What redemption did St. Paul see in his life? A life of preaching, cross continental voyage, chains, imprisonment, rejoicing nonetheless, and yet ending in a house arrest, in which he was not allowed to preach to masses but only to write.
What did he see in his life that we now seek?
Yet, what we still seek, he found in substance, in the transformation of his mind in ecstatic bliss, for even a greeting kiss from a friend, a kind word, the evidence of virtue in a disciple was the very substance of redemption to him.
There was nothing aside from these heavenward blessings aimed at bringing others and himself to Christ in heaven in resurrection that brought him joy.
He lived truly in the bliss of a rejoicing heart, a joy so separate from the world and the flesh, that in the midst of great suffering, it would still remain in the depths of his being and upon his lips.