(d.c.74) Luke is mentioned by name a few times in the New Testament letters (Colossians 4:14, Philemon 1:24, and 2 Timothy 4:11), and is generally accepted to be the author of the Gospel according to Luke and the Acts of the Apostles. He is the only one of the four evangelists to include the personal testimony of Saint Mary. Luke was a physician and the only non-Jewish author of Sacred Scripture. He was a companion to Saint Paul, even through Paul’s final imprisonment when most others had abandoned him. Luke may have been a painter and produced the first icons of Jesus and Mary, but the first evidence of that tradition comes in the 8th century.
“Having had a spiritual awakening,” Luke carries the message and lives the principles (Step 12). With gratitude to our predecessors, we freely give what we were given. “We can only keep what we have by giving it away” (Narcotics Anonymous, Basic Text).
“I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received” (Luke 1:3-4).
Reflection by Brad Farmer