Thánh Luca là ai? Chúng ta chỉ biết qua là ông đã sinh ra ờ thành phố Antioch và làm nghề thầy thuốc. Ông đã theo Thánh Phaolô như là người môn đệ trung thành của thánh Phaolô.. Qua các bài đọc trong sách Tông đồ công vụ, chúng ta có thể đoán được là Thánh Luca là người đồng hành rất thân thiết với Thánh Phaolô trên đường rao giảng tin mừng cho dân ngoại, và đặc biệt nhất là trong những giai đoạn gần cuối cuộc đời của Thánh Phaolô. Mặc dù có nhiều người bỏ rơi Thánh Phaolô trong những năm qua tù đày ở Rome, nhưng Thánh Luca đã luôn trung thành và ở gần với Thánh Phaolô cho đến khi thánh Phaolô được tử vì đạo.
St Luke was a close companion of Paul, including near the end of Paul's life. Many people deserted Paul in these last years, but Luke chose to faithfully remain with Paul.
Who is St Luke? We know that he came from the city of Antioch and worked as a physician. Eventually, he wrote both the Gospel of Luke and Acts of the Apostles. Among other things, his writings express the deep compassion Jesus had for the sick, the poor, women and people living on the margins of society. The Gospel of Luke gives these people a voice. Luke reveals Jesus' tender care for people in need and emphasizes how important they are in God’s sight.
It is said that Luke was also one of the seventy people sent out by Jesus in today’s Gospel passage (Lk. 10). Accordingly, Luke witnessed firsthand how God healed, nourished and blessed people in need. Luke saw that Jesus loved people personally and profoundly. The Gospel of Luke is known as the Gospel of compassion and the Gospel of joy.
Have I ever sensed Jesus looking upon me with compassion?
Lord, help me to bring the Joy of the Gospel to many people
The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. He said to them, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.” Luke 10:1–2
Saint Luke, whom we honor today, was a true evangelist. As an evangelist, he followed the inspiration from our Lord and was used to bring God’s saving message to the ends of the earth. And there is little doubt that his ministry will continue to have a transforming effect on the lives of many until the end of the world. Tradition states that Saint Luke became a martyr, being hanged on an olive tree. He is identified in the New Testament as a physician and as a disciple of Saint Paul. Both the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles are attributed to him. Saint Luke is often spoken of as an evangelist to the gentiles. His Gospel was written in such a way that it didn’t presume a full understanding of the Jewish faith and customs. Therefore, it is believed to have been primarily written for those who are not of Jewish origin. Thus, the life and mission of Saint Luke must remind us that the Gospel needs to be shared with all people, especially with those who do not have a deep and sustaining relationship with God.
In today’s Gospel from Saint Luke, we read that Jesus sent seventy-two disciples “to every town and place he intended to visit.” Only Luke mentions the larger scale sending of seventy-two disciples. The other Gospels only mention the sending of the Twelve. Though many of these seventy-two disciples would have gone to Jewish territory, some would have unquestionably gone to non-Jewish territory. The mission of these seventy-two was to prepare everyone they encountered for the preaching of Jesus and for the establishment of the Kingdom of God.
As we honor Saint Luke today and read this passage from his Gospel, we are reminded that we are all sent by our Lord. We are sent to those who share our faith, such as family, friends and fellow parishioners. We are sent to love them and do all we can to help deepen their faith and love of God. But we are also called to share the Gospel with those who do not yet know Jesus as their Savior. There are so many people we encounter every day who have never truly met our Lord. Are there people in your life that God is calling you to reach out to? Who do you know that God may be calling you to share the Gospel with?
Reflect, today, upon the fact that the Gospel is meant for everyone. Speak to our Lord and tell Him that you are ready and willing to be used by Him to bring His saving message to others. As you do so, wait on the Lord, listen to His inspiration, and respond when He calls. If someone comes to mind whom you sense God is calling you to evangelize, begin to pray for that person. Pray for them every day and be attentive to any inspiration God gives you to share His love and saving message with them. Do not be afraid to be an evangelist like Saint Luke. Doing so might make an eternal difference in someone’s life.
My saving Lord, You sent Your disciples on a mission to share Your saving message with all. Today I especially thank You for the life and ministry of Saint Luke. Please use me, dear Lord, to imitate his wonderful example and to share Your glorious life with others. Please lead me and inspire me to especially reach out to those whom You have put into my life. Jesus, I trust in You.
Opening Prayer: Lord God, send me as a laborer into your harvest! Let me bring peace to those I encounter today. When I am united to you through your grace, I am a bearer of the Kingdom in this world. May your reign be extended by my actions, prayers, and words to many hearts today!
1. Paul and Luke: When we read the Gospel of Luke at daily mass, it is usually but not always paired with a reading from one of Paul’s 13 letters. This arrangement in the Liturgy of the Word reflects how Paul and Luke travelled together, ministered to God’s people together, and how they mutually influenced one another in presenting the Gospel. In fact, St. Irenaeus said that Luke was Paul’s follower and “set down in a book the Gospel that was preached by Paul” (Against the Heresies, 3,1,1). Luke’s account of the institution of the Eucharist, for example, is closer to Paul’s account in 1 Corinthians than the Gospels of Mark and Matthew. Luke was likely from Antioch and was either a Gentile or a Hellenistic Jew. He wrote his Gospel for Gentile Christians in the Roman Empire. One unique characteristic of Luke’s Gospel is the account of the five joyful mysteries at the beginning of his Gospel. If Luke was a Gentile and converted with the preaching of Paul, this was a likely source of joy. As a pagan, there was little or no hope for anything beyond the grave. What Paul taught Luke was that God so loved us that he became one of us, suffered for us, and died for us. “Jesus of Nazareth was God in the flesh: he showed the way to eternal life. Whoever trusted in him and followed his teachings could have confidence of a life to come in the loving embrace of God. This was such good news! How could one not be joyful to hear it?” (Bergsma, New Testament Basics for Catholics, 85).
Opening Prayer: Lord God, send me as a laborer into your harvest! Let me bring peace to those I encounter today. When I am united to you through your grace, I am a bearer of the Kingdom in this world. May your reign be extended by my actions, prayers, and words to many hearts today!
1. Luke’s Life and Writings: Luke was a close companion and collaborator of Paul. He was a medical doctor by profession (Colossians 4:14). He was a well-educated, culturally Greek (Hellenized) Jew from Antioch. He became a Christian missionary who joined up with Paul on his second missionary journey (Acts 16:10). Luke stayed in Philippi for a time to evangelize (Acts 16:12) but later sailed with Paul from Philippi to Troas and went with him to Jerusalem (Acts 20:6). Luke sailed with Paul to Rome (Acts 27:1) and stayed with Paul while Paul was imprisoned there (2 Timothy 4:11). Luke wrote his Gospel after those of Matthew and Mark for educated Greco-Romans as well as for Greek-speaking Jews from a variety of theological backgrounds. Luke wrote a second volume, known as the Acts of the Apostles, to complete his Gospel. In the Acts of the Apostles, he shows how the Holy Spirit’s work in the life of Jesus now operates in the living community of Christ’s mystical body, the Church (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, 99). Because the second volume doesn’t include important events such as the martyrdoms of the protagonists of the story, Peter and Paul, and doesn’t mention the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, the Gospel of Luke and Acts were likely written sometime between A.D. 62-67 (see Pitre, The Case for Jesus, 98-100). According to tradition, Luke was martyred and hanged from an olive tree in Thebes at the age of 84.
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