There was once an artist, faithful and hardworking. His workshop, together with all he had painted, burned down. He himself was executed. Nobody has heard of him. Yet his painting remain. On the other side of fire.Creativity and artistic expression have their own rewards. One of them is a mystical sensation that what I am creating will live forever. The poet John Keats affirmed that romantic thought with his preamble to Endymion, “A thing of beauty is a joy forever.”
Even when the monument is made of such perishable items as food, ice, snow or sand there is something immortal about it. I have had that experience when I finished writing a poem and found no publisher. It doesn’t matter; it’s beautiful and has a life of its own.
Saint Luke’s gospel is certainly such a work. He wrote in the divine assurance that "The Word of the Lord endures forever.” Empires, kingdoms, nations, cities, armies and all human institutions rise and fall but the Gospel lives on. The Holy Spirit finds a faithful few in each generation who ponder God's Word, contemplate its depths and give it with love to their children. Cynics, who also seem to enjoy endless resilience, continually announce that God is dead and religion is passé, but the Holy Spirit always proves them wrong.
On this day the Church celebrates both the Evangelist St Luke and his writings, the Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles. Our first reading gives us what little we know of the writer's biography. We can glean more about him from his books: he was well-educated and wrote in excellent Greek; he appreciated music for its power to move the mind and heart; he had a fine liturgical sense as he often presents liturgical gestures within profane settings: Gabriel's appearance to Zechariah as he incensed the altar; choirs of angels singing to the shepherds; the women beating their breasts as Jesus died; etc. Saint Luke was not fascinated by conflict or violence; he often underplays controversies that Saint Paul seemed to enjoy.
It is good that we celebrate both the man and his work. The Church, after all, is not so much an institution as a congregation of people. No one is perfect; we all have our failings; but because the Holy Spirit never fails us, each is saintly and heroic in her own way; and each of us gives to our descendants what we have received from our ancestors.
Happy feastday!
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.