Dear Friends,

In the bible there are four gospels or 'goodnews's about the life of Jesus – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. And it is no co-incidence about the order in which they appear.

Matthew is first because it is the one most often used by the church, with its ending 'to go and baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit'. Secondly comes Mark, the earliest and simplest of the gospels, the one you might recommend people first to read. Thirdly comes Luke, the gospel to the gentiles with its concern for the poor, the outcast and women. And finally John, the theological gospel, the most profound and possibly the only one to be written by an apostle.  We in the church have a three year cycle of readings, year one Matthew, two Mark and three Luke with John being interspersed especially around Lent and Easter. We are now in year three: Luke.

Luke is a popular gospel with some of the favorite parables, the Good Samaritan and the Prodigal Son; it tells some of the best stories of the birth and childhood of Jesus (did Luke talk to Mary and find out for himself?); it contains the canticles Beneditictus, Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis; and even the passion story is soften by Jesus’ gentle forgiving nature 'Father forgiven them' and the penitent thief at the cross. Luke was trying to give a fair and historical account of the life of Jesus (possibly as a defense of S. Paul to the Emperor) and he writes in a clear and smooth Greek indicating an educated man, perhaps he was the doctor who accompanied S. Paul around the Mediterranean. But Luke was also a revolutionary. He highlights the role of Mary in bringing the Christ into the world… 'be it unto me', and she is crucial to the salvation story. The great Marian doctrines and devotion to Mary find their source in the Annunciation. For Mary read 'women'. Almost every story about a man is followed by one about a woman. He presents women as equal to men and even more revolutionary 'he has brought down the powerful from their thrones and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty' is almost Marxist. Luke presents Jesus’ manifesto; 'The spirit of the Lord...has anointed me to bring good news to the poor…to let the oppressed go free'. They are the ones who will inherit the kingdom of God. He challenges racism and inequality eg the Good Samaritan, and tax-collectors and prostitutes are saved. Luke depicts God as a loving father who freely forgives his son(us) in the Prodigal Son, who looks out for us and if only we would return to him and he would run down the road to greet us. As we read Luke Sunday by Sunday during this year perhaps you could take the readings home on the weekly sheet and reflect on how we can become more like Christ.

My prayers and best wishes,

Fr. Philip Edge - Vicar