Today the Church marks the experience Paul had on his way to Damascus – commonly known as his conversion. It was on the road to Damascus, at the beginning of the 30’s in the 1st century and after a time when Paul had persecuted the Church that the decisive moment in Paul’s life occurred. The Risen Lord spoke to Paul, made him a true Apostle, a witness of the Resurrection, with the task of proclaiming the Gospel to the Gentiles. This turning point in his life, this transformation of his whole being was the fruit of this encounter with Christ.
So too for us: ‘We are only Christians if we encounter Christ – in reading Scripture, in prayer, in the liturgical life of the Church. We can touch Christ’s Heart and feel him touching ours. Only in this personal relationship with Christ, only in this encounter with the Risen One do we truly become Christians. Let us pray the Lord to grant us an encounter with his presence in our world, and thus to grant us a lively faith, an open heart and a great love for all, which is capable of renewing the world.’ (Pope Benedict XVI
