Patrick Comerford
In the Church Calendar, 18 October is celebrated as the Feast of Saint Luke the Evangelist.
The readings for Saint Luke’s Day in the Revised Common Lectionary, as adapted for use in the Church of Ireland, are:
The Readings: Isaiah 35: 3-6 or Acts 16: 6-12a; Psalm 147: 1-7; II Timothy 4: 5-17; Luke 10: 1-9.
Introducing Saint Luke:
Saint Luke (Hebrew: לוּקָֻא; Greek: Λουκάς) the Evangelist is the author of the Third Gospel and of the Acts of the Apostles.
In depictions of the four evangelists, Saint Luke is traditionally represented in art and architecture as a winged ox. He is an interesting figure, not just as an evangelist, but as a writer who provides fascinating accounts of his travels – in all, he names 32 countries, 54 cities and nine islands – and as a key figure in the tradition of icons and iconography.
Although Saint Luke is not one of the Twelve, he figures throughout the New Testament. Apart from the Gospel he gives his name to and the Acts of the Apostles, he is also mentioned in the Epistle to Philemon (verse 24), Colossians (4: 14) and II Timothy (4: 11), which is part of the Epistle reading in the Lectionary readings for today.
Later traditions claim Saint Luke is one of the Seventy at the heart of the Gospel reading (Luke 10: 1-9), that he is one of the disciples on the road to Emmaus, or even that he is closely related to the Apostle Paul. But Saint Luke, in his own statement at the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles, tells us he was not an eyewitness to the events of the Gospel. On the other hand, he repeatedly uses the word ‘we’ as he describes Saint Paul’s missionary journeys in the Acts of the Apostles, indicating he was personally there so many times.
Yet, both the Gospel according to Saint Luke and the Acts of the Apostles are detailed in history, expression, and narrative that are held in regard by Biblical historians and archaeologists for their accuracy and trustworthiness.
Saint Luke is also known as the ‘glorious physician,’ and – especially in the Eastern Church – as an icon writer.
It is said that Saint Luke was born in Antioch in Syria (now in Turkey) to Greek-speaking parents. As a physician, he was said to have had a skill for healing, but that he left all this behind around the year 50 AD and joined Saint Paul after they met in Antioch.
He may have accompanied Saint Paul on his missionary journeys before staying on in Troas (Troy) after Saint Paul’s departure, although it is also possible that he was with Saint Paul in Rome until Saint Paul was martyred (see II Timothy 4: 11; Acts 28: 16). Tradition says Saint Luke died in Thebes, in central Greece, at the age of 84.
Saint Luke gives us the great poetry of the canticles Magnificat (Luke 1: 46-55), Benedictus (Luke 1: 68-79) and Nunc Dimittis (Luke 2: 29-32). Saint Luke alone gives us the Annunciation, the Visitation, the birth of Saint John the Baptist, and the Presentation of the Christ Child in the Temple. Saint Luke introduces us to Elizabeth and Zechariah, the angels and the shepherds at the first Christmas, Simeon and Anna, the Christ Child lost in the Temple, the Good Samaritan, the unjust steward, the Prodigal Son, the healed Samaritan, Zacchaeus the tax-collector in Jericho, and the Disciples on the Road to Emmaus.
Saint Luke devotes significantly more attention to women. He presents Christ as the constant friend of the poor, the down-trodden, the marginalised, the side-lined, healing the sick, comforting even the despairing thief on the cross beside him.
Saint Luke as the Gospel writer and Saint Luke as the Iconographer presents the world with meaningful and accessible accounts and images of who Christ is. Without Saint Luke, how would we know about the earliest missionary endeavours of Saint Paul and the Apostolic Church?
Saint Luke remains an attractive and interesting Biblical figure … as an evangelist, as someone who presents Christ in ways that can be understood in the language of the people, whether word or image, as someone who gives healing a proper place in ministry, as a friend of the poor and the sick, the marginalised and the stereotyped, as someone who, in all his travels and travails, remains faithful unto death to the ministry he is called to and is charged with.
Luke 10: 1-9 (NRSVA):
10 After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. 2 He said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest. 3 Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves. 4 Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road. 5 Whatever house you enter, first say, “Peace to this house!” 6 And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you. 7 Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the labourer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house. 8 Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; 9 cure the sick who are there, and say to them, “The kingdom of God has come near to you”.’
Liturgical resources:
Liturgical Colour: Red
Penitential Kyries:
Lord, you are gracious and compassionate.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
You are loving to all,
and your mercy is over all your creation.
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Your faithful servants bless your name,
and speak of the glory of your kingdom.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
The Collect of the Day:
Almighty God,
you called Luke the physician,
whose praise is in the gospel,
to be an evangelist and physician of the soul:
By the grace of the Spirit
and through the wholesome medicine of the gospel,
give your Church the same love and power to heal;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Introduction to the Peace:
We are fellow citizens with the saints
and the household of God,
through Christ our Lord,
who came and preached peace to those who were far off
and those who were near (Ephesians 2: 19, 17).
The Preface:
In the saints
you have given us an example of godly living,
that rejoicing in their fellowship,
we may run with perseverance the race that is set before us,
and with them receive the unfading crown of glory …
Post-Communion Prayer:
Living God,
may we who have shared these holy mysteries
enjoy health of body and mind
and witness faithfully to your gospel,
in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Blessing:
God give you grace
to share the inheritance of Saint Luke and all his saints in glory …
Suggested Hymns (Saint Luke):
Isaiah 35: 3-6:
231, My song is love unknown (verses 1, 2, 4, 7)
104, O for a thousand tongues to sing
113, There is singing in the desert, there is laughter in the skies
Acts 16: 6-12a:
324, God, whose almighty word
Psalm 147: 1-7:
104, O for a tousand tongues to sing
II Timothy 4: 5-17:
566, Fight the good fight with all thy might
459, For all the saints, who from their labour rest
478, Go forth and tell! O Church of God, awake!
277, Love’s redeeming work is done
281, Rejoice, the Lord is King!
487, Soldiers of Christ, arise
492, Ye servants of God, your master proclaim
Luke 10: 1-9:
37, Come, ye thankful people, come
39, For the fruits of his creation
454, Forth in the peace of Christ we go
478, Go forth and tell! O Church of God, awake!
455, Go forth for God; go forth to the world in peace
456, Lord, you give the great commission
305, O Breath of life, come sweeping through us
505, Peace be to this congregation
492, Ye servants of God, your master proclaim
Also suitable:
461, For all thy saints, O Lord
550, ‘Forgive our sins as we forgive’
460, For all your saints in glory, for all your saints at rest (verses 1, 2q, 3)
471, Rejoice in God’s saints, today and all days!
712, Tell out, my soul, the greatness of the Lord
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org
The hymns suggestions are provided in Sing to the Word (2000), edited by Bishop Edward Darling. The hymn numbers refer to the Church of Ireland’s Church Hymnal (5th edition, Oxford: OUP, 2000)
Material from the Book of Common Prayer is copyright © 2004, Representative Body of the Church of Ireland.
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