Today we celebrated the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul.
When I think about these Saints, the first thing that comes to mind for me is that with God anything is possible.
Consider Paul. We all know about Paul’s miraculous conversion. We hear Paul himself speak about his conversion in his letter to the Galatians (Galatians 1:11-20). Paul rightly credits God with his transformation from prime persecutor of the church to prime evangelizer for the church. Paul knows that it was only through divine intervention and revelation that his heart and mind were converted in a very big way.
Consider Peter. We all know about Peter’s denial of Jesus during the Passion. But yet we hear Jesus offer Peter a chance for reconciliation shortly after the resurrection (John 21:15-19). Jesus asks Peter three times to affirm his love for him, giving Peter the opportunity to repent for his earlier betrayal – the three times that Peter denied Jesus after his arrest.
Through these two holy men we see that anything is possible for God – whether it be a dramatic and instantaneous conversion – that flash of light that bowls us over like Paul, or whether it be a more subtle and slowly ocurring conversion due to God’s kind cajoling and infinite forgiveness like that experienced by Peter.
Whatever the case, God, in his love and mercy, gives us the opportunity over and over again to draw near to him. No matter how far we might fall away from God and the life he desires for us, we can always come back to him by responding to his constant tug and his limitless grace. We should never doubt this, for with God anything is possible.