We know the story. Saul was persecuting the new Christians: receiving accolades from those who stoned Stephen (Acts 7:58) and tracking down the Christians to bring them, bound, to Jerusalem (Acts 9:1–2). He was on the road to Damascus when a voice from heaven left him blind and at the mercy of others. His transformation from Saul to Paul was dramatic.
I have not experienced a voice from heaven like Saul/Paul, challenging my misguided, violent fury, but I have heard the voice of my neighbor inviting me to leave behind the internalized rage of my depression. He asked me, “What do you want?” The transformation likewise was different—not sudden, but gradual, as I considered his question and my response.
From “One the Road” by Bev Stratton, from the September 2014 issue of Gather magazine. Today we remember Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria, who died 444.