St Luke – 18 October

Probably of Greek parentage, Luke is usually recognised as the author of the Gospel, in which there are many parables not found in the other gospels. There are also allusions to gentiles. His second volume, the Acts of the Apostles, narrates the history of the early Church. In a letter he is mentioned by St Paul, ‘Luke, the beloved physician’
(Colossians 4. 14), and he accompanied Paul on some of Paul’s journeys.

Almighty God,
you called Luke the physician,
whose praise is in the gospel,
to be an evangelist and physician of the soul:
by the grace of the Spirit
and through the wholesome medicine of the gospel,
give your Church the same love and power to heal;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen