Saint Who?
Saints Who Were Instruments of Healing
Saint Ananias of Damascus
Martyr (1st century) Feast: January 25
Saul was a zealous Jew, so zealous that he was willing to travel around the countryside, seek out Jews who had become Christians, arrest them, and drag them back to Jerusalem. There they would be imprisoned, tried for blasphemy, and, if they did not renounce their faith in Jesus Christ, executed.
As Saul approached the city of Damascus (in modern Syria), he was accompanied by guards, who helped him in his cruel assignment. As he later described it, Saul heard the voice of Jesus himself, was blinded by a great light, and allowed himself to be led by his guards to Damascus since he could no longer see.
Out of all the Christian residents of Damascus who could have been sent to heal Saul, why did God choose Ananias? The Bible simply tells us that Ananias was a faithful Jew and a prayerful follower of Christ. However, it is likely that Ananias had laid hands on the sick and successfully prayed for healing before, which is why God chose him to heal an infamous persecutor of Christians. Ananias not only trusted that God could heal the enemies of his Son, he trusted that God had a plan in this potentially deadly mission. According to tradition, Ananias spread the Gospel before he too, years later, died a martyr.
Lord Jesus, Light of the World, help us
bring light to those in darkness.
