Breaking the Word

St. Luke, Evangelist, Wednesday – 18^th October 2023 – 2 Timothy 4,10-17;  Lk 10,1-9

Compassionate Sojourner

Today we reflect on the life and ministry of Luke, the Evangelist. We can gather a lot of information about him from his two-major works and in the letters of Paul. Luke is revealed as very accurate observer, skillfully linking the sacred events with secular history. Luke is named three times and only in the letters of Paul. In the letter to Philemon (1,24) Paul refers to Luke as “my co-worker”; in Colossians (4,14) as “the beloved physician” and in today’s first reading from 2 Timothy (4,11) as “only Luke is with me”. For Paul, Luke has been a close companion in some of his missionary journeys and on his final journey to Rome. This is based on Luke’s own writing in the Acts of the Apostles, where there are a number of “we” passages suggesting that the writer was a companion of Paul (Acts 16,10-17; 20,5-15; 27,1-28,16). In Paul’s imprisonment in Rome Luke alone was with him.  In a way, Luke is obviously seen as a trusted friend who brings comfort and compassion to Paul. No wonder Luke greatly emphasized Jesus’ compassionate nature. His Gospel contains some of the most touching parables and events that are unique to his writings: the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son; the words of Jesus during his Passion to the women of Jerusalem; the so-called “good thief”.  Women figure more prominently in his Gospel and there is an openness to the Gentiles.

27^th Week in Ord. Time, Saturday – 14^th October 2023 — Lk 11,27-28

Sole Path to Divine Relationship

Jesus began his first homily, in the Sermon on the Mount with the emphasis on being “Blessed”. It is the biblical word for vibrant and lasting happiness. To be blessed is to live in the light of God’s love and from the power of God’s wisdom. In today’s gospel, Jesus’ words and presence moved the woman in the crowd so deeply that she couldn’t hold back her joy and amazement and exclaimed “the blessedness of his mother’. By proclaiming his mother blessed, she was proclaiming him to be magnificent. However, Jesus wanted to bring this woman along the path of enlightenment and so invited her to follow him in the broader perspective of the kingdom. Jesus points out the sole path to that dynamic and fulfilling communion, beyond the relationship of the mother and son. To hear God’s word and heed it; to discover God’s will and embrace it; to begin to see oneself, others, and the world as God does and to act in accordance with that spiritual insight. In this way, we grow in intimacy with Christ and increase our experience of everything that gives true and lasting meaning to our lives here on earth.