December 27--St. John, Apostle and Evangelist

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (Jn. 1:1). With that sentence, we are introduced to Jesus, the Son of God, the Savior of the world, the Word, or in Greek, the Logos. John is the Apostle of Love. He is never named in the Gospel, but he is called the “beloved disciple,” or “the one whom Jesus loved,” a title that indicates his closeness with Jesus. He is the one who put his head on Jesus’ chest at the Last Supper. He was with Mary and Mary Magdalene at the foot of the cross when Jesus died. He took Mary and cared for her at Jesus’ command. At the end of his Gospel, he wrote: “But these are written that you may [come to] believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name” (Jn. 20:31). In 1 Jn. 4:8 he wrote: “Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love.”

Love is the key to Jesus. He loves us. He calls us to love him in return. God’s grace is love, an invisible outpouring of God’s love into our hearts, so that we may love as God loves us: “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also must love one another” (1 Jn. 4:11). We are commanded to love as Jesus loved us (Jn. 13:34-35). In this way, we show our unity with God and one another. Love is the taste of Heaven that we can experience here on earth. As we love, we are drawn closer into the relationship of love that God has in himself—The Father eternally loving the beloved Son, who loves the Father in return; the love between them, the Holy Spirit. Thus, the final Word of salvation is LOVE.

April 25--St. Mark, Evangelist

Even though Mark's Gospel is second in Scripture, it was actually the first one written.  It is also the shortest Gospel and the one that is jam-packed with excitement and miracles.  Mark wrote for the Christians in Rome who were being persecuted about the time of Peter and Paul's martyrdom, so the emphasis in Mark's Gospel is one of Jesus suffering.

What we know about Mark comes to us mainly from Scripture.  He went on the first missionary journey with Paul and Barnabas, but had a falling out with Paul because Paul did not accept him on the second journey.  However, they did reconcile.  We also know that Mark's family was important in the early Church.  When Peter miraculously escaped from prison he went to the home of Mark's mother.  Some speculate that he was the young boy who escaped when Jesus was arrested.  According to legend he became the companion of Peter, from whom he received the Gospel.  He also became the bishop of Alexandria.  His relics were eventually taken to Venice and interred within the Basilica of St. Mark.

St. Mark shares with us the message of Jesus:  “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel" (Mk. 1:15).  We are called to constant repentance, to turn our lives over every day to God and believe in the message of God's love for us.  Every day is a new opportunity to bring about the kingdom of God by being a true disciple of Jesus:  We hear the Word of God; we accept the Word of God; we spread the Word of God.  Go forth and share God's love with all you meet.  Mark did through his Gospel.

October 18--St. Luke, Evangelist

                                     

Of the four evangelists, Luke was the only Gentile, or non-Jew.  He was a convert and disciple of St. Paul.  He even accompanied St. Paul on his missionary journeys.  He was a doctor and, according to legend, a painter.  He also gave us some of the clearest insights to the Blessed Virgin Mary and Jesus as a youth.

We know of the Annunciation from Luke, as well as the conception of John the Baptist, the Visitation, the Birth of Jesus, the visit of the shepherds, the Presentation in the Temple, and the Finding in the Temple; all from Luke.  He also gave us the great songs of the New Testament that are prayed every day in the Liturgy of the Hours:  the Canticle of Zachariah in Morning Prayer, the Magnificat of Mary in Evening Prayer, and the Canticle of Simeon in Night Prayer.

The Gospel of Luke has great value as literature, but even greater value as the Word of the Lord.  With Mary we can sing, "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God, my savior."

September 21--St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist

"TAX COLLECTOR!"  The word itself sounds like an insult.  Jesus even used the word as an insult when he spoke of the process of correcting a brother who sins:  "If he refuses to listen even to the Church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector" (Mt. 18:17).  And yet Jesus chose Matthew, a TAX COLLECTOR, to be an apostle.  Surely, someone could have warned him that choosing a TAX COLLECTOR would not be good for his public image.  But Jesus did not choose Matthew for image.  He chose him because Matthew fit into his plan of salvation for the world.

Matthew wrote his Gospel for a community of Gentile and Jewish Christians.  He wanted to show how Jesus was the fulfillment of all the prophecies of the Old Testament.  Jesus was the new lawgiver greater than Moses; he was the new king greater than David.  He fulfilled the covenant promised to Abraham that all nations would be blessed through Abraham when the Magi from different lands brought gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh after Jesus' birth

Apostle, evangelist, and yes, former tax collector.  Matthew does not focus on his own deficiencies, but rather on the grace of God.  Matthew gives us the version of the Our Father with which we are most familiar.  It reminds us to "forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us."  That means forgiving our enemies, our friends, our family, and even ourselves.  Matthew took the insult of tax collector and turned it into an opportunity for grace offered by Jesus.