Blinded by the Light - Mary Manning
Mary Manning speaks to St Paul about his conversion, celebrated on 25 January.
MM: Paul, little is known about you before the time of your conversion but it is thought that, unlike the twelve apostles, you did not meet Jesus during Jesus' life time on earth. From the Acts of the Apostles, believed to be the earliest-written books of the New Testament, we know you were originally known as Saul of Tarsus and committed to persecuting the followers of Jesus:
I am a Jew, born at Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamali-el, educated according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as you all are this day. I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women, as the high priest and the whole council of elders bear me witness. From them I received letters to the brethren, and I journeyed to Damascus to take those also who were there and bring them in bonds to Jerusalem to be punished.
P: This might make me seem over-jealous, but remember that I was acting from my upbringing and the beliefs of my religion. Had I had any contact with Jesus himself I may have not done the things I wrote about, 'entering house after house and dragging out men and women, and handing them over for imprisonment'.
MM: So these people you persecuted were not known as Christians?
P: The early Christians were viewed as members of a sect of Judaism, not as members of a different religion. But they were Christians in that they were spreading the word of Jesus.
MM: We know that you changed when you were struck by a light strong enough to blind you. Then you fell to the ground and heard the voice of Jesus. Can you tell us more?
P: It happened when I was on my way to Damascus to search for and persecute Christians. Others with me saw the light but they did not hear the voice speaking to me. It said, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?' I answered, 'Who are you, Lord?' And he said to me, 'I am Jesus of Nazareth whom you are persecuting'. I said, 'What shall I do, Lord?' And the Lord said to me, 'Rise, and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all that is appointed for you to do’.
I was still unable to see, so my companions led me to Damascus. Here Ananias, a devout man according to the law and well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there, came to me, and said, 'Brother Saul, receive your sight’. In that very hour I received my sight . And he said, 'The God of our fathers appointed you to know his will, to see the Just One and to hear a voice from his mouth: you will be a witness for him to all of what you have seen and heard. And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptised, and wash away your sins, calling on his name.'
MM: One version of the story about Ananias is that he at first refused to help you regain your sight as he had heard of your persecution of the Christians.
P: It would be hard to criticise him for that, given my reputation. But he changed his mind when the Lord spoke to him: 'Go—he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel, for I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name'.
MM: So when you regained your sight and strength and were baptised, did you set out immediately to do carry out God's work?
P: I needed to become accustomed to a new way of seeing things, so I stayed with the disciples at Damascus for a few days. People were surprised when I proclaimed in the synagogues that Jesus was the Son of God. They were accustomed to me speaking in quite the opposite way. But the more I persisted, the more my strength grew.
P: That period could be the subject for another interview as it concerns Peter as much as it does me. At this stage it is enough to say that it was in Antioch, at the start of the first missionary journey, that I took the name Paul. Being a missionary was an adventurous and dangerous life during which I was arrested, attacked, performed miracles and spread God's word.
MM: Does your missionary life continue today?
P: Pilgrims today walk part of my first missionary journey along the Saint Paul Trail, a long-distance footpath in Turkey. But perhaps your question could be best answered by the many modern readers of all faiths who know of these words from my letter to the people of Corinth:
Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, it is not pompous, it is not inflated, it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury, it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
St Paul is the patron saint, guide, model and spiritual father of the Pauline sisters, known as the Daughters of St Paul. This prayer from their website is called the Pauline Beatitudes.
Blessed are they who, like Paul, believe that God has a dream for each one of us.
They will search for that dream day by day and hold fast to it.
Blessed are they who, like Paul, know how to thank God for everything.
They will live in humility and peace.
Blessed are they who, like Paul, consider everything as lost when compared to the profound knowledge of Jesus Christ.
They will be stretched into growth by their continual pursuit of him in everything.
Blessed are they who, like Paul, feel that they have not yet arrived at their goal, and run consistently towards it.
They will reach fullness of life.
Blessed are they who, free of heart like Paul, make themselves servants of all for the sake of the Gospel.
They will find in their journey innumerable friends.
Blessed are they who, like Paul, know that they possess an immense treasure in vessels of clay.
They will come face to face with extraordinary power from God.
Blessed are they who, like Paul, have experienced everything in Christ: thirsty, hungry, filled to the full, poor or rich.
They will be serene and strong in every situation.
Blessed are they who, like Paul, face thousands of difficulties for the purpose of announcing the Gospel.