Job Description

Homily for the Feast of St. Luke the Evangelist

As consecrated religious, most of us, though not all, have never needed to look for a job. I cannot remember myself ever looking in the “want ads” or in the “positions available” section of the newspaper. Since entering the Franciscan order, I have always had a job.

One step in the process of looking for a job is to look at the job description and determine if one has the skills necessary to accept the job. Imagine, therefore, running across this ad in the newspaper: “You will have a ton of work to do, but not many of you to do it. It is dangerous work: you will be threatened, and possibly killed. You cannot take money, extra clothes or provisions, or even shoes to the jobsite. Don’t talk to anyone on the way to work, but when you arrive extend peace to all. Eat whatever they give you (even if you don’t like it). Finally, if you run into anyone who is sick, cure them. Then give them a special message.”

On its face value, that doesn’t sound like a job for which many people would apply. Yet, if we are honest, all of us who have been baptized into the life of Christ are already on that payroll. Granted, the wording of this description is exaggerated a bit for effect, especially for us in the modern world. However, it is not entirely wrong.

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Evangelist St. Luke. I am sure that the reading from St. Paul’s Second Letter to St. Timothy was chosen simply because it mentions Luke. In it we hear of all the difficulties that St. Paul endured as he went about preaching the Gospel to the Gentiles. St. Luke’s was one of his associates.

According to the earliest traditions, St. Luke was himself a Gentile who had been baptized after hearing St. Paul preach. He is mentioned in three of St. Paul’s epistles; and in the Acts of the Apostles (which he wrote), he uses the personal plural “we” when describing the missionary activity of St. Paul, which seems to indicate that he was a companion of St. Paul. He died at the age of eighty-four in Greece according to the earliest traditions of the church.

Though his Gospel follows the general outline of the other two synoptic Gospels, much of the material which he includes is peculiar to him, especially the stories and parables that accentuate God’s mercy and forgiveness such as the story of the prodigal son. In addition, his Gospel includes great details about the infancy of Jesus as well as his encounter with the apostles after his resurrection.

As we celebrate this great evangelist, let us give thanks to God for the vocation of this man who stands as a witness to the resurrection and to the wonderful mercy of God.