Word to the Wise
Monday, January 25, 2021 - Jan. 25 - The Conversion of St. Paul, Apostle
[Acts 22:3-16 or Acts 9:1-22 and Mark 16:15-18]"Lord, I have heard from many sources about this man, what evil things he has done to your holy ones in Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to imprison all who call upon your name." But the Lord said to him, "God, for this man is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before Gentiles, kings, and children of Israel, and I will show him what he will have to suffer for my name." [Acts]
It can be an amazing thing to reflect how one person's conversion to faith in Christ can have an impact that lasts for centuries and continues to impact our lives. One has only to think about St. Paul and St. Augustine to find outstanding examples. Over the last two Sundays, we were acquainted with the "calls" of Samuel, Jonah, Andrew, Peter, James and John. Today we celebrate the "call" or "conversion" of Saul of Tarsus, who became Paul the Apostle. (Augustine's story can wait until August 28th, his feast day). The three accounts of Paul's conversion experience in the Acts of the Apostles were written by the evangelist Luke. Paul refers to his experience personally in his Letter to the Galatians [1:11-24]. We are offered the option of two of the accounts from Acts for the first scripture today.
Paul speaks of his experience as a "revelation" [Gal. 1:12]. There was a light and a voice and he collapsed. Scripture scholars and medical experts have long speculated what the precise experience was. We are simply the beneficiaries of it, and the change was quite dramatic. Paul went from being a bounty hunter of Christians to being a preacher calling others to belief in Christ. Ananias, whose voice we hear in the quote above, reflected the disbelief of the community about Paul's experience, but Ananias' reluctance is overcome by his own faith in God's purposes. The passage from the Gospel According to Mark today speaks to the challenge to the Twelve apostles after Jesus' resurrection, but it was also extended to Paul: Go out into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. That;s what he did. His letters continue to inspire us to do the same. One person can make a mighty difference when he or she pays attention to God's call! AMEN