Our parish was founded in 1972. We were the only parish to be initiated during the three years that Most Reverend Paul F. Leibold served as Archbishop of Cincinnati, prior to his sudden death in 1972. Our parish was named Saint Paul Parish after Archbishop Leibold's patron saint, Saint Paul.
Our parish celebrates two patronal feast days each year . . . and we celebrate each in a big way!! We celebrate the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul on January 25, and the Feast of Peter and Paul, Apostles, on June 29.
Peter and Paul were both martyrs. Martyrs, we know, are those men, women, and children who gave their lives in witness of Christ. They became an example and a challenge to each one of us. Not necessarily to die for the faith, but to live the faith. Peter and Paul were perhaps one of the original "odd couples". Peter represents the importance of continuity and the authority of the community, the Spirit-led body of believers. Paul represents the charismatic, the gift-filled urge to strike out into new territory, to grow and to change at the Spirit's prompting. To live this tension is the challenge of the Church today . . . it's not always easy to be Roman Catholic. To live this tension in faith is to experience a type of martyrdom, a daily dying and rising in the Lord. We have the example of Peter and Paul to guide us on this journey.
In our Roman Catholic tradition, an image of a Parish's Patronal Saint is to have a place of honor in the Church's gathering for the Eucharist. After all, we believe in the Communion of Saints, and Paul, and every other saint, is with us as we celebrate the Eucharist and share in Communion.
For those not familiar with our image of Saint Paul, a few words of explanation might be helpful. In our depiction of Saint Paul, he is distinguished by two features. First, he is in chains. We know from reading the New Testament that Paul was imprisoned and put in chains seven times during his ministry. So often was he in chains that you might say many would not recognize him freed from his chains! Also, Paul refers to himself as a "prisoner of Christ Jesus" (Philemon 1:1). Second, Paul is depicted holding a scroll with writing in his hand. This represents Paul's authorship of much of the Christian Scriptures. Even thought Paul was in chains several times, there is no chaining the Word of God. Our image of Saint Paul is immediately behind the Ambo, the place where Scripture is proclaimed in our gatherings. From there Saint Paul keeps a watchful eye on our reading and hearing of God's Word. Through his intercession may the Word take flesh in us!
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