Feast of Saint Luke, Evangelist – Lectionary: 661

Sent Two by Two, Held Near by the Lord

Breathe in the quiet courage of a God who sends and a God who stays. Today’s feast of Saint Luke the Evangelist gathers 2 Timothy 4:10-17, Psalm 145:10-13, 17-18, and Luke 10:1-9 into a single heartbeat of mission lived in faithful companionship and sustained by the nearness of the King. Paul’s testimony is unsentimental about the cost of witness, yet radiant with confidence: “Luke is the only one with me” and “The Lord stood by me and gave me strength” (2 Tim 4:11, 17). The psalm places this personal experience inside a cosmic frame, insisting that the Church’s work unfolds under the sovereignty of God’s reign: “Your reign is a reign for all ages… The Lord is near to all who call upon him” (Ps 145:13, 18). This is precisely the horizon Jesus gives the seventy-two in The Gospel according to Luke: they go two by two, unburdened, offering healing and peace, and declaring, “The kingdom of God is at hand for you.” (Luke 10:9).

Historically and culturally, these texts emerge from the earliest missionary networks that moved along Roman roads and into household spaces where table fellowship signaled communion across ethnic and social lines. Luke, “the beloved physician” and companion of Paul, preserves in Acts of the Apostles the Church’s outward thrust to the Gentiles, a movement already implied when Paul says his defense served “so that… all the Gentiles might hear it.” (2 Tim 4:17; see also Acts). Religious tradition recognizes Luke’s distinct lens of mercy, healing, and the Holy Spirit’s guidance, which harmonizes with today’s Gospel instructions to travel light, to stay put in hospitality, to cure the sick, and to speak peace (Luke 10:1-9). The Church names this identity clearly. She exists for mission and shares Christ’s own sending, a truth summarized in the Catechism’s teaching on the missionary mandate (CCC 849; CCC 851). Taken together, the feast and the readings invite us to rediscover evangelization as communion on the move: Christ sends us together, and Christ Himself walks beside us. Where is the Lord inviting you to trust His nearness and step out with a companion for the sake of His Kingdom today?

First Reading – 2 Timothy 4:10-17

Steadfast Companionship in a Costly Mission

In 2 Timothy 4:10-17, we listen to the voice of an apostle at the end of his earthly race, likely imprisoned in Rome and facing trial in a world uneasy with the Gospel’s claims. Paul names friends and deserters, opponents and helpers, parchment and cloak, courtroom and lion’s mouth. This is the concrete landscape of early Christian mission moving along Roman roads, rooted in house churches, and sustained by bonds of communion. On the feast of Saint Luke the Evangelist, the text glows with special warmth when Paul says, “Luke is the only one with me.” (2 Tim 4:11) Luke, the physician and evangelist, personifies faithful companionship, mercy, and the healing mission that his Gospel and Acts of the Apostles proclaim. The passage embodies today’s theme: Christ sends His witnesses together and stands near when trials thin the crowd. The psalm sings that God’s reign is near and trustworthy, which anchors Paul’s courage, while The Gospel according to Luke shows the Church sent two by two to announce that the Kingdom is at hand. Here, the missionary heart of the Church beats in friendship, endurance, and confidence that the Lord never abandons His laborers.

2 Timothy 4:10-17
New American Bible (Revised Edition)

¹⁰ for Demas, enamored of the present world, deserted me and went to Thessalonica, Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. ¹¹ Luke is the only one with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is helpful to me in the ministry. ¹² I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus. ¹³ When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas, the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments.

¹⁴ Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. ¹⁵ You too be on guard against him, for he has strongly resisted our preaching.

¹⁶ At my first defense no one appeared on my behalf, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them! ¹⁷ But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the proclamation might be completed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was rescued from the lion’s mouth.

Detailed Exegesis

Verse 10 – “for Demas, enamored of the present world, deserted me and went to Thessalonica, Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia.”
Paul contrasts fidelity with defection. Demas’s love for “the present world” signals a divided heart. In the light of 2 Tim as a whole, this warns disciples about the subtle drift from zeal to comfort. Mission exposes attachments that can lure us away from perseverance. The geographical notes remind us that the apostolic network is real and scattered. Even in loss, the Gospel keeps moving.

Verse 11 – “Luke is the only one with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is helpful to me in the ministry.”
Luke’s steadfast presence embodies the theme of faithful companionship. Mark’s restoration to usefulness echoes reconciliation and growth after earlier tensions noted elsewhere. Ministry requires both loyal presence and second chances. On Luke’s feast, we see the physician of souls standing beside a suffering apostle, a living icon of the healing communion he proclaims in Luke–Acts.

Verse 12 – “I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus.”
Tychicus appears as a trusted emissary. Apostolic authority delegates and sends. The Church’s mission is not solitary but orchestrated, with couriers carrying letters, news, and encouragement. Even imprisonment cannot cage the Gospel when communion is alive.

Verse 13 – “When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas, the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments.”
The cloak reveals Paul’s human frailty and the material needs of mission. The “rolls” and “parchments” hint at Scripture, notes, or correspondence. The Word is treasured, studied, and transported. In Luke’s company, this verse whispers the Church’s scholarly and pastoral labor that preserves the saving message.

Verse 14 – “Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds.”
Naming Alexander acknowledges real opposition. Paul entrusts judgment to the Lord rather than retaliating. This models evangelical sobriety: name the harm, warn the flock, and surrender vengeance to divine justice.

Verse 15 – “You too be on guard against him, for he has strongly resisted our preaching.”
Pastoral charity includes prudent warning. Resistance to the Gospel is not merely intellectual. It can be active and harmful. Shepherds must protect the mission and the faithful while keeping hearts free from bitterness.

Verse 16 – “At my first defense no one appeared on my behalf, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them!”
Paul recounts a lonely moment in court, probably a preliminary hearing. Yet he echoes his Master’s mercy with a prayer of forgiveness. Failure of human support becomes an altar where charity is offered for those who faltered.

Verse 17 – “But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the proclamation might be completed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was rescued from the lion’s mouth.”
Here is the center of hope. Human allies may thin, but the risen Lord remains. Strength is given for proclamation, not merely for survival. The Gentile horizon fulfills the universal scope Luke highlights in Acts. “Lion’s mouth” evokes mortal peril, yet the emphasis is on God’s deliverance for the sake of the Word’s advance.

Teachings

The Church’s missionary identity shines through Paul’s testimony and Luke’s companionship. The Catechism summarizes this mandate with clarity: “Having been divinely sent to the nations that she might be the universal sacrament of salvation, the Church, in obedience to the command of her founder and because it is demanded by her own essential universality, strives to preach the Gospel to all men.” (CCC 849). The inner strength that sustains witnesses is the virtue of fortitude, described by the Catechism as follows: “Fortitude is the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good. It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome obstacles in the moral life. The virtue of fortitude enables one to conquer fear, even fear of death, and to face trials and persecutions.” (CCC 1808). The Church also insists on the faithful’s duty to witness: “The duty of Christians to take part in the life of the Church impels them to act as witnesses of the Gospel and of the obligations that flow from it.” (CCC 2472).

Saints echo these truths with prophetic brevity. Saint Jerome reminds us of the wellspring of Paul’s endurance and Luke’s Gospel: “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” Saint Ignatius of Antioch, writing in the face of martyrdom, articulates the radical offering at the heart of mission: “I am God’s wheat, and I shall be ground by the teeth of the beasts, that I may become the pure bread of Christ.” These voices illuminate 2 Tim 4:10-17: the Word forms courageous witnesses, and charity makes even suffering a participation in Christ’s saving work.

Reflection

Companionship in Christ is not sentimental. It is concrete, persevering, and focused on the Gospel’s advance. Seek one faithful friend in Christ with whom you can pray, study the Word, and serve. Name before God any discouragement or loneliness you carry in mission. Offer forgiveness where others have failed you, and entrust justice to the Lord. Guard the flock entrusted to you by speaking the truth with prudence and by refusing the path of retaliation. Treasure the Word tangibly by investing time daily in reading and study, and ask for the virtue of fortitude so that your strength serves proclamation rather than self preservation. Where is Jesus inviting you to stand firm because He stands beside you today? Who is the “Luke” you are called to be for someone else, and who is the “Paul” you are called to support with loyal presence and prayer?

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 145:10-13, 17-18

Singing the Nearness of the King

Psalm 145 is a Davidic hymn of praise that the Jewish tradition treasures in daily prayer, celebrating the Lord’s kingship as universal, merciful, and near. Its acrostic form mirrors an ordered heart that blesses God from A to Z, teaching Israel to name the King’s mighty deeds in every generation. On the feast of Saint Luke the Evangelist, these verses frame the Church’s mission with the certainty of God’s reign and presence. Paul’s witness in 2 Timothy 4:10-17 draws strength from this truth, and Jesus sends the seventy-two in Luke 10:1-9 to embody it through peace, healing, and proclamation. The psalm gives language to the missionary heartbeat: give thanks, tell His works, trust His justice, and call upon Him in truth because the Lord is near.

Psalm 145:10-13, 17-18
New American Bible (Revised Edition)

¹⁰ All your works give you thanks, Lord
    and your faithful bless you.
¹¹ They speak of the glory of your reign
    and tell of your mighty works,
¹² Making known to the sons of men your mighty acts,
    the majestic glory of your rule.
¹³ Your reign is a reign for all ages,
    your dominion for all generations.
The Lord is trustworthy in all his words,
    and loving in all his works.

¹⁷ The Lord is just in all his ways,
    merciful in all his works.
¹⁸ The Lord is near to all who call upon him,
    to all who call upon him in truth.

Detailed Exegesis

Verse 10 – “All your works give you thanks, Lord and your faithful bless you.”
Creation itself becomes a liturgy of gratitude. The “works” of the Lord include both the cosmos and His deeds in history. The “faithful” respond freely with blessing, which is the human echo of God’s generosity. Mission begins in worship, because praise clears the heart of self focus and makes room for God’s initiative.

Verse 11 – “They speak of the glory of your reign and tell of your mighty works,”
Testimony is communal and verbal. The faithful “speak” and “tell,” which anticipates apostolic preaching. God’s “reign” is not a private sentiment. It is a public reality that must be named. Luke’s emphasis on proclaiming the Kingdom resonates here as the Church makes known what God has done and is doing.

Verse 12 – “Making known to the sons of men your mighty acts, the majestic glory of your rule.”
Evangelization discloses God’s deeds to every people. “Sons of men” widens the horizon to the nations, harmonizing with Paul’s insistence that the word be heard by all Gentiles in 2 Timothy 4:17. The “majestic glory” of God’s rule reveals a kingship defined by mercy and fidelity rather than domination.

Verse 13 – “Your reign is a reign for all ages, your dominion for all generations. The Lord is trustworthy in all his words, and loving in all his works.”
God’s kingship is eternal and stable. This anchors fragile missionaries who face change, opposition, and fatigue. The coupling of “trustworthy” words and “loving” works shows that divine promises and deeds are inseparable. When the disciples announce, “The Kingdom of God is at hand,” they are standing on promises that God keeps.

Verse 17 – “The Lord is just in all his ways, merciful in all his works.”
Justice and mercy are not rivals in God. They are one radiant reality in Him. This balances Paul’s sober warning about Alexander with his refusal to seek revenge. The Church proclaims a King who rights wrongs and heals wounds.

Verse 18 – “The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth.”
Nearness is the heartbeat of covenant. God’s transcendence does not push Him far away. He draws close to those who pray sincerely. This verse illuminates the seventy two who travel light because the King walks with them. Authentic mission flows from honest prayer before a near God.

Teachings

The psalm’s praise of God’s universal kingship situates the Church’s mission within God’s loving purpose. The Catechism opens with this horizon: “God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life.” (CCC 1). The nearness celebrated in Psalm 145:18 blossoms in prayer, which the Catechism defines with luminous simplicity: “Prayer is the raising of one’s mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things from God.” (CCC 2559). The fitting response to the King is adoration, which the Catechism describes as the creature’s first attitude before the Creator: “Adoration is the first attitude of man acknowledging that he is a creature before his Creator. It exalts the greatness of the Lord who made us and the almighty power of the Savior who sets us free from evil.” (CCC 2628). Saint Augustine gives voice to the soul drawn to this nearness and reign with a line that has formed centuries of believers: “You have made us for yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.” (Confessions I.1). These teachings gather the psalm’s claims into a single reality. God reigns in love, draws near in prayer, and is adored by a people who find true rest only in Him.

Reflection

Let praise be the first work of your mission today. Begin and end your day by blessing God for His faithful words and loving works. Speak openly of His reign where you live and work. Ask the Lord to purify your speech so that your words make His mighty acts known. When you meet resistance, remember that His justice and mercy hold the story together, and surrender your desire to retaliate. Pray with Psalm 145:18 until it becomes your reflex in trial and in joy. Where do you need to trust that the Lord is near as you call upon Him in truth? Whom can you bless today by telling them, with humility and clarity, what the King has done for you?

Holy Gospel – Luke 10:1-9

Companions of Peace in a Kingdom at Hand

In Luke 10:1-9, Jesus inaugurates a missionary pattern that fits perfectly with today’s theme and the feast of Saint Luke the Evangelist. The Lord appoints and sends disciples ahead of Him in pairs, a practice rooted in Jewish legal custom for trustworthy witness and in early Christian pastoral wisdom for mutual support and charity. The journey style is deliberately simple. The disciples carry little and depend on hospitality, which was a respected social duty in the ancient Mediterranean world. Their message and deeds are of a piece. They speak peace, share table fellowship, heal the sick, and announce that God’s reign is near. Luke, the beloved physician, will later narrate in Acts of the Apostles how this pattern carries the Gospel to the nations. On his feast, we hear the Evangelist’s distinctive emphasis on mercy, the Holy Spirit, and the inclusion of the Gentiles resonating through every line of this commission.

Luke 10:1-9
New American Bible (Revised Edition)

The Mission of the Seventy-two. ¹ After this the Lord appointed seventy[-two] others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. ² He said to them, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest. ³ Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves. ⁴ Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way. ⁵ Into whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this household.’ ⁶ If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. ⁷ Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you, for the laborer deserves his payment. Do not move about from one house to another. ⁸ Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you, ⁹ cure the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God is at hand for you.’

Detailed Exegesis

Verse 1 – “After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit.”
Jesus multiplies His presence by sending representatives who go before Him. The number signals a universal horizon that looks beyond Israel to all the nations. The “pairs” embody charitable witness and mutual accountability, which the Fathers often connect to the twofold commandment of love.

Verse 2 – “He said to them, ‘The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.’”
Mission begins on our knees. The need is immense and the workers are few, so Jesus orders prayer before strategy. The “master of the harvest” is God, who alone raises up laborers for His work. Prayer aligns the disciples with God’s initiative.

Verse 3 – “Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.”
The posture of mission is meekness with courage. Disciples go as lambs, not predators, and they rely on the Shepherd’s protection. The image anticipates resistance and calls for fortitude rooted in the Lord’s nearness.

Verse 4 – “Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way.”
Detachment keeps mission from being stalled by logistics or prestige. Travel light, move with urgency, and avoid the kind of elaborate greetings that could delay the task. Dependency on God and on the hospitality of others is itself a sign of the Kingdom.

Verse 5 – “Into whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this household.’”
The mission begins with a blessing. “Peace” names the wholeness of life under God’s reign. The greeting is not superficial courtesy. It is a performative word that offers covenant communion to a household.

Verse 6 – “If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you.”
The gift of peace seeks a home in receptive hearts. Where there is openness, the blessing abides. Where there is refusal, the disciple does not lose the gift. The mission advances without resentment.

Verse 7 – “Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you, for the laborer deserves his payment. Do not move about from one house to another.”
Stability protects both the poor and the witness from favoritism. Ministers accept support without seeking upgrades. The principle that the laborer deserves support affirms just provision for those who serve the Gospel.

Verse 8 – “Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you,”
Grateful acceptance of what is offered creates communion across cultural lines. Table fellowship enacts the inclusivity of the Kingdom and avoids needless offense that would obscure the message.

Verse 9 – “cure the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God is at hand for you.’”
Word and deed meet. Healing is a sign that God’s reign is breaking in, and proclamation interprets the sign. The phrase “for you” makes the Kingdom personal and near.

Teachings

The Church reads this Gospel as a living portrait of her identity. The Catechism states the missionary mandate with clarity: “Having been divinely sent to the nations that she might be the universal sacrament of salvation, the Church, in obedience to the command of her founder and because it is demanded by her own essential universality, strives to preach the Gospel to all men.” (CCC 849). The motive and protagonist of mission are likewise confessed: “The love of God for all men is the motive of mission… The Holy Spirit is the protagonist, ‘the principal agent of the whole of the Church’s mission.’” (CCC 851). The Lord’s call to evangelical poverty and detachment guides the missionary style we see in Luke 10:4: “Jesus enjoins his disciples to prefer him to everything and everyone, and bids them ‘renounce all that they have’ for his sake and that of the Gospel.” (CCC 2544). The greeting of peace names the goal toward which this mission tends. The Catechism teaches, “Peace is not merely the absence of war… Peace is the tranquility of order. Peace is the work of justice and the effect of charity.” (CCC 2304). Finally, the command to heal belongs to the Church’s permanent charge: “‘Heal the sick.’ The Church has received this charge from the Lord and strives to carry it out by taking care of the sick as well as by accompanying them with her prayer of intercession. She believes in the life-giving presence of Christ, the physician of souls and bodies.” (CCC 1509). Saint Gregory the Great reflects on the Lord’s choice to send disciples in pairs with a luminous insight: “He sent the disciples to preach two by two because there are two commandments of charity, love of God and love of neighbor, and the preaching of one who does not have charity cannot be effective.” (Homilies on the Gospels 17). These teachings anchor the passage in the Church’s faith. The Kingdom is near, the Spirit sends, peace is offered, the poor are honored, and the sick are tended in Christ’s name.

Reflection

Let your discipleship be simple, courageous, and peaceful. Begin each day by asking the Lord of the harvest to send laborers and to make you one of them. Choose one act of detachment today that frees you to love more and to serve more. Offer the peace of Christ to the first household you enter, beginning with your own family, and let your words be matched by concrete works of mercy. Receive hospitality humbly and give it generously. Pray for the sick by name and, where possible, accompany them with practical help. Keep your eyes on the nearness of the Kingdom and let that hope shape your conversations. What is one way you can travel lighter for the sake of the Gospel this week? Whose home or heart can you bless today with the word of peace and the work of mercy?

Sent Together, Kept Near

Today’s Word draws a single line through every reading and the feast of Saint Luke the Evangelist. In 2 Timothy 4:10-17, Paul stands almost alone before human courts yet confesses with quiet joy that “the Lord stood by me and gave me strength.” The psalm answers with steady praise, proclaiming that God’s kingship spans every generation and that “The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth.” (Ps 145:18). In Luke 10:1-9, Jesus sends disciples two by two with peace on their lips, healing in their hands, and the living announcement that “The kingdom of God is at hand for you.” Together these texts reveal a mission that is communal, simple, courageous, and saturated with the nearness of God. Saint Luke, the beloved physician, embodies this pattern of faithful companionship and merciful witness that carries the Gospel to the nations.

Let this be our path. Pray to the Master of the harvest each morning and ask to be sent. Travel lighter so that love can move faster. Speak peace as your first word and match it with concrete mercy, especially for the sick and the lonely. Seek a companion in Christ and become one for someone else. Root your courage in the King whose reign does not fail and whose presence does not leave. Where is Jesus inviting you to take one step of trust today? Whom will you bless with a word of peace and an act of healing love? How will you let the Lord’s nearness become the courage of your witness this week?

Engage with Us!

Share your reflections in the comments below so we can pray, learn, and grow together as a community of disciples.

1. First Reading (2 Timothy 4:10-17): Where have you experienced loneliness or opposition in your witness, and how did you discover that the Lord stood by you? Who is the “Luke” you can thank today, and how can you become that faithful companion for someone else?
2. Responsorial Psalm (Psalm 145:10-13, 17-18): What mighty work of God will you speak about this week with someone who needs hope? Where do you need to call upon the Lord in truth and trust His nearness?
3. Holy Gospel (Luke 10:1-9): What one concrete way can you travel lighter so you can love better and serve faster? Whose household can you bless with Christ’s peace and a work of mercy this week?

Let us keep our eyes on Jesus, live a life of faith, and do everything with the love and mercy He taught us.

Sacred Heart of Jesus, we trust in You!

Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us!

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle! 

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