18 October 2012 St Luke, Evangelist A physician from Antioch, convert to the Christian faith. St Paul’s disciple and faithful companion in all his journeys, he wrote the third Gospel and the “Acts of the Apostles”. He wrote about the childhood of Jesus; and the parables of the lost sheep and the prodigal son. (Fr James Socias, ‘et al’ [Eds], “Daily Roman Missal”, 1989, p1670) St Luke the Evangelist At the shrine of St Luke, on the ‘Colle della Guardia’, beneath the ancient image of Mary Most Holy, which a pious and meaningful tradition attributes to him, I would put a query to you ... How have you responded to this call from Jesus, who wishes to make you collaborators, more intimate successors to his salvific mision? How do you respond today? Be generous with Jesus! Look to her, to Mary, as St Luke presents her in his account of the mystery of the Annunciation. We might say, he paints her in his Gospel, with extraordinary effectiveness and intense delicacy. God chose her for the singular, unique vocation of being Mother of the Messiah, Son of the Most High. After the initial upset troublng her before the exceptional privilege, she replied: “I am the servant of the Lord, let it be done to me as you say.” (Lk 1:38) Imitate Our Lady’s absolute readiness in the face of God’s project. You, too say to the call of Jesus: “Here I am, let what you have said occur in me.” Ref: Cf “Prayers and Devotions from Pope John Paul II”, 1984, p363 The painter of the Virgin We find fundamental teachings of the Lord in St Luke’s Gospel. He succintly points out the importance of humility, sincerity, poverty, acceptance of daily Cross and the need for thanksgiving. Our love for God moves us to give thanks to Luke for the exquisite delicacy of his soul which is shown in his refined work. From the days of antiquity, Christians have called him “the painter of the Virgin”. (Eusebius, “Ecclesiastical History”, 11:43) Some sketches and paintings of our Blessed Lady are attributed to him [including that of Our Mother of Perpetual Help]. The Gospel of St Luke is a fundamental source of knowledge for devotion to our Lady, and has inspired Christian art for centuries. No person in the history of the Gospel except for Jesus is described with as much affection as our Mother Mary. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, St Luke writes about the gifts bestowed on the Blessed Virgin. She is “full of grace” and the Lord is with her. As Mother of Jesus, she conceives by the power of the Holy Spirit without losing her virginity; and is intimately united to the redemptive mystery of the Cross. All generations shall call her blessed, since the Almighty has done great things for her. Rightly does a local woman full of fervent enthusiasm praise the Mother of Jesus. (cf “The Navarre Bible”, Pamplona, 1983, pp706-7) Our Lady’s faithful correspondence to her vocation is constantly obvious. She humbly receives the Archangel’s announcement about her dignity as the Mother of God by wholeheartedly accepting the divine plan. She immediately helps others. Twice (at the Presentation and finding Jesus in the temple) Luke wrote that “she pondered all these things in her heart” (Lk 2:19, 51). Mary would have shared with St Luke her most intimate memories of life with our Lord. Thanks to Luke’s close correspondence with the grace of the Holy Spirit, we can read an account of Jesus’ infancy and the superb parables he alone recounts. We recall the parable of the prodigal son, the one of the good Samaritan, the other about the negligent administrator, and of course the episode of poor Lazarus and the rich man. Also unique to his Gospel is the wonderful account of the two travellers to Emmaus. St Luke alone describes the divine mercy shown to those most in need. He stresses Christ’s love for sinners to show that Jesus came to “save those who were lost” (Lk 19:10). He also relates the Lord’s forgiving the woman accused of adultery (Lk 7:36-50), his stay in the home of Zaccheus of ill repute (Lk 19:1-10), and the gaze of Jesus that transforms Peter after his denials (Lk 22:61). He tells us about Christ’s promise of salvation to the repentant thief (Lk 23:42); and of our Saviour’s prayer for those who crucify and insult him on Calvary (Lk 23:34). The role of women in society, seldom considered in the first century of Christianity, plays an important part in St Luke’s Gospel. Jesus makes a concerted effort to restore to them their dignity. St Luke alone describes such figures including the widow of Naim (Lk 7:11-7), the woman who bathed Christ’s feet as a sign of her fervent repentance (Lk 7:36-50), and the Galileans who put their goods at Jesus’ disposal to follow and serve him (Lk 8:1-3). Then there are his friends, the two sisters from Bethany (Lk 10:38-42), the stooped woman whom he cured (Lk 13:10-17), and the group of weeping women from Jerusalem who show Christ their compassion while he carries the Cross (Lk 23:27-32). We honor the legacy of St Luke by contemplating the noble and uplifting description he gives us of the Saviour. Let us ask him for the joy and apostolic fervour of our first brothers in the faith as we read and meditate on the “Acts of the Apostles”, the renowned “Gospel of the Holy Spirit”. Ref: Cf F Fernandez, “In Conversation with God”, 7:222-6 Meditations on the Litany of Loreto ‘Tower of David’ -- Mary is called in the sacred “Canticles” (4:1) the Tower of David: “Thy neck is as the tower of David; a thousand bucklers hang upon it; all the armor of valiant men.” St Bernardine says that the tower of David stood on high, ie, on Sion. Therefore, Mary is called such to denote the height of her perfection. My Queen and Mother, I rejoice in your greatness, and am willing to sacrifice my life rather than your glory should be diminished in the least degree if that were possible. O that I could only by shedding every drop of my blood cause all nations of the earth to adore and love you as the great Lady which you are! Ref: “The Glories of Mary.” In “Documentation Service”, V:324 • Dedication of Our Lady of Rheims, built by St Nicasius, archbishop of that city, in the year 405. This church having fallen to ruins, was rebuilt by Ebo and Hincmar. It was finished in the year 845. — Flodoardus, lib. i., c. 6. (“Catholic Gems or Treasures of the Church” Historical Calendar; www.bethlehemobserver.com) • Dedication of the Church of Our Lady of Rheims (405), built by St Nicasius. (www/divinewill.org/feastsofourlady.html); (www.iskandar.com/ourlady/ourladyfeasts.html); (www.miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/calendar/index.html); (maryfest.htm / www.starharbor.com/santiago/m_feasts.html); (http://www/mariedenazareth.com) • “Notre Dame de Rheims”. Built by St Nicasius. 405. (www.marylinks.org/Mary-Calendar.htm)