Today we share the feast of one of the great writers of the New Testament, St. Luke
Reflections on the readings for the Feast of St. Luke (October 18, 2022): 2TM 4:10-17; PS 145:10-11,12-13,17-18; LK 10:1-9
MISSIO offers “Preaching Mission,” as a homily help, providing connections to mission from the readings of Sundays, Feast Days and Holy Days.
... whose beautiful and faith-filled words have reached down the millennia to teach the Good News of Jesus Christ.
St. Luke is believed to have been born in Antioch, Syria, around 9 A.D. He is thought to have been a Gentile and an early convert to Christianity. He was not, however, one of Jesus’ original disciples, but rather heard about Him and His message of salvation from those who knew Him. Luke was a physician and possibly an artist. Luke was also a missionary and a companion of St. Paul on some of his travels. In today’s first reading we learn a little more about their relationship: “Luke is the only one with me. … At my first defense no one appeared on my behalf, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them! But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the proclamation might be completed and all the Gentiles might hear it” (2 Timothy 4:11,16-17). But while Luke was a preacher, and may have become a bishop, he is best remembered and honored for the two books he contributed to Scriptures: the third Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles.
Only in the Gospel according to St. Luke do we find three memorable and still commonly prayed canticles, those of Zechariah and Simeon, and of course, the Blessed Virgin Mary’s Magnificat. Luke’s Gospel has frequently been cited for expressing Jesus’ love and concern for women, for those who are poor, and for those who live at the edges of society. Pope St. John Paul II called it the Gospel of Mercy. Luke’s Gospel ends with the Ascension of Christ. Then the Acts of the Apostles, the second of his writings, picks up at that point. It moves through Pentecost and the first years of the Church. We hear how the Apostles and early disciples, led by St. Peter, shared the Good News in Jerusalem and surrounding areas. In time, through their efforts and those of other faithful missionaries, especially St. Paul, the Church spread through much of the Roman Empire and beyond. The last words of the Acts of the Apostles talk about St. Paul imprisoned in Rome, still proclaiming the Kingdom of God and teaching about Jesus Christ. St. Luke himself died in Greece at an old age. It is not known for certain whether he was martyred, but he clearly gave his life in service to Christ. He is now considered by the Church patron of both physicians and artists.
