“Christ Jesus captured me”(Phil 3:12).The image Paul uses is vivid and canal.

When God Chooses, he loves with an intense and concrete love,
with a jealous love, as the Old Testament often recalls.

In his relationship with the communities, he founded,
Paul experienced in his own person this ardour, this typically divine yearning.

He is a real and ardent jealousy, the passion of someone in love who wants his beloved only for himself.

But there is a paradox here: Paul loves like someone in love,
however, the true bridegroom is not Paul, but Christ.

Paul’s only desires was that all his disciples be faithful to the proclamation of Christ,
he wanted them to love the Lord, and he wanted there to be room only for Him in their hearts.

Sometimes he had harsh words for the communities,
but his anger was only that of a father who loves his children.

All that happened in the life of the communities left a profound mark on Paul’s inner self,
making him happy, or hurt, or upset.

Some terrible things that happened in Corinth wounded him deeply,
but even as he recalled a very harsh letter he had written to the Christian of that city,
Paul revealed the affection that moved him.

You see, the jealousy that I feel for you is God’s own jealousy:
I arranged for you to mary Christ(Second letter to Corinthians 11:2)

We gave you a rule when we were with you:
not let anyone have any food if he refused to do any work.

Now we hear that there are some of you who are living in idleness,
doing no work themselves but interfering with everyone else’s
(Second letter to the Thessalonians 3:10-11).

I am saying all this not just to make you ashamed but to bring you,
as my dearest children, to your senses.

You might have thousands of guardians in Christ,
but not more than one father.(First letter to the Corinthians 4:14-15)

When I wrote to you, in deep distress and anguish of mind, and in tears,
it was not to make you feel hurt but to let you know how much love I have for you
(Second letter to Corinthians 2:4)

“Christ Jesus Captured me”