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The Conversion of St Paul

One of the most satisfying moments in literature occurs at the end of Charles Dickens’ novella, A Christmas Carol. Ebenezer Scrooge, starts the story as a misanthropic greedy miser, but after being faced with a vision of his own death, unloved and unmourned, he turns his life around. Scrooge totally changes, and becomes kind, generous, and loving. The transformation is real, and heart-felt. Similarly, one of the greatest turnarounds in Christian history happens with St Paul. Saul of Tarsus, as he was originally known, was a zealous Pharisee, and was keen to persecute the followers of Christ. And yet Paul becomes a great evangelist, devoting his life to telling people about Jesus. His is a profound change of heart, which speaks to us of God’s ability to mould our characters and lives; to reconcile, and to heal.

St Paul first appears in the Acts of the Apostles holding people’s clothes as they are stoning Stephen the Deacon to death. There is a discomfort in even mentioning this because we are naturally squeamish about the idea of imposing capital punishment for blasphemy. We are Christians who believe that life is sacred, and a gift from God. Not so our tentmaker from Tarsus! At this stage of his life, Saul is angry, and zealous, fanatical and single-minded in his devotion to God and the Jewish law. He wants to stamp out the Church, once and for all!

This angry man is travelling to Damascus, keen to rid the world of the scourge of Christianity, when something amazing happens. Saul sees a bright light, and falls to the ground, and then he hears a voice, saying:

‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’

‘Saul, Saul, pam yr wyt yn fy erlid I?’ (Acts 9:5)

Saul then realises that Jesus is talking to him. For a moment, I would like to concentrate on Our Lord’s Words. Christ does not say: ‘Why are you persecuting my Church?’, or ‘Why are you persecuting my followers?’ Instead He asks Saul, ‘Why are you persecuting ME?’ God the Son talks directly to the greatest persecutor of the Church. Our Lord takes things personally. The Church is the Body of Christ. We are His Body, He loves us, and cares for us. Therefore, God takes an enemy of the Church and transforms him into its true friend. We put our trust in a God who changes things, and the Conversion of St Paul is one of the most dramatic and consequential reversals in Christian history. 

At the heart of this event is the operation of sanctifying grace; the unmerited kindness of God, which has the power to make things Holy. We receive it through our Baptism, when we are washed clean, and born again to new life in Christ. Through his direct experience of Christ, along with the love of the Christian community (represented by Ananias of Damascus), Paul is restored. 

After his conversion Paul goes to the synagogues and to tell his fellow Jews that:

‘Jesus is the Son of God.’ (Acts 9:20)

This causes profound confusion. People are surprised that the same man who came to Damascus to arrest Christians, and have them tried for blasphemy, appears to have joined the very religious movement which he was persecuting. Not only this, but this pharisee is now busy telling everyone about Jesus. In the Gospel, Our Lord tells his disciples to go out and proclaim the Good News. This is exactly what St Paul is doing, and what he will carry on doing for the rest of his life. 

On foot, and by boat, Paul will travel thousands of miles around the Mediterranean Sea proclaiming the message of Jesus Christ and founding communities of believers. He also writes many letters to support the fledgling Church. Thanks to Paul’s dedication and devotion, the message of salvation has been announced throughout the world. At the heart of the Good News is the promise that there is nothing God cannot do, if we let Him. If we cooperate with the Divine, so that His will is done, on earth, as it is in Heaven. If we repent of our sins, and turn back to Our Loving Father, and believe in His Son, Jesus Christ. If we are nourished by Word and Sacrament. If we pray, and are supported by a community of prayer, which we call the Church. Then God can, and will, transform us, to bear witness to Him, and to make His Kingdom a reality here and now. 

God can, and will, heal our wounds, restore our relationships, and give us the strength we need to be a loving community. If the Almighty can turn an enemy and persecutor of the Church into its greatest evangelist and missionary, what can He do with us? None of us are beyond redemption and conversion. God can, and will, use us to make the world a better place. Paul did not earn the right of salvation, and neither do we. God offers us salvation in and through Christ out of love. We can choose to accept His love, and to allow Our Heavenly Father to be at work in us. We can let God transform us bit by bit into His likeness. The more we co-operate, the more Our God and Saviour can be at work in and through us; proclaiming the truth of His Kingdom, and helping to reach those in need of His love.

So, my brothers and sisters in Christ, let us commit ourselves to follow the example of St Paul. Let us open both ourselves and our lives to Jesus, and allow Him to transform us. With joy, let us proclaim His Kingdom, giving glory to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, Duw Dad, Duw y Mab a Duw yr Ysbryd Glân. To whom be ascribed all might, majesty, glory, dominion and power, now, and forever.

Caravaggio: The Conversion of St Paul [Rome: Odescalchi Balbi Collection]
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Easter VII

In 1959 the first photograph of the Earth was taken from space by an unmanned satellite called Explorer 6. The image was blurry and very basic by today’s standards. Almost a decade later, the crew of Apollo 8 took a famous picture of our planet rising over the lunar landscape. It was named Earthrise. This iconic photograph helped people to understand the world better and take greater interest in environmental issues. As Christians we are called to care for our planet and all the people, plants, and creatures that dwell on it. At the same time, as Christians we are called to be in the world, but not of the world. This world is simply somewhere we will reside for a short while. Our citizenship is in Heaven, our true home, where we long to spend eternity with God. One of the ways in which the Church lives out this other-worldliness is shown in today’s reading from the Acts of the Apostles.

After Jesus’ Ascension, the disciples spend time together in prayer and fellowship. One of their first actions is to appoint a replacement for Judas Iscariot, so that the Eleven Apostles may become Twelve again. For Jews the number twelve is very significant. It stands for wholeness and the completion of God’s purpose. There are twelve months in a year, and twelve tribes of Israel. It was therefore important to the Apostles that they were restored to their proper number of twelve. So, out of all the current followers of Jesus, Peter states that they need someone who has been with them from the beginning, to act as a witness to Jesus’ resurrection. Two candidates are put forward: Justus and Matthias. Peter then prays for guidance:

“You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.” 

“Adwaenost ti, Arglwydd, galonnau pawb. Amlyga prun o’r ddau hyn a ddewisaist i gymryd ei le yn y weinidogaeth a’r apostolaeth hon, y cefnodd Jwdas arni i fynd i’w le ei hun.” (Acts 1: 24-25)

The disciples do not decide for themselves, they leave the choice up to God. Through the random process of casting lots, God can show them whom He wants to be an apostle. This feels strange to us nowadays. We want to be in control. We want to choose. Perhaps we would be better served by putting God back in control. 

The Gospel reading continues the exploration of the Farewell Discourses between the Last Supper and Jesus’ Arrest. Today we have arrived at Chapter 17, known as Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer. This is a truly solemn moment of intimate conversation between the Father and the Son. Before His Passion and Death, Christ is entrusting His Church to the Father, that it may be kept safe, and that it may be filled with the glory of God, and also strengthened to proclaim the Good News of the Kingdom. This is a moment of profound emotion and intimacy, a window into a conversation between two Persons of the Holy Trinity. 

Jesus is committing us, His Church to God, for God to care for us. His prayer sees His followers as being in opposition to a world which rebels against God; a world of sin and corruption; a world of power and politics. Christ prays that His people may be set apart, to be holy, devoted to God, and filled with love. To love is to will the good of the other. God loves us, and it is God’s will that we flourish and enjoy life in all its fulness, united to Him. This is why Jesus taught us to pray,

“Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

“deled dy deyrnas, gwneler dy ewyllys; megis yn y nef, felly ar y ddaear hefyd.”(Mt 6:10)

Christ is praying that we, His Church, stay close to God. That we be united with God’s will, and filled with God’s love. This is why we look forward to next Sunday, when we celebrate Pentecost, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. This is a sign of God’s love for us, the love which unites Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God invites us to be united with the life of the Trinity, and wants us to offer that invitation to others. If we place ourselves in God’s hands He will take the initiative, just as He did in choosing Matthias to replace Judas.

Th name Matthias means ‘gift of God’. The disciples receive this gift after praying together and asking for God’s guidance. As Christians we too need to spend time together, to pray for our needs and those of the world. In prayer we are united with each other and with God. Together we are nourished by sharing the Eucharist and hearing the Word of God. These things are crucial to who and what we are. United together we experience the love of God and the joy of community. The world may be indifferent to what we do, or it may mock us when we fail to live up to the example of Jesus. But, as Christians, we strive to live in the love of God, and forgive each other our trespasses. We aim to live out that same radical love and forgiveness which sees Jesus die upon the Cross and be raised to New Life for love of us, and for all the world.

This message of profound love and forgiveness is one that much of the world cannot or does not want to understand. We may not understand the depths of God’s love, but we know that it can be experienced, through personal encounter with Jesus in prayer, Word, and Sacrament. We are living testimony to love’s power to change lives. It sets us free to live for God and to proclaim his saving truth in our words and actions.

As I mentioned earlier in this sermon, Matthias’ name means ‘gift of God’, and his appointment comes just before God’s wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit. So as we wait with the Apostles for this gift, let us pray that God may be at work in us, building us up, and giving us strength to live the Christian life. Let us then share these gifts with others, so that they may also come to believe and give glory to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. To whom be ascribed all glory, dominion, and power, now and forever. Amen.

Peter Paul Rubens Matthias (Museo del Prado, Madrid)