The Gospel of Healing and Companionship

2Tim 4:9-17a, Psalm: 144, Lk 10:1-9

My dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

On this Feast of Saint Luke, the evangelist, we celebrate not just the author of a Gospel, but a witness to a particular facet of Christ’s heart: His compassion for the poor, the outcast, the sinner, and the healer’s love for the whole person. The Scriptures today paint a vivid picture of the evangelist’s mission—a mission that is both communal and vulnerable, demanding yet filled with Christ’s sustaining peace.

The Gospel presents the sending of the seventy-two disciples. Jesus sends them ahead of Him “to every town and place where he himself intended to go.” They are his heralds, preparing the way. His instructions are striking: they are to travel lightly, without purse, bag, or sandals. Their dependence is not on material security, but on divine providence and the hospitality of the peace they offer. Their message is simple: “The kingdom of God is at hand.” And their mission is accompanied by a mandate to heal the sick. This is the Lukan charism in a nutshell: the proclamation of the Good News is inextricably linked to the ministry of healing and reconciliation.

This image of the missionary, dependent on God and focused on healing, finds a poignant echo in the reading from Second Timothy. Here, we see the great Apostle Paul at the end of his life, feeling the weight of his mission. He is lonely: “Demas has deserted me… Crescens has left, Titus has gone.” He is vulnerable: “Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm.” He asks Timothy to “hurry and come to me as soon as you can,” and to bring Mark, “for he is helpful to me in the ministry.” But in his deepest isolation, he makes a stunning declaration: “The Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the proclamation might be completed.”

This is where Saint Luke enters the story. Tradition holds that Luke was the faithful companion, the “beloved physician” (Col 4:14) who stayed with Paul during this final imprisonment. While others left, Luke remained. He was an evangelist not only with his pen but with his presence. He embodied the healing ministry by tending to Paul’s loneliness and supporting him in his hour of need. He was a living example of the peace the seventy-two were sent to give.

This is a beautiful challenge for us today. We are all called to be Lukan evangelists. How?

First, we are called to proclaim the Kingdom in our own environments—our families, workplaces, and communities. We do this not with complex arguments, but by living the peace of Christ, by being people of reconciliation and mercy.

Second, we are called to be healers. Like Luke the physician, we are called to bind up wounds—not just physical, but the spiritual and emotional wounds of loneliness, despair, and sin. A kind word, a patient ear, a gesture of forgiveness—these are acts of healing that prepare the way for the Lord.

Third, we are called to be faithful companions. The Christian mission is not a solo endeavor. We are sent out two-by-two. We are called to stand by one another, especially when others desert us. As St. John Paul II wrote in Christifideles Laici, “The witness of a Christian life is the first and irreplaceable form of mission.”

At times, we may feel like Paul—abandoned, opposed, or weary in our mission. Or we may feel like the seventy-two—inadequate and exposed. But the promise of Christ stands: “The harvest is abundant.” And His assurance is our strength: “The Lord stood by me and gave me strength.”

May the intercession of Saint Luke, the evangelist of healing and companionship, help us to faithfully prepare the way for the Lord in the hearts of those around us, trusting that as we go, the Kingdom of God is indeed at hand. Amen.