When Christians think of art depicting the conversion of St. Paul, they likely think of the saint falling from his horse on the road to Damascus after being temporarily struck blind. But in Acts of the Apostles, where the event is chronicled, no horse is involved, said Deacon Mickey Friesen, director of the Center for Mission at the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

And, he said, the real conversion happens when he arrives in Damascus and Ananias baptizes him.

That’s what’s depicted in a 3-by-4-foot icon recently created by Stillwater-based iconographer Deb Korluka to commemorate a special relationship between the local Catholic Church and the Maronite Catholic Archdiocese of Damascus, Syria. Organizers of the four-year-old partnership between the two archdioceses commissioned the icon, which shows Ananias baptizing Paul in a stone baptismal font.

The partnership began to take form five years ago, after the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops addressed concerns about Christians in the Middle East and challenged the bishops to consider how the U.S. Church could become more personally engaged with the Church in the Middle East.

Archbishop Bernard Hebda consulted Deacon Friesen, whose center has experience with similar partnerships, including an archdiocesan mission parish in Venezuela and a near-20-year relationship with the Diocese of Kitui, Kenya. The deacon consulted Chorbishop Sharbel Maroun, pastor of St. Maron Maronite Catholic Church in Minneapolis, and Kevin Hartigan, the regional director for Europe, Central Asia and Middle East for Catholic Relief Services (and a Minneapolis native), about a partner in the Middle East. Both suggested the Maronite archdiocese in Damascus.

“It’s a Church that’s suffering civil war, (and) that’s the diocese where St. Paul came from,” Deacon Friesen said. “He was baptized in Damascus. So, I thought, that’s almost Biblical.” So, he contacted its archbishop, Samir Nassar, about the possibility of a partnership, and he replied with an openness to the idea.

What does an icon mean?

After Korluka’s iconography research and discussion with the partnership’s steering committee, its members told Korluka that the icon most meaningful to follow as a guide in creating the archetype for the Damascus initiative was a 14th century icon fresco from the Decani Monastery in Kosovo. It depicts Saul in a stone baptismal font and Ananias dressed as a disciple of Christ with the house of Judas (mentioned in Acts) behind. In her icon, Korluka added images of the cathedrals in St. Paul and Damascus, connected by a white veil.

Because icons are theological in nature, no effort is made toward physical realism, as in a photograph, Korluka said. Instead, she said, icons contain and speak the Gospel truths with images in the light of the sacred tradition of the Church. They must be distinct from other types of images, just as the Gospel is different from all other literary works, she said.

“No matter how simple and crude, or elaborate and grand, icons are mystical works of worship,” she explained.

Part of the icon’s inspiration pertains to the idea of doorways — that the partnership is an entryway to a lot of things, Deacon Friesen said.

“It’s an entry into faith,” he said. “The font is an entryway to the Christian faith, entries into churches.”

They symbolize baptism, he said, and one doorway symbolizes an entryway into the mystery of God.

Korluka, 63, an Orthodox Christian, has worked in iconography since age 18. She said that only a handful of ancient icons of the baptism of Paul remain.

Filled with symbolism, icons are not meant to evoke emotion, but rather “a spiritual response,” Korluka said. Iconography does not come out of an artist’s own creative liberty, she said, but out of the tradition of the Church.

Individuals wishing to support the partnership can contact the Center for Mission for more information: 651-222-6556. To learn more, visit centerformission.org.

The partnership was formalized on Jan. 25, 2017 — the feast of the conversion of St. Paul, one of the patronal feast days of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

Asked about the value of the partnership, Archbishop Nassar, whose native language is Arabic, replied by email that “the Divine Mercy made the Archdiocese of St. Paul come to our forgotten and small church, living always (a) very hard time at Damascus, city of the conversion of St. Paul and next to (the) Ananias shrine.”

Damascus is home to many eastern rite Catholic churches, Deacon Friesen said.

“Within the Catholic Church, they are fully Catholic,” he said. “In fact, as they would say, ‘We’ve been around longer than you have.’ The Maronites in Damascus like to say, ‘Just remember; we’re the ones who baptized Paul.’”

Deacon Friesen said the partnership is a commitment to grow in a relationship between two Churches through opportunities to get to know one another.

“We learn from each other’s experience of faith, so one of our goals is to share the stories of our faith and to pray for each other,” he said. It also involves sharing resources to address needs, he said, and a commitment to learn from each other over time.

The partnership’s steering committee includes leaders from parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis including the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis, the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul and St. Maron Maronite Catholic Church in Minneapolis, as well as the vocation director for the Maryknoll Missionaries and Center for Mission staff.

Icon set to travel

Starting Sept. 4, the icon will travel to six parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, and St. Catherine and St. Thomas universities. Brochures and prayer cards will be available at each location.

The icon reaches the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul Jan. 20, where it will be placed on permanent display. Archbishop Bernard Hebda will bless the icon at the Cathedral Jan. 23, two days prior to the feast of the conversion of St. Paul. Archbishop Nassar hopes to be present that day, but his trip remains uncertain.

After about three years, the partnership’s steering committee thought it might be useful to have an image that could give focus and lead Catholics connected through the partnership further in conversation, Deacon Friesen said.

And part of Maronite Catholics’ spirituality is very influenced by icons, he said. “It’s very much part of their faith.”

The icon of St. Paul and Ananias creates a spiritual unity between “our two Churches of the same faith,” said Archbishop Nassar.

The icon is intended to portray the meaning and spirit of the partnership, and draw Catholics deeper into the experience of St. Paul’s encounter with Ananias in Damascus, and their encounter with others, according to materials produced by the Center for Mission.

As recounted in Acts, when Paul arrives in Damascus after hearing Jesus’ voice and being struck blind, the Christians do not welcome him because Paul had intended to arrest and imprison them, Deacon Friesen said. But the Christian disciple Ananias welcomes Paul, assuring the people that Paul has been called by God. And it’s there where Paul was baptized, and the scales fell from his eyes and he could see, said Deacon Friesen.

“I just love the whole story of Paul’s conversion, and this idea of St. Paul returning to Damascus,” Deacon Friesen said. “We have something to learn from each other. And that’s been my experience in the mission office. That’s been the greatest gift … to really get a much deeper sense of what it means to be Catholic. Each one of these relationships that bring us beyond our borders has opened me so much to the Catholic faith in all its dimensions.”

Archbishop Nassar said he would like to tell “all the parishioners in Minnesota, because of your friendship, we do not feel lonely anymore,” and that he is proud of Archbishop Bernard Hebda who (teaches) us how to face problems and … (make) the courageous decisions.”

Where to see the icon

St. Paul, Zumbrota  

  • 4-19

University of St. Thomas, St. Paul

  • 21-30

St. Maron (Maronite), Minneapolis

  • 2-14

Holy Family (Maronite), Mendota

  • 16-28

Basilica of St. Mary, Minneapolis

  • 30-Nov. 24

University of St. Catherine, St. Paul

  • 27-Dec. 30

St. Paul, Ham Lake

  • 1-18

Cathedral of St. Paul, St. Paul

  • 20 and onward


Visitors are asked to observe each location’s COVID-19 precautions.