But of course, thankfully, the eight days are merely a celebration of unity between the different churches and a celebration of what it means to be brave and obedient too. The reason for the 'brave and obedient' can be seen by the account in Acts. But first a little corrective needs to be applied because many (even one of my children's RE teachers a few years back) have this weird idea that Paul used to be know as 'Saul' before he became a Christian. So let's get it straight shall we?
Saul (of Tarsus) was a Jew with a good pedigree with regard to be onJewish, he even had a piece of paper that said he could seek out followers of the Way (i.e. Christians) and deal with them as he saw fit and a Dad who was a Roman. Now his Jewish name would have been 'Saul' but the name in the Roman setting would have been 'Paul' - no difference from Philip and Filippo - so his name is depends upon the context. Working with the Jewish world - Saul would have been more appropriate - but working in the Gentile world - Paul fits the bill nicely. So easy to make something appear as it's not (a bit like Jesus being 'adopted by God innit?).
So there's this believer in Damascus, a chap by the name of Ananias who gets told by God to go and visit Saul (the Christian killer) and after a bit of negotiation ("Go,' 'Why me?' 'Go' But!' Go!' 'OK!') he does and Saul gets his eyesight back and get up and gets back to the place he knows - the synagogue - and starts preaching Jesus.
So the call of Paul (did you see what I did there? They're interchangeable) comes about because of the obedience of a believer (Ananias) doing what they were called to do - and this is the lesson (and the question before) for us:
What are you/me/I/we being called to do?
And if you know what it is - why aren't you doing it?
And if you don't know - two questions:
Are you asking?
Are you listening?
And can you see a resonance in Paul's words: 'God set me apart before I was born and called me through his grace … ' and the Jeremiah reading?
The Collect
Almighty God,
who caused the light of the gospel to shine throughout the world through the preaching of your servant Saint Paul: grant that we who celebrate his wonderful conversion may follow him in bearing witness to your truth; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Take a look at the readings and make the other connections for yours.
Jeremiah 1.4-10
Now the word of the Lord came to me saying,
‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’
Then I said,
‘Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.’ 7But the Lord said to me,
‘Do not say, “I am only a boy”; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you,
says the Lord.’
Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me,
‘Now I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.’
God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, That your way may be known upon earth, your saving power among all nations.
Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you.
O let the nations rejoice and be glad, for you will judge the peoples righteously and govern the nations upon earth.
Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you.
Then shall the earth bring forth her increase, and God, our own God, will bless us.
God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear him.
Acts 9.1-22
Meanwhile Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Now as he was going along and approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?’ He asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ The reply came, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But get up and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.’ The men who were travelling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one. Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. For three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
Now there was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, ‘Ananias.’ He answered, ‘Here I am, Lord.’ The Lord said to him, ‘Get up and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul. At this moment he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.’ But Ananias answered, ‘Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints in Jerusalem; and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who invoke your name.’ But the Lord said to him, ‘Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel; I myself will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.’ So Ananias went and entered the house. He laid his hands on Saul and said, ‘Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’ And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and his sight was restored. Then he got up and was baptised, and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
For several days he was with the disciples in Damascus, and immediately he began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, saying, ‘He is the Son of God.’ All who heard him were amazed and said, ‘Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem among those who invoked this name? And has he not come here for the purpose of bringing them bound before the chief priests?’ Saul became increasingly more powerful and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Messiah.
Matthew 19.27-30
Then Peter said in reply, ‘Look, we have left everything and followed you. What then will we have?’ Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man is seated on the throne of his glory, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold, and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.
Post Communion Prayer
Almighty God, who on the day of Pentecost sent your Holy Spirit to the apostles with the wind from heaven and in tongues of flame, filling them with joy and boldness to preach the gospel: by the power of the same Spirit strengthen us to witness to your truth and to draw everyone to the fire of your love; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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