Free Republic

Today is the feast of Saint Luke, a father of the ancient Church renowned as Evangelist, Historian, and Physician. We should be aware of one additional title that is traditionally attributed to this early disciple of Christ: Artist. For the name of Saint Luke is attached to one of the most venerable works of art of the ancient Church—the Hodegetria icon which resided in Constantinople until its destruction in 1453. While the origins of the Hodegetria icon are shrouded in mystery, its connection to St. Luke is based upon traditions stretching back to the early centuries of Constantinople as a...

“Paul, Apostle of Christ” comes from the Affirm label, which has produced such Christian-themed dramas as “Heaven Is for Real.” Less interested in blunt proselytizing than more open-ended explorations of faith and its challenges, Affirm films have gratifyingly avoided the kind of Sunday-school pageantry that characterizes so many movies of the genre. “Paul, Apostle of Christ” is no exception. A portrait of the titular Christian convert and leader of the early church as he faces imprisonment and martyrdom at the hands of Roman oppressors, this absorbing drama benefits from lush production values and first-rate performances from a cast of seasoned...

Tuesday, April 26, 2011 Understanding the Book of Acts: Part 2--Acts of Jesus & Acts of the Apostles In the first post of this series I highlighted the unity of Luke-Acts. I emphasized that the two books seem to show us that the ministry of Jesus is continued through his Church. Now I want to begin to move closely through the narrative, highlighting the way this theological truth is underscored.Indeed, for the reader who knows the Gospel of Luke, Acts is a sort of déjà vu experience. The narrative in Acts virtually replicates what is found in Luke. In sum,...

Monday, April 25, 2011 Understanding the Book of Acts: Part 1--"Why Do You Persecute Me?" As we begin the Easter season, the liturgy--particularly the lectionary readings--turn our attention to the Book of Acts. Here then I thought I'd return to some material I've touched upon here in the past, namely, the link between the Acts of the Apostles and the life of Christ in the Gospel of Luke. Indeed, once you see how the ministry of the Church in Acts is linked to that of Christ's in the Gospels--and the parallels are striking--you can never look at either book the...

Saint Luke, physician who chronicled Christ's life, to be celebrated October 18   Denver, Colo., Oct 17, 2010 / 05:07 am (CNA).- On October 18, Catholics and other Christians around the world will celebrate the feast of St. Luke, the physician and companion of St. Paul whose gospel preserved the most extensive biography of Jesus Christ. St. Luke wrote a greater volume of the New Testament than any other single author, including the earliest history of the Church. Ancient traditions also acknowledge Luke as the founder of Christian iconography, making him a patron of artists as well as doctors and...

Life of St. Luke the Evangelist The awesome figure of St. Luke looms larger and larger out of both the New Testament and the pages of documented human history so that nearly two thousand years after his death his image has no less been diminished by time than that of the Nazarene, Jesus Christ, whom he so nobly served. His fellow apostle St. Paul called him the 'glorious physician,' but that was only one of the many talents which this magnificent man applied in a service to God. He was a man of such monumental proportion as to make him...

October 18, 2006 Feast of Saint Luke, evangelist Psalm: Wednesday 42 Reading 12 Tm 4:10-17b Beloved:Demas, enamored of the present world,deserted me and went to Thessalonica,Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.Luke is the only one with me.Get Mark and bring him with you,for he is helpful to me in the ministry.I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus.When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas,the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm;the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.You too be on guard against him,for he has strongly...

October 18, 2005Feast of Saint Luke, evangelist Psalm: Tuesday 45 Reading I2 Tm 4:10-17b Beloved:Demas, enamored of the present world,deserted me and went to Thessalonica,Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.Luke is the only one with me.Get Mark and bring him with you,for he is helpful to me in the ministry.I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus.When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas,the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm;the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.You too be on guard against him,for he has strongly...

CALGARY, December 14, 2004 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The covering-up of the picture of a saint, depicted inside a chapel at Calgary's notorious Foothills hospital, has brought the ire of local Roman Catholic bishop Fred Henry. The hospital claims the picture of St. Luke, a physician, is offensive to non-Christians, and has had doors placed over it. A note over the doors explains that any representation of the human form in a place of worship is offensive to both Jews and Muslims. Bishop Henry said the move is ridiculous. The Foothills hospital gained notoriety in 1998, after nurses charged that hospital staff...

October 18, 2004 Feast of Saint Luke, evangelist Psalm: Monday 45 Reading I Responsorial Psalm Gospel Reading I2 Tm 4:10-17b Beloved: Demas, enamored of the present world, deserted me and went to Thessalonica, Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. Luke is the only one with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is helpful to me in the ministry. I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus. When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas, the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm; the...

October 18, 2003Feast of Saint Luke, evangelist Psalm: Saturday 44 Reading I Responsorial Psalm Gospel Reading I2 Tm 4:10-17b Beloved:Demas, enamored of the present world,deserted me and went to Thessalonica,Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.Luke is the only one with me.Get Mark and bring him with you,for he is helpful to me in the ministry.I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus.When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas,the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm;the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.You too be on guard...

October 18, 2002Feast of Saint Luke, evangelist Psalm: Friday 44 Reading I Responsorial Psalm Gospel Reading I2 Tm 4:10-17b Beloved:Demas, enamored of the present world,deserted me and went to Thessalonica,Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.Luke is the only one with me.Get Mark and bring him with you,for he is helpful to me in the ministry.I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus.When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas,the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm;the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.You too be on guard...