18 October 2025 (Saturday) / Saint Luke, Evangelist ‐ Feast / Feast of Saint Luke, Evangelist

18 October 2025 (Saturday)

Saint Luke, Evangelist ‐ Feast.

Feast of Saint Luke, Evangelist.

Readings from the Bible of the Roman Catholic Church:

First Reading: Second Timothy 4: 10-17b
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 145: 10-11, 12-13, 17-18
Alleluia: John 15: 16
Gospel: Luke 10: 1-9

First Reading : 2 Timothy 4:10‐17

Demas has deserted me for love of this life and gone to Thessalonika, Crescens has gone to Galatia and Titus to Dalmatia; only Luke is with me. Get Mark to come and bring him with you; I find him a useful helper in my work. I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus. When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas, and the scrolls, especially the parchment ones. Alexander the coppersmith has done me a lot of harm; the Lord will repay him for what he has done. Be on your guard against him yourself, because he has been bitterly contesting everything that we say. The first time I had to present my defence, there was not a single witness to support me. Every one of them deserted me – may they not be held accountable for it. But the Lord stood by me and gave me power, so that through me the whole message might be proclaimed for all the pagans to hear.

Responsive Psalm : Psalm 144(145):10‐13,17‐18

Your friends, O Lord, make known the glorious splendour of your reign.

All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord, and your friends shall repeat their blessing. They shall speak of the glory of your reign and declare your might, O God.

Your friends, O Lord, make known the glorious splendour of your reign.

They make known to men your mighty deeds and the glorious splendour of your reign. Yours is an everlasting kingdom; your rule lasts from age to age.

Your friends, O Lord, make known the glorious splendour of your reign.

The Lord is just in all his ways and loving in all his deeds. He is close to all who call him, who call on him from their hearts.

Your friends, O Lord, make known the glorious splendour of your reign.

Alleluia: John 15: 16
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
16 I chose you from the world, to go and bear fruit that will last, says the Lord.
(12. This is my commandment: love one another, as I have loved you.
13. No one can have greater love than to lay down his life for his friends.
14. You are my friends, if you do what I command you.
15. I shall no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know the master's business; I call you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have learnt from my Father.
16. You did not choose me, no, I chose you; and I commissioned you to go out and to bear fruit, fruit that will last; so that the Father will give you anything you ask him in my name.
17. My command to you is to love one another).
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel : Luke 10:1‐9

The Lord appointed seventy‐two others and sent them out ahead of him, in pairs, to all the towns and places he himself was to visit. He said to them, ‘The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest. Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Carry no purse, no haversack, no sandals. Salute no one on the road. Whatever house you go into, let your first words be, “Peace to this house!” And if a man of peace lives there, your peace will go and rest on him; if not, it will come back to you. Stay in the same house, taking what food and drink they have to offer, for the labourer deserves his wages; do not move from house to house. Whenever you go into a town where they make you welcome, eat what is set before you. Cure those in it who are sick, and say, “The kingdom of God is very near to you."

For our reflection today:

The Church and the world do not need people who fulfill their religious duties as if the faith were merely an external label. We need laborers who are eager to work in the mission field, loving disciples who bear witness to the Kingdom of God in all places. Perhaps there is no shortage of “intermittent Christians” who occasionally act upon some religious feeling or participate in sporadic events. But there are few who are ready, on a daily basis, to labor in God’s harvest, cultivating the seed of the Gospel in their own hearts in order then to share it in their families, places of work or study, their social contexts and with those in need. To do this, we do not need too many theoretical ideas about pastoral plans. Instead, we need to pray to the Lord of the harvest. Priority must be given, then, to our relationship with the Lord and to cultivating our dialogue with him. In this way, he will make us his laborers and send us into the field of the world to bear witness to his Kingdom. (Pope Leo XVI, Angelus, 6 July 2025)

Jonathan Fabian Ginunggil,
Most High Servant,
Jesus, Mary, Joseph Ministry of Love (Blessed  and Saints and the Nine Choirs of Angels)