no limits.

St. Gregory comments: “Since, by the goodness of God, we who are called ‘Christians’ have been

granted the honor of sharing this name, the greatest, the highest, the most sublime of all names, it

should be clearly reflected in us. If we are not to lie when we call ourselves ‘Christians,’ we must bear

witness to it by our way of living.”

The topical index of the Catechism of the Catholic Church lists sixty titles of Jesus which are referenced

in its articles, and the number of the paragraph(s) in the text where you can read about it. If you ever

wonder what you might pray about or meditate on to learn more about Jesus, you might start there!

- Father Scott