Oct. 18th - St. Luke

Today is the feast of St. Luke, who was an apostle, although he was not one of the twelve apostles. He wrote several inspired books of the bible. He wrote the Gospel of St. Luke and the Acts of the Apostles. He also traveled with St. Paul, and was able to write a lot about St. Paul, and the early Church, including Pentecost, the spreading of the Gospel, and the founding of local churches.

In his gospel, St. Luke wrote about the divine mercy of Jesus. For example, he stressed Christ’s love for sinners. How tender is Our Lord’s mercy, as He seeks out the lost sheep, forgives the woman caught in adultery, or promises the repentant thief, eternal life.

He wrote about women in society at the time, such as the widow of Naim, the woman who bathed the feet of Jesus with her tears, the woman whose back was bent, and the weeping women of Jerusalem.

He also wrote much about Our Lord’s love for the poor.

And St. Luke wrote more about the Blessed Virgin and the infant Jesus more then the other Gospel writers. He is the only writer to give us the birth of John the Baptist, the annunciation of the angel to the Virgin Mary, the visitation to Her cousin Elizabeth and the detailed description of the Birth of Jesus as well as the loss of Jesus for three days and the finding of Jesus in the temple. It is almost certain that he would have learned about these events from the Blessed Virgin Mary herself. As She would have given him the detailed descriptions.

Only in the Gospel of St. Luke we hear, Mary’s beautiful Magnificat, “My Soul Proclaims the Greatness of the Lord, My Spirit Rejoices in God my Savior”. Only in his Gospel do we hear, “Hail full of Grace, the Lord is with thee, Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb”. Only in his gospel do we hear twice, “Mary pondered all these things in Her Heart”.

St. Luke must have deeply loved Mary. It is believed he painted many paintings of the Blessed Virgin Mary, some of which are believed to be still in existence today. Besides being an artist, and a writer, he was also a traveler of St. Paul, and a physician.

The modern Greeks tell us he was crucified on an olive tree. Other say he was beheaded after his hands had been cut off for writing His Gospel. He is the patron of physicians and artists.

May St. Luke intercede for us to help us meditate on his Gospel, and so, come to a deeper love and devotion to the Child Jesus, and the Blessed Virgin Mary. And may he help doctors help patients.