St. Luke, evangelist and apostle, responsible for the Gospel and for Acts of Apostles.

A native of Antioch in Syria and a physician, and one of the early converts from paganism. He accompanied St. Paul on a considerable part of his missionary journey. He was also his companion while in prison at Rome. He was in the thick of it. He saw the growth of the Church. He saw the drama. But he remained faithful because he had converted to Christ. It had deep roots in his soul.

Luke's Gospel is, above all, the Gospel of the Merciful Heart of Jesus. It emphasizes the fact that Christ is the salvation of all men, especially of the repentant sinner and of the lowly. He also preserved some of the most touching of our Lord's parables, for example those of the lost sheep and the prodigal son. We thank him for having left such a beautiful witness of the life of Jesus. He wrote it down, with exquisite detail, especially about the infancy, also the prodigal son account.

Luke felt that one of the most powerful events in the Bible is a response to God’s call.  What does man say? Simple: Here I am, Lord. Mary said: ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word. This is a word he expects to hear from all.

Thumbnail: Detail of St. Luke Drawing the Virgin by Rogier van der Weyden, 15th century; in the Hermitage, St. Petersburg, Russia.

Music: Recordações do passado (Souvenirs from the Past) a Valsa for piano (1885) by Ernesto Nazareth arranged by Bert Alink.