FEAST OF ST. LUKE
Job, Chapter 19,
Verse 29
Be afraid of the sword for yourselves, for
your anger is a crime deserving the sword; that you may know that there is a
judgment.
Jobs friends are judging him through their own faults.
Job is warning them what Christ reiterated. “Those who use the sword shall
perish by the sword. Anger is a crime.
Anger
disorders are a product of long-term anger mismanagement. They are a
pathological misdirection of normal aggressive feelings. Anger is, at its essence,
a part of the basic biological reaction to danger, the fight or flight
response. The physiological shift makes us stop thinking and mobilize for
immediate action, as though our life depends on it. It is a primitive response,
and very powerful. Anger prepares us to stand our ground and fight. It helped
our ancestors survive, but in today’s complex technological world, it is often
more hindrance than help. The angrier you feel, the less clearly you can think,
and therefore the less able you are to negotiate, take a new perspective, or
effectively handle a provocation. Uncontrolled anger has become our No. 1
mental health issue. Though we have the understanding and the skills to treat
the anger epidemic in this country, as a culture, we have been unwilling to
accept the violence problem as one that belongs to each and every one of us. We
have sought scapegoats in minority cultures, racial groups, and now the
mentally ill. When we are ready to accept that the demon is within us all, we
can begin to treat the cycle of anger and suffering.[1]
·
Now
that he knows all his friends are kind of jerks, he talks back. After all, he
says, he's their equal and, well, they're not being very nice.
·
He
knows that God is almighty, sure. But he still thinks he deserves an
explanation for why God is shredding his life to pieces.
·
He's
mortal. His time is short. He wants some answers.
Eliphaz Retorts
·
Eliphaz
is back on the scene. He says that that Job is undermining God by questioning
his ways, which are both unknowable and infinitely powerful.
·
We
feel like we've heard that one before….
·
He
continues to say that the sinful are doomed for destruction. And you know who
falls into that sinful category?
·
That's
right: Job.
·
And
here comes one of the most famous phrases in the Bible: "Your own lips
testify against you" (15:6).
Job Demands a Hearing
·
In
case we didn't get the picture already, Job reiterates how uncool his friends
are. Then he—yep, again—confirms that he has done nothing worthy of this
punishment.
·
Why
shouldn't he, a penitent man, get a fair hearing?
Bildad Up to Bat…Again
·
Bildad's
back.
·
Guess
what he's saying this time? That's right: God punishes the wicked.
·
This
time, though, he adds (in a possible reference to Canaanite lore) that the
Firstborn of Death will visit the evil.
·
Um…gulp?
I Will Be Redeemed
·
Apparently,
no one is listening, so Job reaffirms his desire to plead his case before
God.
·
He's
so worked up about it, he wants to etch his complaint in something more
permanent than his mortal voice. Maybe on a rock or—surprise, surprise—in a
book.
This day celebrates the life of St.
Luke, one of Jesus' 12 disciples. Luke was thought to be an educated
Gentile, or non-Jew, and may have even been a physician. Some biblical
historians believe he may have even been a slave. Luke wrote two books in the
New Testament -- the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles. The Gospel of
Luke focuses on converting non-Jews to Christianity.
St
Luke Facts
·
Luke
worked with the apostle Paul, and traveled with him throughout Asia Minor,
proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ.
·
The
Gospel of Luke describes a popular passage referred to as the 'The Parable of
the Good Samaritan'. In it a traveling man is attacked by robbers who
strip and beat him. A priest and a Levite pass by without helping him.
A Samaritan stops and cares for him, taking him to an inn where the
Samaritan pays for his care. (Luke 10:25-37)
·
What
became of Luke is unclear. Some accounts say he was martyred, while
others say that he lived to an old age and died in Greece.
·
The
feast Day for St. Luke is held on October 18 in the Roman Catholic, Orthodox
Church and some Protestant churches. The Orthodox Church refers to this
day as the Feast of the Holy Apostle and Evangelist Luke.
St
Luke Top Events and Things to Do
·
Read
the second chapter of the Gospel of Luke. This is the story that is most
often read at Christmas time about the birth of Jesus Christ.
·
Read
the popular 'Parable of the Good Samaritan'. Use this to inspire you to
go out of your comfort zone to help someone in need.
·
Some
traditions believe that St. Luke, in addition to being a writer and physician,
was a painter. Do a little artwork today to honor the saint.
·
Go
get a check up. Luke was a physician. Take
care of your body in honor of St. Luke.
·
Pray
for doctors and those who care for the sick through the intercession of St. Luke,
patron of physicians.
·
Foods
this day to honor St. Luke would include some beef dish, as he is known as the
"ox" and is the patron of butchers. For dessert, bake some raisin
Banbury Tarts to evoke the festivals of England on this day, or a cake in the
shape of a book with decorations of a calf or ox for this evangelist.
·
Today
is also known as "Sour Cakes Day" in Scotland, because baked cakes
were eaten with sour cream in Rutherglen.
St. Luke’s Little Summer
Lovely, summerlike days that occur around October 18 are called
Saint Luke’s Little Summer in honor of the saint’s feast day. Around this time,
Saint Luke’s feast day, there is a period brief period of calm, dry weather. Of
course, it’s difficult to generalize today across the vast continent of North
America, but the temperature is usually mild, and the leaf colors are turning a
gorgeous color. It’s a good time for a brief vacation or visit to a park. In
Venice, Italy, they say: “San Luca, El ton va te la zuca” (Pumpkins go stale on
St Luke’s Day), but here in North America, pumpkins are enjoying their finest
hour. Saint Luke is the patron saint of physicians and surgeons, so it seems
only fitting that the good doctor give us these calm days. In olden days, St.
Luke’s Day did not receive as much attention in the secular world as St. John’s
Day (June 24) and Michaelmas (September 29), so it was to keep from being
forgotten that St. Luke presented us with some golden days to cherish before
the coming of winter, or so the story goes. Some folks call this Indian Summer,
but that officially occurs between November 11 and November 20.
Above seaside Lemosos and on the
eastern flank of 6,500-foot Mt. Olympus, you’ll also find ten magnificent
medieval churches and monasteries, whose modest exteriors stand in contrast to
their rich interiors, embellished with some of the finest Byzantine frescoes
and icons in the Mediterranean. At the ornate 11th-century Kykkos Monastery,
even the cloisters are richly frescoed, and a golden icon of the Virgin
ascribed to St. Luke is said to work
miracles. Agios Nikolaos tis Stegis (St. Nicholas of the Roof) is covered
entirely in wall paintings. The monks who lived here were not only gifted
artists but also master vintners, following a 5,500-year-old wine-making
tradition in Cyprus. Stop at Chrysorrogiatissa Monastery for a visit to the
region’s oldest wine-making site. The dark amber– colored Commandaria, a sweet
wine that was a favorite elixir of medieval crusaders, is thought to be the
world’s oldest appellation and is made from centuries-old vines in the Troodos
foothills. For something with a little more kick, stop in any village bar for a
glass of zivania, a centuries-old Cypriot beverage produced from the residue of
grapes. With a 45 percent (and up) alcohol content, it is also used to treat
wounds and sore throats.
First Chronicles 10:13-14 “Saul
died for his breach of faith. He broke faith with the Lord in that he did not
keep the command of the Lord, and also consulted a medium, seeking guidance. He
did not seek guidance from the Lord. Therefore, the Lord put him to death and
turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.”
When King Saul refused to
obey God, God was silent to his requests. He went so far as to seek the
deceased Samuel’s advice through a medium. How far he has fallen! David, upon
hearing the news of King Saul and Jonathan’s death, didn’t celebrate because he
would not be King, but “David took hold of his clothes and tore them, and so
did all the men who were with him. And they mourned and wept and fasted until
evening for Saul and for Jonathan his son and for the people of the Lord and
for the house of Israel, because they had fallen by the sword” (2nd Sam
1:11-12). A godly man or woman doesn’t celebrate their enemies defeat. David
simply said, “How the mighty have fallen in the midst of the battle” (2nd Sam
1:25), grieving over his close friend Jonathan but also his former enemy, King
Saul.I Thirst[7]
In the convent of Vercelli, where Blessed Emilia, a Dominican Religious, was Prioress, it was a point of the Rule never to drink between meals, unless with express permission of the Superior. This permission the Blessed Prioress was not accustomed to accord; she advised her sisters to make that little sacrifice cheerfully, in memory of the burning thirst which our Saviour had endured for our salvation upon the Cross; and to encourage them to do this, she suggested to them to confide those few drops of water to their guardian angels, that he might preserve them until the other life, to temper the heat of Purgatory. The following incident shows how agreeable this pious practice was to God. A sister named Cecilia Avogadra came one day to ask permission to refresh herself with a little water, for she was parched with thirst. “My daughter,” said the Prioress, “make this little sacrifice for the love of God and in consideration of Purgatory.” “Mother, this sacrifice is not little; I am dying with thirst,” replied the good sister; nevertheless, although somewhat grieved, she obeyed the advice of her Superior. This double act of obedience and mortification was precious in the sight of God, and Sister Cecilia soon received its reward. A few weeks later she died, and after three days she appeared, resplendent in glory, to Mother Emilia. “O Mother!” she said, “how grateful I am to you! I was condemned to a long Purgatory for having had too great affection for my family, and behold, after two days, I saw my angel guardian enter my prison, holding in his hand the glass of water which you caused me to offer as a sacrifice to my Divine Spouse; he poured that water upon the flames which devoured me, they were extinguished immediately, and I am delivered. I take my flight to Heaven, where my gratitude will never forget you.”
·
Perhaps
a pious devotion for Fridays in honor of our Lords thirst could be to go to morning
confession and mass followed by a 9 am to 3 pm fast of food and water. Then do
an act of charity for someone-maybe a good idea would be to buy a bottle of
water for the poor.
Daily Devotions
[1]http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/medical_examiner/2014/04/anger_causes_violence_treat_it_rather_than_mental_illness_to_stop_mass_murder.html
[5]Schultz,
Patricia. 1,000 Places to See Before You Die
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