Homily for Tuesday Twenty-Ninth Week in Ordinary Time Year C, 18th October, 2022, The Feast of St. Luke The Evangelist

 Readings: 2Tim. 4:10-17; Ps. 145; Luke 10:19

Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.

WHAT AND HOW ARE YOUR CONTRIBUTION TOWARDS THE MISSIONARY MANDATE OF CHRIST?

One of our responsibilities as Christians is to fulfill the missionary mandate of Christ and throughout the history of the Church, we have great men and women who have contributed greatly to this mission. Today we celebrate the feast of St. Luke, one of the four great Evangelist of our Christian faith. According to traditions St. Luke was probably a Hellenised Jew or a Greek who embraced the Christian faith as one of the earliest converts among the earliest disciples of Jesus Christ. He was known as a physician and highly educated and intelligent, which made it possible for him to be able to give us a well detailed account for the very important events about the life and ministry of Jesus in Gospel account according to Luke and the life and mission of Christ’s disciples in Act of Apostles as inspired by the Holy Spirit.

No doubt St. Luke through his Gospel account has converted many to the Christian faith, turning many people towards the Lord and calling them to embrace his truth and love. Therefore Luke has proved himself to be a great disciple by demonstrating the act of being a good missionary for we heard in our Gospel passage today, how the Lord appointed seventy-two persons and sent them out ahead of him, in pairs, to all the towns and places he himself was to visit. He said to them, ‘The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest. Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Carry no purse, no haversack, no sandals. Salute no one on the road. Whatever house you go into, let your first words be, “Peace to this house! 

Here, Jesus  gave us the requirements for carrying out his missionary mandate successfully. So, to continue this great mission he invites his disciples and sent them out, commanding them to see themselves as someone who gives freely of the good they have received from God. Hence, we should offer to others what we have received from  God just like St Luke, knowing that it has cost us nothing. We must live a life of detachment that is, in this mission, we are to depend totally on God's providence. Unfortunately, many of the disciples have to face rejection and persecutions from people, who through their rebellious attitude have refused to believe in God even though He has always been so patient, loving, caring and forgiving us.

So, as we celebrate this feast of St. Luke the Evangelist, let us be inspired by his faith and commitment, for we heard in our first reading today how he stood firm for St. Paul even when others deserted him. Let us follow his examples as we carryout our own missionary mandates no matter how insignificant it may be. We should not underrate our efforts or think that it is impossible for us to be like St. Luke because of our background or level of exposures. Rather we should know that God has called his disciples from different backgrounds and works of life,: the poor, the rich, some educated, some illiterate, some privileged and powerful, while others weak and not insignificant. So our background and level does not really matter. What is important is our attitude towards the missionary mandate entrusted to us at any level we find ourselves..

But dear friends, what is our attitude today towards the missionary mandate of Christ? How are we contributing towards the missionary mandate of Christ? How has the Word of God shaped our lives? Today, as we celebrate the feast of St Luke, we recall his great contributions to the Church and the Christian faithful. For just as St Luke gave us the Gospel account and the Act of the Apostles as inspired by the Holy Spirit, we as disciples of Christ, have also received a lot from God and his saints without payment; we should learn to give without expecting reward. Calling us to acknowledge with gratitude all that we have received from God and give freely to others that which we have received. For this act of charity will purify us from pride and self-righteousness, because we are all recipients of God's love, mercy, forgiveness, favour, protection, healing and deliverance. So, we must offer to others these same gifts which we have received.

LET US PRAY: Lord God, today as we celebrate the feast of St. Luke you gave us the requirements and nature of our missionary mandate. Help us to effectively follow these requirements just like St Luke did. We ask this through Christ our Lord Amen. Do have a favourable week.