On 29 October 2008, Pope Benedict XVI continued the cycle of catecheses dedicated to the figure and thought of St. Paul, explaining that St. Paul put the cross at the center of his preaching because he understood that true wisdom is the wisdom of love.

"In Paul's encounter with Jesus," the Holy Father said, "he had understood the central significance of the cross: He had understood that Jesus had died and risen for all and also for [Paul], himself. Both elements were important -- the universality: Jesus had truly died for everyone; and the subjectivity: He had died also for me."