SAINT LUKE THE EVANGELIST

 A REFLECTION FOR THE FEAST OF ST. LUKE

Today’s saint, Luke, is one of the four evangelists, and is especially well-known for his descriptions of the events surrounding the Annunciation, Visitation, and Nativity of our Lord.  From his detailed knowledge of these early events in the lives of the Blessed Mother and the Christ Child, it is believed that he was well acquainted with the Blessed Virgin Mary, who alone was privy to the specifics of what actually happened.

 

St. Luke was born in Antioch, and was by profession a physician, as St. Paul testified in his epistles.  For this reason he is venerated as the patron saint of doctors and surgeons.  After his conversion, he became a disciple of St. Paul, following him in his travels all the way to Rome.  He wrote down the events of St. Paul’s apostolate, as well as earlier events starting with the Ascension and Pentecost.  These writings are included in Holy Scripture and are known as the Acts of the Apostles.  Together with his Gospel, this second book makes St. Luke the author of more than a quarter of the New Testament.

 

St. Luke’s Gospel begins with the description of St. John Baptist’s father, the priest Zacharias, entering the temple to burn incense at the daily sacrifice.  In those days, oxen, sheep and other animals were offered in sacrifice for the expiation of sin, an offering that obviously foreshadows the ultimate sacrifice of the Son of God.  Because his Gospel begins with animal sacrifice, the symbol for St. Luke is an ox, and perhaps for that reason, he is also the patron saint of butchers.

 

Another thing St. Luke is renowned for is as an artist.  Supposedly, during his close acquaintance with the Blessed Mother of God, he painted an image of her.  This original icon has long been lost, but others, allegedly also painted by St. Luke still survive to this day, including the famous icon of the Black Madonna of Czestochowa.  His contribution to iconography has earned him the title of patron saint of artists.

 

After his death, St. Luke’s body was eventually transferred to the Abbey of Santa Giustina in Padua, while his head is venerated in the Cathedral of St. Vitus in Prague.  In the 1990s extensive scientific analysis was performed on the relics, including carbon-14 dating, and it was established that they were the remains of an individual of Syrian descent who died between AD 72 and 416.  St. Luke was martyred at the age of 84 by being hanged from a olive tree.  In addition to his titles mentioned above, he is also the patron saint of farmers, bachelors, and students.