Spiritual Quote of the Day (Rita Dove, on St. Paul in the Context of His Time)

“I see now that Paul's proclamations were demanded of him. At that time Christianity was still a heresy within a larger tradition; Saul’s persecution of Christians, his conversion, and his consequent wrangles with the priests in the Temple—these events were all in the family, so to speak. At the time when the Pauline Epistles were written, the biggest question for the new religion was whether or not to accept Gentiles; once that quandary was settled, more mundane issues (Can they remain uncircumcised? Must they obey the Judaic rules of diet?) were the order of the day. The disciples attempted to thread a path through the existing Old Testament laws; they sought an extension, and fulfillment, of Judaism. Paul’s public needed concrete rules, so he gave them restrictions to hold onto; Wife, obey your husband; husband, love your wife—just as you obey Christ and He loves you. Children, obey your parents. Servants (this is the tricky part), obey your masters—followed by a telling conditional: ‘according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of heart, as unto Christ’ (Ephesians 6:5-6). And because pictures are worth a thousand words, he gave them metaphors: the Church as a bride, Christ as bridegroom, and martial imagery sure to delight a city devoted to the huntress Diana. Gird the loins with truth, slip the feet into the Gospel of peace, take up the breastplate of righteousness and the shield of faith! Blatant theatrics, but it worked.”—Former American poet laureate and essayist Rita Dove, “The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Ephesians,” in Searching for Your Soul: Writers of Many Faiths Share Their Personal Stories of Spiritual Discovery (1999)

The image of St. Paul accompanying this post was created by the Spanish Renaissance painter El Greco (1541-1614).