***
Acts 9: 1-22
Saul, still breathing murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord,
went to the high priest and asked him
for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, that,
if he should find any men or women who belonged to the Way,
he might bring them back to Jerusalem in chains.
On his journey, as he was nearing Damascus,
a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him.
He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him,
“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”
He said, “Who are you, sir?”
The reply came, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
Now get up and go into the city and you will be told what you must do.”
The men who were traveling with him stood speechless,
for they heard the voice but could see no one.
Saul got up from the ground,
but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing;
so they led him by the hand and brought him to Damascus.
For three days he was unable to see, and he neither ate nor drank.
There was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias,
and 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 ask at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus named Saul.
He is there praying,
and in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias
come in and lay his hands on him,
that he may regain his sight.”
But Ananias replied,
“Lord, I have heard from many sources about this man,
what evil things he has done to your holy ones in Jerusalem.
And here he has authority from the chief priests
to imprison all who call upon your name.”
But the Lord said to him,
“Go, for this man is a chosen instrument of mine
to carry my name before Gentiles, kings, and children of Israel,
and I will show him what he will have to suffer for my name.”
So Ananias went and entered the house;
laying his hands on him, he said,
“Saul, my brother, the Lord has sent me,
Jesus who appeared to you on the way by which you came,
that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
Immediately things like scales fell from his eyes
and he regained his sight.
He got up and was baptized,
and when he had eaten, he recovered his strength.
He stayed some days with the disciples in Damascus,
and he began at once to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues,
that he is the Son of God.
All who heard him were astounded and said,
“Is not this the man who in Jerusalem
ravaged those who call upon this name,
and came here expressly to take them back in chains
to the chief priests?”
But Saul grew all the stronger
and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus,
proving that this is the Christ.
The Word of the Lord.
***
***
“Where have all the men gone?” a young Michael Corleone asks his bodyguard as they stroll through a quaint town in Sicily.
His bodyguard turns and says, “Sono tutti morti per le vendette.”
“They’re all dead from vendettas.”
***
The Godfather is one of the most popular films in history. People, it seems, have a dark, timeless curiosity with the mafia – how it works, who wins, who loses.
And who’s next.
If you double-cross Michael Corleone, you’re dead.
There can be something sinfully satisfying about watching your enemy get what he deserves.
***
In our first reading, the Lord has delivered Saul, the man who becomes the Apostle Paul, into the hands of Ananias.
If Ananias were not a devoutly Christian man, then I’m sure he’d be quick to kill Saul for all the evil he’s done, just like Michael Corleone satisfying a vendetta.
Saul has persecuted, imprisoned, even killed Christians. But the Lord invites Ananias to lay his hands over Saul’s eyes, to end his suffering, and heal him.
Then, set him free.
***
Anyone can imagine how hard that must’ve been– forgiving someone who’s hated you, persecuted your faith, and ripped families apart.
But Christ can do incredible things through us when we let him, which is why Ananias’ first word to Saul was, “brother.”
Through Christ, Saul and Ananias – bitter enemies – became brothers.
Where do I need Christ to work through me? Like Ananias, maybe I need the grace to forgive; or like Saul, I need the humility to be forgiven.
***
While movies like The Godfather entertain our lower selves, today’s feast reminds us that Christ can do incredible things through us like turning bitter enemies into brothers, and sinners into Saints if we let him.
But each of us must cooperate with Grace.
***
