Monday, October 18, 2021

 Feast of Saint Luke, evangelist

 (II Timothy 4:10-17b; Luke 10:1-9)

 St. Luke was not one of Jesus’ original disciples.  He did not know Jesus as Peter and James did.  He might have been a companion of Paul as today’s first reading suggests.  But he received his information about the Lord from others.  He says as much in the prologue to his gospel:  “I too have decided, after investigating everything thoroughly to write it down in an orderly sequence…”

As the other evangelists, Luke imbues his record of Jesus with his own theology and his own emphases.  Some of this perspective may be found in the gospel today.  Luke more than the other evangelists pictures Christ as poor and favoring the poor.  In today’s swath Jesus sends his disciples out without even sandals on their feet.  But from the very beginning Luke’s gospel is good news.  The preachers are to say to all, whether they listen or not, “The Kingdom of God is at hand for you.”

We can be as grateful for Luke’s gospel as for all the others.  As Matthew gives us a firm theology of Church and Mark portrays Jesus in a very human way and John shows beyond doubt that Jesus is divine, Luke communicates to us Jesus as a man of peace, born of a mother who rejoiced at his coming, and wrapped in the Spirit of prayer.  Whether he was a physician or an artist, we cannot say for sure.  But as an evangelist, he was wonderful.