First reading: Acts 9:26-31
Psalm: Ps 22:26-28,30-32
Epistle: 1 John 3:18-24
Gospel: John 15:1-8
When Saul arrived in Jerusalem he tried to join the disciples,
but they were all afraid of him,
not believing that he was a disciple.
Christ is risen! Alleluia!
He is truly risen! Alleluia!
Fear!
Here comes Paul – and he was on fire for the Lord. He appears in Jerusalem and the Church was afraid of him. Paul left Jerusalem on a mission to destroy the nascent Church. Returning, he was one of them, baptized, and filled with the Holy Spirit.
Remember that Paul sat in Damascus for three days, blind, filled with wonder. Ananias came to him and cured him of his blindness. As soon as he was cured he set out to learn and boldly proclaim the gospel. The Church in Jerusalem hadn’t heard of Paul’s conversion, yet there he is, on their doorstep. They were more than a little afraid.
What do Paul’s conversion and the Church’s reaction to Paul teach us in light of Jesus’ instruction on the vine and branches?
Can I be a Christian?
Paul’s conversion and the Church’s reaction offer an answer to the question: Can I be a Christian?
Paul never whitewashed the things he had done. He told the Galatians (Galatians 1:13):
For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it
Paul spoke to the Galatians concerning his former life. He told them that he had done horrible things, deadly things, in persecuting the Church. Then he goes on to say (Galatians 1:15-16):
But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and had called me through his grace,
was pleased to reveal his Son to me
Paul reminds us that regardless of the severity of his sinfulness, his denial, even his hatred, God called him. God called him to do what St. John says we are to do:
believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another just as he commanded us.
Like Paul every person is called to be a Christian, to proclaim Jesus Christ, and to love. Jesus opened every possibility; making it so that every closed door, every closed mind, every closed heart, could lay claim to God. The Holy Spirit offers the Christian life —“ and it is for all. All can be Christian, without barrier, without cost. You and I can really be Christians.
Can I proclaim the Gospel?
Paul’s conversion and the Church’s reaction offer an answer to the question: Can I proclaim the gospel?
Now Paul was an educated man. He didn’t arrive at his position among the Pharisees by being foolish, but look what happened. Paul became foolish for Christ and proclaimed the gospel through that foolishness. St. Paul tells the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 4:9-10):
For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, like men sentenced to death; because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels and to men.
We are fools for Christ’s sake
Paul — educated, astute — saw himself as a fool for Christ. That’s the way it is with Jesus. Regardless of background, the past, college degree or no degree, we are all called to proclaim the gospel. Jesus calls us to proclaim, to give witness to the truth of the gospel. No one can sit on their hands and say, ‘no, not for me, not my job, I’m not qualified.’
You and I, we have to be shameless in our proclamation of the gospel; in proclaiming the truth:
believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ,
and love one another just as he commanded us.
Can we proclaim that? Yes indeed!
Must I work for the Church?
Paul’s conversion and the Church’s reaction offer an answer to the question: Must I work for the Church?
Where did Paul go? Being blinded Paul stayed put, and the Church came to him through Ananias. Ananias healed Paul as the Lord directed. Being healed of his blindness Paul went to the Church, to the Apostles in Jerusalem.
Now remember that Paul was educated in the law and in scripture. Paul knew a lot, and he could have winged it, could have relied on himself. Paul could have run off, proclaiming his version of Jesus, his version of the gospel; but Paul knew better. Paul went to the Church, to seek its commission and its mandate. He came to the Church so that he might take up the true gospel, the gospel our Lord and Savior left to the Church.
Like paul we must work with and for the Church. Paul came to Jerusalem with a boatload of humility. Paul was patient, waiting for Barnabas who: took charge of him and brought him to the apostles. Like Paul we must commit ourselves to working for the Church. We must come to the Church in humility, recognizing the difference between humanity’s self serving excuses and the infallible truth of the Gospel. The unchanging Gospel is taught by the Church. The Church’s teaching and the Church’s path is the totality of unchanging truth. We cannot wing faith; we cannot do a truth makeover, interjecting our personal likes and dislikes, man made dictates and excuses into the gospel message or the Church. We must work for the gospel left to the Church. Like Paul, we must work for the truth, for the Church.
Do I have to learn?
Paul’s conversion and the Church’s reaction offer an answer to the question: Do I have to learn?
After the Hellenists (the Greek speaking Jews) tried to kill Paul the Church sent him off to Tarsus. Ten years passed between Paul’s initial zeal to preach and his first missionary journey. He dedicated those years to learning the gospel —“ first hand from the apostles and disciples who were witnesses to all Jesus said and did (Acts 10:39). Those were years of preparation for the ministry that would be entrusted to him. Paul’s experience points to the value of preparation for the work of the Church.
Like Paul we must combine our zeal to be of service to the Lord with the need for preparation and testing. We are blessed because of the great graces we receive in the sacrament of the Word. The teaching we receive in our Holy Polish National Catholic Church prepares us to proclaim the gospel. The things we do among our brothers and sisters test and mold our abilities. When we face the world we are well equipped to do the work of the Church.
Can I be fearless?
Ananias and Barnabas are interesting. They went to Paul, to help him, even though they were afraid. Remember that Paul carried a mandate that would have allowed him to arrest a Christian. While getting arrested is unpleasant in this day and age, it was downright deadly in Paul’s time. Ananias and Barnabas wouldn’t have feared the lock-up, they would have feared for their lives.
That fear is natural. We want to preserve our lives. We want to live —“- and live a good long time. Ananias and Barnabas naturally feared, but their faith in Jesus Christ, in His promise, overcame that fear.
If we see life as defined set of years, beginning to end, full stop, then we have every right to fear. We would fear because death would mean the loss of everything. One who is dead would be gone forever. Is that what we believe? Of course not! Jesus told us that life passes in an instant, like flowers that are here one day and gone the next. But, Jesus didn’t leave it at that. He told us and He showed us that life is forever.
If we are Christians, if we proclaim the gospel, if we work for the truth taught by the Holy Church, and if we have studied and learned, then our natural fear is overcome. Our natural fear is really un-natural. Our true call is to be courageous, like Ananias, Barnabas, and Paul. We hear Paul tell us (Romans 8:38-39)
For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
God’s love which is Christ’s promise makes us fearless. We will preserve our lives through the fearless proclamation of the gospel. The life we preserve is eternal life —“ life that lasts forever.
We are grafted on to live, not die.
Jesus’ instruction on the vine and branches teaches that all who are part of Him, who remain in Him, will bear much fruit. We have been grafted onto the vine, grafted on to live, not to die. As Paul was brought into the Church our Lord and Savior brought us into the fold. He brought us in so that, like Paul, we might be Christians, that we might proclaim the gospel, work for His Holy Church, study and learn the gospel, and be fearless in our proclamation.
Jesus told us:
I am the vine, you are the branches.
Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit
The fruit we bear is in relation to the life of Christ that is in us. By living the Christian life we will bear fruit. Like Paul, our lives will bear fruit in deed and truth. Let no one say of us, ‘We never thought that he was a disciple.’ Amen.
