BibleWorm

This week we move on from the Gospel of John to the book of Acts, which will take us through these next weeks from Easter to Pentecost, or, on the Jewish calendar, from Pesach to Shavuot. Today we read Acts 9:1-19a. We meet Saul, a young, zealous, pretty aggressive guy, who seems an unlikely fellow to be tasked with leadership in the characteristically peaceful movement of Jesus. But tasked he shall be, after a theophany that leaves him unable to see, unwilling to eat or drink, and without anything at all to say – at least for a while. Why does his call, his transformation, look the way it does – like paralysis, or even death?  Why is Ananais willing to welcome him as a brother, even knowing that Saul’s first purpose in this trip was to fight the Jesus movement with all the strength he could muster? How do we know when we can really trust that someone has changed, and is no longer a threat?