Acts 8
KNECHTActs 8:1
THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION.—BAPTISM OF THE OFFICER OF QUEEN CANDACE
[Acts 8, 1-42]
AFTER the death of Stephen, the disciples of Jesus Christ were grievously afflicted¹ in Jerusalem. Among the worst of the persecutors was Saul, the same who had held the garments of those who put Stephen to death. He went from house to house, dragging out² men and women who professed to be
¹ Afflicted. The plain speaking of Stephen in his discourse had inflamed the hatred of the Jews; their obstinacy increased, and far from being satisfied with the blood which they had shed, they wished to destroy the whole Christian body.
² Dragging out. It is obvious that Saul acted in conjunction with the Sanhedrin, for without its authority he could never have made his way into private houses, and taken off the Christians whom he found to prison.
— LXXXIX. BAPTISM OF THE OFFICER OF QUEEN CANDACE. 759
followers of Christ, and threw them into prison. On account of this fierce oppression the disciples were scattered$^(1)$ abroad through all Judaea and Samaria, preaching everywhere the Gospel$^(2)$ of Jesus Christ.
Philip$^(3)$ the deacon went to Samaria, where he cured all manner of diseases. The inhabitants of that city received the Gospel with joy, believed and were baptized.
When the apostles heard this$^(4)$, they sent Peter and John to confirm$^(5)$ the newly-baptized. The two apostles went to Samaria and prayed for the new Christians. Then they imposed hands upon them, and they received the Holy Ghost. After Peter and John had preached the Gospel in Samaria and the country round about it, they returned to Jerusalem.
But an angel appeared to Philip, saying: “Arise and go towards the south to the way that goeth from Jerusalem down to Gaza$^(6)$. Philip went immediately$^(7)$. While journeying along he was overtaken on the road by an officer of Candace, queen of Ethiopia$^(8)$, who was returning from Jerusalem, where he had gone to worship$^(9)$.
As he rode along, sitting in his chariot, he read aloud the prophecy of Isaias. Then the Spirit said to Philip: “Go near, and
$^(1)$ Scattered. They did not hide, but scattered themselves about.
$^(2)$ The Gospel. Or the doctrine of Jesus, which was the Word of God. The apostles remained in Jerusalem, to tend, from that centre, the increasing flock of Christ.
$^(3)$ Philip. It seemed as if the hatred of the persecutors was especially directed against the brother deacons of St. Stephen. They, therefore, had to leave Jerusalem. Philip went to Samaria. His wonderful work among the Samaritans is described in the Acts of the Apostles.
$^(4)$ Heard this. That the Samaritans had accepted the faith.
$^(5)$ To confirm. By the baptism bestowed on them by Philip they had received sanctifying grace, but they had not yet received the Holy Ghost with the fulness of His gifts.
$^(6)$ Gaza is situated to the south of Palestine (see Map), on the Mediterranean. It used to be the chief city of the Philistines (see Old Test, XLVI).
$^(7)$ Immediately. Although he was not told what he was to do when he got there. While he was travelling along, full of thought, he was overtaken by the chariot.
$^(8)$ Ethiopia. Ethiopia was a kingdom in Africa to the south of Egypt, now called Nubia and Abyssinia. The Ethiopians are descended from Chain, and are negroes.
$^(9)$ To worship. He believed therefore in the One True God. He was a Jew or a proselyte of the Jews, and took part in their worship.
— 760 LXXXIX. BAPTISM OF THE OFFICER OF QUEEN CANDACE.
join thyself to that chariot!" He did so, and heard the officer reading the words: “As a sheep¹ He was led to the slaughter; and, like a lamb dumb before his shearer so opened He not His mouth.” Philip asked him: “Thinkest thou that thou understandest² what thou readest?” The officer replied: “How can I, unless some one show me?”
He then requested Philip to come up into the chariot and sit with him. Philip did so, and, beginning with the text which had puzzled the officer, he explained³ to him all the Scriptures relating to Jesus Christ, instructing him in the mystery of Redemption.
As they rode on they came to a stream, and the stranger said to Philip: “See, here is water, what hindereth me⁴ from being baptized?” Philip replied: “If thou believest with thy whole heart, thou mayest.” He answered: “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” He then stopped the chariot, and they both went down into the water; and Philip baptized the officer. But when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord took away Philip⁵, and the officer saw him no more. Praising and blessing God, he went back joyfully to his own country.
COMMENTARY.
The holy Sacrament of Confirmation. The Sacrament which St. Peter and St. John administered to the baptized Samaritans was the Sacrament of Confirmation, the outward sign of which is the imposition of hands with prayer. The anointing with chrism which accompanies the imposition of hands is not explicitly alluded to in the account given, but it can
¹ As a sheep. This prophecy was quoted and explained in Old Test. LXXII.
² Understandest. “Do you understand of whom the prophet is speaking in this passage?”
³ He explained to him that the passage in question related to the Messias, and that Jesus Christ was that Messias, the Incarnate Son of God, and that through Him all those who believed and were baptized would be saved.
⁴ Hindereth me. The words of Philip kindled in the heart of the Ethiopian a great desire for the Sacrament of Regeneration, so that when they reached a stream he eagerly seized the opportunity, and cried out: “See, here is water &c.” He was eager to receive the holy Sacrament of Baptism at once, before his return home.
⁵ Took away Philip. The Holy Ghost, in a wonderful manner, carried him away to a distant place. This marvel confirmed the faith of the Ethiopian, for he knew thereby that it was God Himself who had sent Philip to him. Thus, rejoicing at the great grace which he had received, he returned to his own country. According to tradition he himself sowed the first seed of the Gospel in Ethiopia
— LXXXIX. THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION.
be proved from many sources that from the most ancient times anointing formed part of the outward sign of Confirmation. The inward grace imparted by Confirmation is the receiving of the Holy Ghost, with the strength given by Him to confess the Faith boldly, and to live in accordance with it. This Sacrament was instituted by our Lord, or else the apostles would not have administered it. The deacon, Philip, could not administer it, but only the apostles, who had received from our Lord the power and authority to apply to the faithful all the graces of Redemption. Hence bishops, as the successors of the apostles, are the ordinary ministers of Confirmation.
God knows how to bring good out of evil. The great persecution of the Christians in Jerusalem, far from destroying the Church, served by the wise Providence of God to increase her sphere of action and her glory. The persecuted Christians themselves became richer in merits, and many Jews and Samaritans were converted to the faith; and the Church was extended throughout Judæa and Samaria. Just as the storm which shakes the trees carries their seed to a distance, even so did the storm of persecution which broke over the Church in Jerusalem serve to scatter the seed of the Gospel, and propagate it in distant regions. “The blood of the martyrs”, writes Tertullian, “is the seed from which spring up new Christians”.
The conversion of the Samaritans was a very significant fact in the Church’s history. The Samaritans were, avowedly, outside the pale of faith, and did not belong to the chosen people of God, but stood, as it were, between the Jews and the Gentiles. By now calling them into His Church, God gave it to be known that His was to be no national Church, limited to the Jews, but a Universal, Catholic Church, intended for all countries and nations; and for this reason the head of the Church, St. Peter, went himself to Samaria to unite this new and important flock to the Mother Church. The conversion of the Samaritans prepared the way for the conversion of the Gentiles.
The object of miracles. The Samaritans paid heed to the words of Philip, and believed them, “for they saw the miracles which he did”.
The Universality, or Catholicity of the Church. God sent the messenger of the Gospel to the Ethiopian officer, although he lived in a Gentile country. Thereby God showed that the heathen also were called to have a share in Redemption, and that the Church was to be indeed Catholic. The curse which rested on the race of Cham (see Old Test. VII) was removed in the person of this Ethiopian: and in him the descendants of Cham, who had fallen away from God into the very lowest depths of idolatry, were now called into God’s Church, and offered salvation by her means.
He who corresponds with grace will obtain salvation. The Ethiopian was a man of good will. In spite of his wealth and high position, he made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and diligently studied the Holy
— 762 LXXXIX. BAPTISM OF THE OFFICER OF QUEEN CANDACE.
Scriptures. God, by His preventing grace, first awakened in his heart a longing for the truth and for a right understanding of the prophecies, and then sent Philip to help him. The Ethiopian corresponded with grace, by humbly owning that he could not understand what he was reading, by begging Philip to explain it, and by accepting the instruction given him by the teacher whom God had sent to him. And as soon as he understood the necessity of Baptism, he did not postpone indefinitely the receiving of it, but seized the first opportunity that presented itself to be baptized. To him can be applied the words: “Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice, for they shall have their fill.”
The necessity and properties of grace. “If thou believest with all thy heart thou mayest be baptized (or born again to eternal life)”, replied Philip to the Ethiopian. And our Lord said: “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved” (chapter LXXXIII). Faith is the root and ground of justification (Council of Trent); and he who does not believe cannot be justified or saved. We must, moreover, “believe with all our hearts”; we must grasp the doctrines of faith, not only with the understanding, but also with the heart and will, and shape our lives in accordance with our faith.
The chief Doctrine of Christianity is that of the Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. When the Ethiopian declared: “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God”, Philip asked no more, but gave him holy Baptism on the strength of this confession of faith. He who believes in the divinity of our Lord, believes also in the Holy Trinity, and in all that Jesus taught. He especially believes that the Church was founded by Jesus Christ, and that He has sent to her the Spirit of truth.
Holy Scripture and the Infallible Teaching of the Church. The Ethiopian read the Holy Scriptures without prejudice and with a sincere desire to understand them; but he could not glean the truth from them, because there was nobody to expound them to him. The Scriptures are not clear, nor easy for everybody to understand. They form a divine and mysterious book, “in which (as St. Peter says about the Epistles of St. Paul) are certain things hard to be understood, which the unlearned and unstable wrest to their own destruction” (2 Pet. 3, 16). Wherefore St. Augustine says: “From whence arise so many heresies, but because Holy Scripture, which is good in itself, is misunderstood?” But was the interpretation of Holy Scripture which Philip gave to the Ethiopian correct and reliable? Yes! And why was it so? Because Philip interpreted Holy Scripture as the apostles had taught it to him. But why was the interpretation of the apostles infallibly correct? Because they were instructed by the Holy Ghost in the right understanding of the Scriptures, and were by Him preserved from all error. Only the Holy Ghost, under whose inspiration the Holy Scriptures were written, can infallibly interpret their meaning. For that purpose the Holy Ghost was sent to the Church, that He might explain both Scripture and tradition to the faithful, and declare to them the true faith. The Holy
— NC. THE CONVERSION OF SAUL.
Ghost, however, did not impart directly to the Ethiopian’s mind the true explanation of what he was reading, but He sent to him Philip, who had received from the apostles power and authority to proclaim the true faith. Thus faith did not come to the Ethiopian by the reading of the Scriptures, but by hearkening to the interpretation of them given to him by Philip. “Faith cometh by hearing; and hearing by the word of Christ” (Rom. 10, 17).
APPLICATION. The first Christians confessed their faith boldly, and no persecution could frighten them out of it. Do you courageously confess your holy faith, or do you fear the ridicule of the unbelieving and foolish? Are you ashamed to make the sign of the cross, or to genuflect before the Blessed Sacrament, when others are present? Do you neglect to raise your hat to a crucifix, or to join aloud in public prayers, for fear of criticism? Be ashamed of such despicable cowardice, and pray to the Holy Ghost, whom you received in your Confirmation, to give you strength to overcome all human respect.
Are you as anxious to know your holy religion as was the Ethiopian officer? Do you, like him, pay great attention to the instruction which is given you? Are you willing to listen to the Word of God, and take what you hear to heart? Are you careful to learn your catechism? Do you take pleasure in reading spiritual books?
The Ethiopian went on his way rejoicing after he had learnt to know the true faith, and had been made a child of God. The purest and noblest joy is that which is spiritual and supernatural. Do you not feel a heavenly joy in your heart, when you have made either a good confession, or a fervent Communion? Is not your soul filled with a joyful sense of exultation, when you are assisting devoutly at any of the splendid religious ceremonies of the Catholic Church? Thank God that you are a child of His holy and infallible Church, and resolve that you will do honour to your holy Church by the piety and goodness of your life!
CHAPTER NC THE CONVERSION OF SAUL (about A. D. 37). Acts 2, 1-10
SAUL, still¹ breathing threats and slaughter against the disciples of our Lord Jesus Christ, went to the High Priest, and
¹ Still. It is said that he was “still” full of fury against the Christians because this hatred had already been alluded to (see chapter LXXXVIII and LXXXIX).
— XC. THE CONVERSION OF SAUL.
asked¹ him for letters to Damascus², that he might bring the disciples whom he found there prisoners³ to Jerusalem.
As he journeyed on the road⁴ to Damascus, suddenly a great light⁵ from heaven shone around him. Struck as if by lightning, he fell to the ground. At the same moment, he heard a voice saying: “Saul, Saul, why⁶ dost thou persecute Me?” Saul asked: ‘Who art Thou, Lord?‘⁷ The voice replied: “I am Jesus⁸, whom thou dost persecute.” Trembling with fear, and much astonished, Saul said: “Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do?” The Lord replied: “Arise, and go into the city⁹, and there it shall be told thee what thou must do.”
Saul rose up from the ground and opened his eyes, but he had lost his sight¹⁰. His companions then took him by the
¹ Asked. He had not, therefore, been commissioned by the High Priest to act as he was doing, but volunteered his services, and in fact begged as a favour to be allowed to take the measures he proposed. He now received a commission from the Sanhedrim, and with it a company of armed men to serve as an escort and to help him in his deeds of violence.
² Damascus. This, the chief city of Syria, is seven days’ journey from Jerusalem (see Map). Many thousands of Jews lived there; and when the persecution against our Lord’s disciples broke out in Jerusalem, a number of them fled to Damascus, there being constant commercial intercourse between that populous city and Jerusalem. Saul, therefore, made sure that he would find there a great many Christians. The fact that he was ready to go so far out of his way to persecute them, shows the intensity of his hatred of the followers of Jesus Christ.
³ Prisoners. He intended to arrest all Christians, regardless of age or sex, and take them bound to Jerusalem, there to be judged by the Sanhedrim. Our Lord Himself, however, set a limit to his vindictive career.
⁴ On the road. According to tradition he was within an hour’s journey of Damascus.
⁵ Great light. Which, according to the Acts of the Apostles (26, 13), was brighter than the sun, for it was the glory which surrounded the glorified Redeemer. The vision occurred in the brightness of mid-day (Acts 22, 6), and in the glimpse vouchsafed to him Saul beheld our Lord Himself, in His glorified Body (1 Cor. 9, 1 and 15, 8).
⁶ Why. “What have I done to you that you persecute Me?”
⁷ Lord. He said “Lord”, for he perceived very well that the wonderful vision could proceed from God alone.
⁸ I am Jesus. This reply stirred Saul’s heart to its very depths. What! had he then been persecuting his Redeemer? He “trembled” at the sight of our Lord’s divine majesty, and he “was astonished”, because Jesus of Nazareth, whom he considered to be dead, now appeared to him, clothed with divine glory. He perceived that he had been living in a state of awful blindness. But now he believed, and addressed Jesus as “Lord”, i. e. God, and declared himself ready to obey Him humbly and do everything that He commanded him to do.
⁹ The city. i. e. to Damascus.
¹⁰ His sight. For his eyes were blinded by that glimpse of the glory of heaven. Within him, all was bright with the light of faith, but all without was dark
— XC. THE CONVERSION OF SAUL.
hand¹ and led him² into the city. There he remained³ three days without eating⁴ or drinking
Now, there dwelt in Damascus a certain disciple of Jesus, named Ananias⁵. The Lord appeared to him in a vision⁶, saying: “Arise, and go into the street that is called Strait, and seek, in the house of Judas, Saul of Tarsus, for, behold, he prayeth.”
Ananias answered: “Lord⁷, I have heard from many of this man, how great evils he hath done to Thy saints⁸ at Jerusalem.” The Lord said to him: “Go, for this man is a vessel⁹ of election to Me, to carry My Name before the Gentiles¹⁰, and kings, and the children of Israel. For I will show him how great things he must suffer¹¹ for the sake of My Name.”
¹ By the hand. Like a helpless child.
² Led him. How different was this entry into Damascus from that which he had anticipated! “He, who had intended to lead away men and women captive from the city, was himself led into it dependent on the compassion of others” (St. Chrysostom). Remained. In a state of complete blindness.
³ Without eating. But praying earnestly. Who can tell what passed in Saul’s great soul during those three days? Hitherto, he had hated Jesus for being, as he thought, a false Messias, and had, on that account, persecuted His disciples. He had believed that he was acting rightly, and was pleasing God by thus zealously opposing the Crucified One and His followers. Now, however, he had seen Jesus in His divine glory and had heard His voice; he knew that He had risen from the dead and was in heaven; and he knew that He was in truth the Messias and the Son of God. He recalled to mind all the prophecies with which he, as a scribe, was well acquainted; grace enlightened his understanding, so that he now perceived their real meaning, and that they were all fulfilled in Jesus. He could not understand his previous blindness of heart; deep contrition filled his soul; the blood of the innocent Stephen rose up in judgment against him, and all his cruel violence towards the followers of Jesus accused him. He had persecuted the friends and beloved of God, yea, even the Son of God Himself, and the words of his Divine Redeemer: “Why persecutest thou Me”, rang continually in his ears. He could not touch food; he could only humble himself, and pray earnestly to God to forgive him, to grant him still more light and to give him the grace to make amends for the wrong he had done. His prayer was heard.
⁴ Ananias. According to tradition Ananias was one of our Lord’s seventy disciples, and, later on, died a martyr’s death.
⁵ A vision. While he was praying.
⁶ Lord. Ananias was amazed at the commission entrusted to him, and, in his astonishment, remonstrated in the words that follow.
⁷ Thy saints. Thy disciples.
⁸ Is a vessel. He is no longer a persecutor of My followers, but a believer and a vessel of election to Me.
⁹ Before the Gentiles. I have chosen him, especially, to proclaim the Gospel to the pagan world.
¹⁰ He must suffer. So complete is his conversion that he, the former persecutor, will in his turn be persecuted, and will suffer much for My sake.
— XI. THE CONVERSION OF SAUL.
Ananias went, and entering into the house where Saul was, he laid his hands upon him, and said: “Brother Saul¹, the Lord Jesus hath sent me, He who appeared to thee in the way as thou camest, that thou mayest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost.” And suddenly there fell from the eyes of Saul, as it were, scales, and he received his sight², and, rising up, was baptized³. Immediately he began to preach⁴ in the synagogues that Jesus was the Son of God⁵.
COMMENTARY.
The Divinity of Jesus Christ. The story of Saul’s conversion bears testimony in several ways to the divinity of our Lord. 1. Saul himself saw our Lord Jesus in glory, and was thus, like Stephen, an eye-witness of His Godhead. 2. Saul repeatedly addressed Jesus as “Lord”, that is, God, and preached in Damascus that “Jesus is the Son of God”. 3. The marvellous and sudden conversion of Saul shows the omnipotence of Jesus, for only God can turn the hearts of men. 4. Our Lord also appeared to Ananias, and foretold to him certain things which afterwards came to pass, namely, that Saul would preach the Name of Jesus before Jews and Gentiles, and that he would suffer much for His sake. 5. Ananias confessed Him to be God, addressing Him as “Lord”, and saying to Saul: “The Lord Jesus hath sent me.” 6. Ananias was sent by Jesus, and in His Name he worked a great miracle, for by the touch of his hand Saul recovered his sight. He who, in spite of all these proofs and testimonies, does not believe in the divinity of Jesus Christ, is indeed inexcusable.
The Mercy of Jesus. Our Lord loved Saul, who hated and persecuted Him. He sought him out and enlightened him at the very moment when he was most thirsting for blood and was least deserving of grace. He did not speak to him in a terrifying manner, but with
¹ Brother Saul. Ananias lovingly addressed him as brother, for he knew that Saul had become his brother in the faith.
² Received his sight. And was, by this miracle, confirmed in faith.
³ Was baptized. Because he had by prayer and fasting prepared himself for Baptism.
⁴ To preach. Saul later took the name of Paul, while preaching the Gospel in the Roman empire. It is, therefore, said: “From (the unbelieving) Saul proceeded (the believing and holy) Paul.”
⁵ The Son of God, and promised Messias. Paul proved his words from the prophecies which relate to the Messias, and showed that they all found their fulfilment in Jesus. The Jews, who could not answer his arguments, tried to kill him, and kept guard over the gates of the city lest he should escape them; but the disciples lowered him down over the walls in a basket, and thus he escaped. We shall next hear of him at Antioch (XCIV).
— XC. THE CONVERSION OF SAUL.
loving words of expostulation. He did not punish him, but forgave him all his sins, accepted him as a disciple, and even raised him to be an apostle. When He was on earth, Jesus was merciful to sinners, and lovingly went in search of His lost sheep; and, now that He is in glory in heaven, He is as full as ever of compassion and mercy towards sinners.
The power of divine grace. Our Blessed Lord prevented Saul with His grace, enlightened his understanding, moved his heart, and prepared his will to do all that was commanded him. In the very midst of his sinful career grace called to Saul to stop, and changed his heart so completely that the bitter enemy of Jesus Christ was transformed into an apostle, all aglow with love; and the persecutor of the Christian faith became its indefatigable defender and advocate. Thus St. Paul was able to say of himself: “By the grace of God I am what I am; and His grace in me hath not been void, but I have laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God with me” (1 Cor. 15, 10).
We must correspond with grace if we wish to be saved. In the passage just quoted St. Paul says: “God’s grace in me hath not been void.” In other words, it was effectual because, instead of resisting it, he co-operated with it. He did not shut his soul to the light of grace, but believed and submitted himself to the will of God. He repented of his sins, fasted, prayed, and prepared himself for holy Baptism. And after he was a Christian he did not fear the scorn and hatred of the Jews, but fearlessly confessed and preached the Christian faith.
Prayer for sinners. The Church has always held the belief that the conversion of Saul was in answer to the prayer of St. Stephen. Thus St. Augustine writes: “Stephen’s prayer was already granted even while Saul was still raging.” We should, therefore, never despair of the conversion of a sinner, be he never so far removed from God, for the mighty grace of God can change his heart at any moment. Let us then pray for sinners with zeal and with confidence, that God may grant to them the grace of conversion.
Whoever persecutes the Church, persecutes Jesus Christ. It was the disciples of Jesus whom Saul was persecuting, and yet our Lord said to him: “Why persecutest thou Me?” Did Saul, then, in any way injure our Lord in the glory of heaven? No, but he was persecuting the disciples on account of their Lord, and because they believed in Him and loved Him. Now, in the same way that our Blessed Lord regards the smallest act of kindness done to his disciples for His sake, as done to Himself, so does He count the injuries done to His followers on His account, and because of their faith in Him, exactly as if they were done personally to Himself.
Sanctifying grace. Saul received sanctifying grace, if not by his perfect contrition, certainly by his Baptism, and was justified by it;
— XCI. PETER’S JOURNEY.—HE RAISES TABITHA TO LIFE.
that is, after his Baptism he was no longer a sinner, but a child and friend of God, and an heir to heaven.
Good works performed in a state of sin. During the three days before he was baptized, Saul fasted rigorously and prayed without ceasing. He was perhaps all this time in a state of sin, for he had not yet received holy Baptism and with it sanctifying grace. Were then his works of prayer and penance of no value? No! they were not without value, for they obtained for him the grace of a greater knowledge of himself, a deeper sense of contrition, and an ardent desire for Baptism and reconciliation with God; all of which prepared him better for the reception of the holy Sacrament of regeneration.
Christians should be Saints. Ananias called the disciples in Jerusalem “saints”. And why? Because they had been made holy in Baptism, and led holy lives.
APPLICATION. You too have persecuted and injured your Divine Lord by sins against your neighbours who are His disciples. Have you deeply repented of these sins as Saul did, and amended your ways as sincerely as he did? Make a firm resolution never again to commit a wilful sin. Remember whom you offend when you sin, even your Lord and Saviour, the King of everlasting glory. Often make the ejaculation: “My Jesus, mercy!”