One of the greatest modern myths we have in our society is that of the self-made man. From the day we are born we are told that we can do anything and become anyone we want to by our own efforts. If you go to a bookstore (or online) there is a whole section of books dedicated to self-improvement. Titles as Seven Habits of Successful People or Master Your Mind are everywhere nowadays. But while perhaps good intentioned, such concepts are misleading, for no one can grow by himself or herself. Maturity and personal development are achieved by our interaction with others, even if only in a passive way. The influence of other people in our lives is always a factor in who we are now and who we will be in the future. This does not undermine the power of one´s determination and the autonomy we can have in making our own decisions, but it is arrogant to think that we “made” ourselves only by our own choices and that the input and interaction with others does not have an affect on our person.
This made me think of Peter and Paul whom we celebrate today. If you have ever been in Rome at Saint Peter’s Basilica or if you have seen a picture of the facade, you will see the statutes of Peter and Paul right at the entrance. These are very majestic images that isolate these characters from a rich history of conversion that involved other people. As much as Peter and Paul are the pillars of our Church, they too underwent a process of change in which other people directly influenced their vocation. Two clear examples are Cornelius and Ananias. Their influence on Peter and Paul reminds us that even for those who become the foundation of the Church, help from others was needed.
Both stories regarding the conversion of Peter and Paul are in chapters nine and ten in Acts, and they are remarkably parallel to one another. In chapter nine we find the story of Paul’s conversion, with which most of us are familiar. Paul, still called Saul, is on his way to Damascus when he has his encounter with Jesus. After this, he loses his sight and for three days waits in Damascus in the house of a man named Judas. Meanwhile, Ananias, who is called a disciple, has a vision in which the Lord asks him to go and find Saul. Ananias is reluctant since he knew who Saul was. But the Lord insists saying that Saul has been destined to become an instrument to bring the name of Jesus to the Gentiles (Acts 9:10-16). Ananias goes and lays his hands on Saul, and he recovers his sight. After this, Paul will then preach that Jesus is the son of God.
At the end of chapter nine, which is mostly dedicated to Paul's conversion, there is then an introduction to Peter, that places him in Joppa in the house of a man named Simon who is a tanner. (Acts 9:43). This is a curious place for Peter to stay, since a tanner should had been seen as an unclean person with respect to Jewish purity laws. A tanner was constantly handling carcasses and skins of dead animals. But Luke, the author of Acts, want us to prepare for what is coming, putting Peter in relationship with someone who shares his Jewish name but who is seen as unclean. The following chapter ten introduces Cornelius as a devout Roman centurion who feared God with all his household and who lived in Caesarea. A God fearer was non-Jew who accepted the Jewish faith and followed part of the Law but without being circumcised. One day at three o'clock Cornelius has a vision in which the Lord reaffirms Cornelius’ devotion and asks him to look for Simon Peter who is staying at the house of Simon. At this point, this sounds very similar to what happened to Ananias in chapter nine.
Next, Peter has a vision on the roof of the house where he is staying. In the vision, Peter sees the heavens opened and a large sheet coming down, lowered to the ground by its four corners (Acts 10:11). The sheet had in it all kinds of four-footed creatures and reptiles and birds. Three times Peter sees the sheet coming down and a voice telling him: “get up Peter, kill and eat.” But three times Peter denies the offer since he should not eat anything unclean; but the voice also answers three times: "what God has made clean, you must not call profane." One must wonder if this also applies to the tanner. Peter did not know what to do with his vision until the next day when he arrives in Cornelius' house and realizes that although it was unlawful for Jews and Gentiles to associate, he should not call anyone profane or unclean. After this Peter preaches in Cornelius' house that God shows no partiality. While he does this, the Holy Spirit falls upon everyone there in what it looks like a second Pentecost, since the Gentiles also start to speak in tongues just as the disciples did at the beginning of the book of Acts (compare Acts 2:1-4 and 10:44-46a).
We can see similar, striking elements in these stories. Both Peter and Paul have visions and are staying as a guest in some individual's home whose name/profession is significant to their experience of conversion. Also, for both men the mission to the Gentiles is linked to their conversion experience. But the most interesting parallel is the intervention of Cornelius and Ananias. When Cornelius and Ananias are called by God, they are called by name, and they have a specific instruction. Both are crucial in helping Peter and Paul understand that God shows no partiality. We may regard Peter and Paul as the disciples who stand at the foundation of our Church but we have to recognize that they did not reach to that point by themselves. Cornelius and Ananias, through the intervention of God, were instrumental for them to “see the big picture.”
The experience of conversion is not a mere personal matter; we all need people like Cornelius and Ananias to help us to see and grow. These two men are sent by God to help others fulfill the mission that from the beginning was given to the apostles of proclaiming the Gospel to everyone. Even Peter and Paul, the two pillars of the Church that we celebrate today, required the help of others to become better disciples.
