There can be no doubt that cognisance should be taken of Paul�s conversion on the road to Damascus in any discussion on radical change. Bosch asks the question: Was it conversion in the sense of changing religions, or did Paul experience renewal from within the Judaist religion? Exegetical and theological evaluation of Paul�s experience shows that careful scrutiny of his experience, as narrated in Acts, is needed. However, it is presently accepted that his own references to radical change in his views must be evaluated in combination. In this regard the Speech Act Theory empowers the exegete to better understand Paul�s encounter with Christ�the maxims of quantity, quality, relevance and manner, and the basic aspect of politeness are especially useful to evaluate the meaning of a specific passage. The implications of Paul�s encounter with Christ are huge and had and still have meaning for the Christian community. The radical transformation of the society that followed is of great importance. Paul�s radical change influenced the radical change of many in the society. How did Paul�s encounter with Jesus influence the whole community and how can this affect the search for true Christian experience in the modern world? It is suggested that by revisiting Paul�s influence in the early church, society can be radically transformed by the present day church.

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