Homily of Saturday of the Twenty-Eighth Week in Ordinary Time
By Fr. Williams Onyilo, CSSp
Feast of Saint Luke, Apostle
Readings: 2 Timothy 4:10–17; Luke 10:1–9
There is a story about Bishop Mari Mar, who worked as a banker for over forty years before he eventually left his career to serve God. Similarly, Osayi Arome was once an engineer in the petroleum industry but chose to give it up for the work of Christ. We also hear of Roberto Firmino, the Brazilian footballer who played for Liverpool; today, he serves as a pastor in Manah Church in Brazil.
Today, as we celebrate the feast of a great man who followed a similar path-Saint Luke the Evangelist-we are reminded of the power of total surrender to God’s call. Saint Luke was a physician, yet he left his medical career, at least in part, to follow Christ more closely. He served as a companion and secretary to Saint Paul, accompanying him even during his imprisonment and trials. Through his faithful service, Luke gave us the treasures of the Gospel according to Luke and the Acts of the Apostles-two of the most detailed accounts of the early church.
I also recall a classmate of mine who gave up his career as a banker and his role as the breadwinner of his late father’s family to join the Congregation of the Holy Spirit (Spiritans). To the glory of God, he is a priest today.
Christ calls each of us to make sacrifices for the sake of the Gospel. Whatever we give up for him, he rewards abundantly. Let us not be afraid or ashamed to surrender earthly ambitions when Christ calls us to higher service.
May the Lord who called Saint Luke, and so many others after him, grant us the grace to give generously of ourselves for his kingdom.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
