188- The Practical use of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception

This article is a continuation of a previous article: "184- The Immaculate Conception in the Light of Christ our Saviour" It is a practical approach to the mystery of the Immaculate Conception of Our Lady, that helps us see its impact on our daily spiritual life.

“In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:

We have a strong city;

God makes salvation its walls and ramparts.”

(Isaiah 26:1)

The dogma of the “Immaculate Conception” of Mary is essential to our daily life and we don’t necessarily see it or use it as such. Why would the Church proclaim something that is not useful for us? Therefore, an intelligent approach would be to dig deeper in order to understand the real daily use of a “Dogma”.

In fact, the “Immaculate Conception” is not a Dogma about Mary only. It is a fundamental element for our “Spiritual Life”. How can this be?

At the Cross, Jesus gives us Mary: “Woman, behold, your son!” (see John 19:26-27). This means that this privilege of Mary benefits us in many ways, since Mary “belongs to us”. In fact, we know that Mary, in the Annunciation and throughout her life said “yes” to God, for herself and for each one of us. (“She uttered her yes “in the name of all human nature”. By her obedience she became the new Eve, mother of the living” (Catechism 511))

“Through the centuries the Church has become ever more aware that Mary, “full of grace” through God, was redeemed from the moment of her conception. That is what the dogma of the Immaculate Conception confesses, as Pope Pius IX proclaimed in 1854: The most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Saviour of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin.”(Catechism 491)

The huge gap that lies between Mary and each one of us is not only at the level of her Conception (from the first moment of her conception she is preserved immune from all stain of original sin) but at the level of its practical consequences: being able to believe. The insistence in St. Luke’s Gospel on “Mary’s Faith” versus “our lack of faith” (or better said our “incapacity to believe”) is something really staggering.

Early on in his Gospel, St. Luke presents us with two annunciations, one that “didn’t work”, and one that did. One was unfruitful (Zachariah didn’t believe) and the other one was fruitful (Mary did believe for herself and for Zachariah).
The parallelism Luke makes is deliberately done, and is very powerful: it is meant as well to be the Portal of his Gospel. The conclusion of this asymmetrical presentation of the “capacity to believe” in Chapter 1 reaches its high peak when Mary and Elisabeth meet. Not Zachariah this time, but his wife, has a very deep dialogue with Mary where she will utter central truths for us who are seeking to believe:
“Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfil what has been said to her!” (Luke 1:45)

The Lord said things through the Angel to Zachariah, he didn’t believe.
The Lord said things through the Angel to Mary, and she believed.

Not only that, but Mary brings us the light of her Faith, and offers it to us: see how she doesn’t remain at home with the Grace of God she has received, on the contrary, she visits her Cousin Elisabeth, and through her visits each one of us, at home. This is why Mary will utter this very unusual self-praise: “From now on all generations will call me blessed” (Luke 1:48). All the generations will receive her visit, will draw from her unique immaculate faith the capacity to believe. This is not something to be taken lightly!

Two facts now emerge: 1- we notice the huge gap between her capacity and ours. 2- this gap is narrowed by the fact that the “grace” and “privilege” she received are offered to us as well.

Does Jesus speak about these essential truths? Well yes, but in a semi-hidden way, because it is a “secret”. Why does he “hide” these essential truths? Jesus feels that a minimum of desire and preparation are required in order to be able to appreciate their true value and bear fruits. Otherwise it would be like throwing pearls to the swine: “though seeing, they may not see; 
though hearing, they may not understand.” (Luke 8:10) One has really to want it, to ask for it, to seek it humbly but with deep desire.

In order to better understand the “Immaculate Conception of Mary” let us have a look at the Parable of the Sower (Mt 13, Mk 4, Lk 8). This parable is the key parable, in the sense that if we don’t understand it, we won’t understand any parable: “Jesus said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable?” (Mk 4:13).
This parable analyses the soils, i.e. “our, way of receiving” the Word of God, our way of BELIEVING. It doesn’t discuss anything about God Himself; on the contrary, it addresses the human being and his capacity to receive the Word of God and bear fruits. Its goal is to show us how our ways of dealing with God are too short, don’t reach fruition and that we need to adopt the ways of the “Good Soil”: Mary.

In this fundamental parable, Jesus offers us 4 different “soils” (read: “4 ways of believing”) and studies them carefully. The striking thing is that only one soil is capable of bearing fruits (i.e. fully believing): the fourth soil, also called “the Good soil”.

Remember: “liturgy” is the way the faithful, throughout the ages, express their own faith. Paying attention to the contents of the Liturgy can bring us precious information about our faith. In the liturgical tradition of the Church (the Maronite and Byzantine rites at least), Mary is called the “Good soil”, the “Soil in which God sowed His Divine Seed: the Son”.

Let us return to the Parable of the Sower: We can then safely explore the avenue of considering Mary as “the Good soil”.
Remember that in this parable, regarding “the act of believing”, the red line between “bearing fruits” and “not bearing fruits” is fundamental. What is the point of starting to believe and not reaching completion (bearing fruits)?
The parable helps us as well to understand the “fullness of Grace” that characterises Mary: being “full of grace” allows her to bear fruits, i.e. to believe. Only God dwells in the “FULL-of-Grace”, only God acts in her, and His action doesn’t find in her any obstacle, and therefore she can bear fruits. Mary is “the good soil”.

Now, can we really receive Mary in our heart, in our life, and make use of her own faith?

Saint Therese of the Child Jesus sums up all that we said, and brings it to completion in a genial way when she said:

“I am not shaken when I see my weakness
The treasure of the Mother belongs to her child
And I am your daughter, oh my dear mother
Your virtues, your love, aren’t they mine?
Therefore when in my heart will descend the white Host
Jesus, my Sweet Lamb, thinks he reposes in you!…” (Poem 54,5)

You may say to Mary: “your faith Mary is mine, therefore I believe not with and through my weak sterile faith, but with your own faith.

This is why Pope John Paul II, in His Encyclical letter on Mary “Redemptoris Mater”, (RM), mentions the fact that we are called to participate to Mary’s faith (see RM 27) and has this other ingenious affirmation: “Mary’s faith […] in some way continues to become the faith of the pilgrim People of God” (RM 28).

This short text on the understanding and use of the Immaculate Conception is worth being read a few times, in order to receive all its rich contents.
Re-read, ponder, wonder…
ask, receive and then ACT…

The historical context of the proclamation of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception of Mary is very important in order to understand it fully, and we should strive to understand the “political”, practical, thread in it.
Again, being focused on “Spiritual Theology”, we are essentially interested in the practical spiritual impact of the Proclamation of a Dogma, any Dogma.

First: what is a “Dogma”?

The word “Dogma” we use, is a word inherited from the Greek Philosophers. A dogma for them is a universal principle which founds and justifies a specific practical conduct, and which can be formulated in one or in several propositions. A Dogma (especially amongst the Stoic Philosophers) is like a sentence of practical wisdom that one will meditate, ponder upon, and put into practice: it essentially impacts the daily life.

The use of the word “dogma” crossed over from the cultural philosophical use amongst the Greeks to the early Christians.
– Was that an error? Would that have meant a deviation of the right understanding of Jesus’ message?
– I am not sure it is the case. Let us take a closer look.

For early Christians (the first centuries), the “dogmas” were something very practical. It appears as well to be the same for the non-Greek christians: the Apostles themselves who were Semites. 

A very early example of the implicit use of the idea of a “dogma”

See for instance how St. Matthew in his gospel presents the Trinity as a “Dogma”, i.e. as something to put into practice. The Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) is the Great Charter (Carta Magna) of the newly baptised. Remember we are baptised (i.e. immersed) in each Person of the Trinity. In the Sermon of the Mountain, saint Matthew dedicates a section for each person of the Trinity: Mt. 5:17-48 is offered to put the dogmata of the Son into practice, Mt. 6 is to help us put the dogmata of the Father into practice, and Mt. 7 is for us to put the dogmata of the Holy Spirit into practice. Each Person is a “dogmata”, not a sentence though but a Person upon whom we are supposed to meditate upon, enter in, be immersed in, be transformed into.

“Being Baptised” meant simply that the Father did Baptise (immerse) us, in the Trinity.
– How would this happen?
– For the first Generation, God the Father was considered to have two hands: St. Irenaeus says that the Son and the Holy Spirit are the Hands of the Father (remember that Irenaeus is the disciple of the disciple of St. John). So “Baptism” would be seen as follows:
The Father takes us in His Hands and holds us tight: as a result we shouldn’t escape from His hands. How? By implementing a set of practices that would help us remain immersed (baptised) in the Son, in the Father and in the Holy Spirit (in that order, see 2 Cor 13:13).
To “be Baptised” for the first generation of Christians implied to put into practice the Three Divine Persons of the Trinity. The “Dogma” of the Trinity was practical and vital.
Therefore for the Catechesis of the first Christians (i.e. the Sermon on the Mountain), a whole chapter was dedicated to approaching each Person of the Trinity in a practical way.
For a mnemonic reason, remember that each hand has 5 fingers, so you’ll find the 5 points (one per finger) to remember about the Son in Mt. 5 and the same for the Holy Spirit: five sections in Mt. 7.

Easy to count, easy to remember, easy for meditation, easy to put into practise. The whole “Greater Charter” (Carta Magna) of Christianity, i.e. the Dogma of the Trinity, is fully comprised in this Sermon, the Sermon on the Mountain. 

The historical background of the dogma

– Would dogmas change?
– Obviously: no.
– Would we have new dogmas?
– Obviously: no.
– So why do we have “new” dogmas?
– We don’t. We just proclaim a truth as a “dogma” when we see it, after a long development, under a clearer light.

Theological Note: Even if it is the Pope who proclaims a Dogma, the proclamation is an act of the Church as a whole, as you’ll see below, the Pope makes has a consultation first in order to “sense” the “feeling of the faithful”. The infallibility of the Pope draws its principle from the infallibility of the Church and not vice-versa.

I would add something important in my eyes to that last reply: a Dogma, as we just said, has a direct practical use to it. It has a real impact on us, in our daily life. It is not “one more truth to proclaim” or to believe in, it is one more thing to put into practice, one more thing we already put into practise but the use of which today is much more urgent or vital, this is why it is underlined by the Faithful, the Church, the Pope.

– So why that urge to proclaim Mary as the “Immaculate Conception”?
– This is exactly my point: the historical context of the proclamation is very important to help us understand the reason why it was made in the first place and mainly its application in daily life.

Let us remember a few facts that will help us historically situate the “proclamation” of the Immaculate Conception of Mary by Pope Pius IX:

1- Pope Pius IXth is witnessing the end of the “Middle Ages” political system of Kingdoms, and the new spirit of the Republic of the French Revolution invading the spirit of the Italians and most of Europe.

2- These changes are quite drastic and, with all the good will of the Pope, are seen and felt as a threat to the normal order of things. Remember also that the Pope at that time still had land and estate and was considered as a Ruler.

3- The Pope’s life is under serious threat by the Italian Republicans. His Prime Minister, Pellegrino Rossi, has been assassinated (15th of November 1848), the Swiss Guards are disarmed, making the Pope to a prisoner in his palace.
Then on the 24th of November 1848, the Pope escapes in disguise as a regular priest to Gaeta, in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies leaving Rome to the radicals and the mob.

4- At Gaeta, in a very small crypt, the Pope prays for 9 months. He had a great devotion to Mary under the name of the “Immaculate Conception”. (You can visit the Church (“Santissima Annunziata”) and the crypt, called “Cappella d’Oro”.)

It is during these dire times that the Pope formed the decision to start the process of consultation that would lead later to the declaration of the Dogma of the “Immaculate Conception”. The idea wasn’t new, but the aforesaid events triggered the process. While still in Gaeta, on the 2nd of February 1849, he published his Encyclical Letter “Ubi Primum”, to the bishops of the Catholic Church asking them for their opinion about the definition of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary.

The Pope remained in Gaeta till the 4th of September 1849.

Time of total distress

The Pope’s Prime minister is killed, his life is under threat, he has to escape, and he does it in disguise. This tells us the degree of distress the Pope is going through.

It is quite obvious that the only practical help he could find was in Mary, not only that, but “Mary the Immaculate Conception”. In a situation of darkness, of total darkness, where the future of the Church is under serious threat, the traditional political order is upside down and its survival is under threat, where evil is trying to kill… the Pope turns in prayer to the Immaculate, the only Creature after Jesus who was never defeated by Evil. We can say that the Pope had found the solution for his distress and the turmoil of the Church.
Do you see the practical, spiritual and political situation in which is born the desire to proclaim solemnly Mary as the “Immaculate Conception”?
By doing so he is in fact declaring that he found The Solution for his distress, he wants to present the solution, and he wants to say what happened to him and how Mary, invoked under this specific mystery, helped him.
He wants to say that this is the will of God to put at the Centre of the Church the First Sign of His Victory, the New Eve, the one that was never defeated by Evil. She is at the heart and root of the life of the Church, real source and proof of Hope that God gave us.
You’ll notice that in the definition of the Immaculate Conception, it is said that this “grace”/ privilege comes directly from Jesus’s salvation, from Jesus’ Cross. In this sense we can contemplate Her as being the first Saved Person by Christ, and mother, with Him, of all the saved. We can contemplate Her, first Saved Creature coming out of His Side, New Eve, totally pure, Mother of the Church.
The first sign of Jesus’ victory on the Cross is Mary. The prototype of all the Saved people, is Mary.
The mother and the “Mould” of all the saved, is Her as well. She generated the Head, and generates each person in the Body.
God put this Sign (the Immaculate) right in the centre of his Church. Mary is the only one who believed (see other articles), Mary is the Prototype of Jesus’ Disciple and follower.
Like the Pope and like that moment in the history of the Church, we too reach the darkest point in our spiritual journey, and we all lift our eyes, in the darkness, to the Star of the Sea, Mary, the Only Immaculate Point in the Dark Sky, “gift of Jesus for us”, “capacity to believe” given by Him to us.

The role of Immaculate in the “Dark night of the spirit”

Now let us see a more specific aspect of the application of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception.

According to St. John of the Cross, the “Dark night of the spirit” is the deepest and final purification the faithful should go through before reaching the “Union with Jesus” (See his book “The dark night”, especially the second part). You might recognise it in the “Great trial” mentioned in the book of Revelation (Rev 9:14-17) or find it in a more plain way in: what the Apostles (or any follower of Jesus) have to go through when Jesus is about to start his Passion: all your hopes about the Messiah-Saviour will vanish, all your life, your spiritual life seems to go and disappear in the land of oblivion.

Now, a great catholic Master, Blessed Fr. Marie-Eugene of the Child Jesus OCD (1894-1967), in the second volume of his great book “I want to see God”, says that Mary plays a fundamental role at this crucial moment where everything in our “spiritual life” seems to disappear. He quotes St. Louis-Marie Grignon de Montfort, saying that the presence of Mary all together 1- makes that time of deep purification lighter, more bearable, and 2- is essential for this turning point in our spiritual life (the deep purification). In fact, for the first time, we are called to make a pure act of Faith, and in order to do so, we learn to use “Mary’s faith”, or better said: we ask her to “believe for us”. In doing so, we let her grow in us, and transform our spirit into the image of hers, being now for the first time capable of “believing as she believes”.

We are then starting to follow “the only one who believed in the Resurrection”, “the one around whom the distressed apostle gathered in order to draw from her the pure faith in Jesus”.

In a way, Pope Pius the IXth is saying to us: in these great times of distress, the Church continues not with the strength of the papacy, or any human strength, but through the help God put in Mary, the Immaculate. God had his victory in her, and is offering to each one of us this same Victory, by putting Mary in the centre of Jesus’ faithful. Mary said “Yes” to God, “yes He will rise as he promised it” in the darkest moment of history (when Jesus is dead): she believed in the Resurrection; and God gives us her “Yes” so we can use it and overcome the darkness. (Note: John-Paul II made all this very clear during his Pontificate)

The “Line of Divide” of the Immaculate Conception

The first practical consequence of the fact that Mary is the “immaculate conception” is that she is the only one who was able to believe in God’s Words given to her through the Archangel Gabriel (Luke 1). She is “the only one”, the first one to believe and is also the mother of all believers, in the sense that she begets their capacity to believe! Our capacity to believe is deposited by God in her! And we are all called to go to her in order to draw from her, our Mother, this capacity. She is truly our mother, the mother of our faith.

During the Mass we say: “Look not on our faith but on the faith of your Church.”

During our baptism the priest asked our Godparents: “what do you ask the Church for?”. They have answered for us: “Faith” – because Faith obtains for us Eternal Life.

We say these things not knowing exactly what they mean. What is the Church’s faith? It is Mary’s faith. No other faith! What is the Faith we ask for during our baptism: it is Mary’s faith.

The line of divide between all the human race who is born under original sin and Mary who is born from Jesus’ heart dying on the Cross is the same line of divide we find in the parable of the sower between the first three soils (who can’t believe and can’t bear fruits) and “the good soil” Mary.

It is the same line of divide St. Luke puts between the two initial annunciations (to Zachariah (& us) and to Mary). Zachariah’s (& ours) failed, he remained mute, as a sign of his incapacity to believe the Angel’s Words, despite the fact that we was righteous and fulfilling all Moses Commandments (Luke 1:5).

In a way, many centuries before the Declaration of the Immaculate Conception of Mary conceived without original sin, born from the Saviour’s Side on the Cross, the Scriptures (Luke and John) drew the same line of divide between the New Eve and all of us her children to be, not conceived immaculate.

Luke showed us in his Gospel that Mary is the only one who was able to believe, because she is the real Ark of the new Covenant, the only one capable of believing and therefore receiving the Word of God in Her… and keeping Him for ever in Her. Luke showed us the same line of divide: Mary is the only onecapable of believing, Zachariah (and us in him) weren’t and aren’t.

The Parable of the Sower showed us the same line of divide between the first three soils incapable of bearing fruits and the good soil, Mary.

In this sense, the dogma of the Immaculate Conception is very well present in the Gospels.

The same line of divide is there also when believing in the Resurrection was needed. Jesus announced it many times! In whose heart did his Words (“I shall rise”) fall and dwell? When Jesus was dead for three days, who among his disciples (the forerunners of our Faith) was able to believe in His Words promising us that He will rise? Nobody, only Mary. The same line of divide is found here! This is why the Lord said to Peter (see Luke 22:31-32) that he would pray for him, so that when he “turned back” from his unbelief (i.e. he turned to Mary like the tower of Faith), he would be able to strengthen his brothers with the Faith that comes from Mary.

“To believe” requires the humility to acknowledge that it is a grace given by God in the person of Mary, perfect and archetype of Jesus’ disciple. The humility to go to her, acknowledge that she is the new Eve, our Mother, the embodiment of faith and faithfulness, and draw from her our capacity to believe in Jesus and follow Him. God gives us this capacity. In our turn, in her and through her faith, we become sons of God, capable of believing! But we need to acknowledge the source of our Faith: Mary’s, in order to stop living with the illusions of thinking that without Her we would be able to believe and that we would be able to go to the Son our Saviour. Mary’s Faith becomes our Faith. This is why the Ark of the new Covenant becomes the new city of Jerusalem: she is carrying all of us, her Children, God’s Children, in her womb, nurturing us. “In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: We have a strong City; God makes salvation its walls and ramparts.” (Isaiah 26:1)

How does this dogma become life in us?

What are the consequences of believing in the dogma of the Immaculate Conception on the day to day life level?

A- When the Church declares a dogma, she is inviting us to believe in it. As we saw above, while remembering the social and spiritual turmoil of the context the Declaration, this dogma is supposed to help us, to be like the channel or a window so we can receive a renewed power to be from God to live in a new social order. A dogma is first meant to be met with an Act of Faith.

B- The Act of Faith made upon the declaration allows us to enter more deeply into the reality of this truth. As a consequence we receive a new and deeper understanding of the relationship between Mary (seen as Immaculate, Gift from God to us) and us, living in a tormented world or times. Once we have this new understanding of this truth, we need to find a way to allow it to come alive in us, to nourish us and transform us. The main consequence of this dogma is the new understanding that we need to see that:

1- Following Jesus requires faith on our part, it is not automatic. We need to be totally involved with all our being in the act of following Christ. Faith is the total gift of oneself. In this sense we are called to discover that if on one hand we have the divine Seed, we need “the good soil” to receive it. Faith has two polarities: the seed and the soil! The seed alone can’t achieve anything without the help of the soil.

2- The second consequence of this deepening is that not any soil can do it! We need the good soil! So we need to understand that there are two ways to follow Christ: one being any soil and one being the Good soil!

3- The good soil is Mary. Only Mary was able to believe.

4- Mary is the mother of our Faith. Becoming ‘the good soil’ is to draw our capacity to believe from Mary.

Therefore the practical incidence of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception is to use it on a daily basis, each time we need to make a Theological Act of Faith, Hope or Love. It is by becoming aware that with our best intentions and with our best spiritual endeavours, Mary’s ways are still way superior to ours.

When God gave the dogma of the Immaculate Conception to humanity in fact he was inviting us to go deeper in the waters of the Gospel. It is equivalent of putting the ax to “the root of the trees” and warning us that “every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” (Mt. 3:10) God is moving up a gear.

Each time we want to go to God by our own means and good intentions with our own way of making an Act of Faith, or Hope or Love, we need to remember that we need to use the divine modality of making them: this divine way lies in Mary, is Mary’s Immaculate way of dealing with God, of allowing the Holy Spirit to work in Her.

This is why we say: “pray for us sinners”! We acknowledge that when we deal with God we are not ‘immaculate conception’, but we ask the help of the ‘Immaculate Conception’, so she can give us her way of dealing with God. “pray for us” means: lift us from our non-immaculate way of dealing with God to your immaculate way… introduce us in you. Let us dwell in you, stay in you, live and act in you and through you. This way, the dogma is really held by us, and becomes life in us and changes us.

Does it make more sense now to believe that Mary is the Immaculate Conception? Do we see more clearly how practical this “dogma” is?

_______________________

A ground breaking lecture on the practical implications of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception. Sticking mainly to the Bible, we deepen the understanding of the Apostles’ journey of faith in relation to Mary.

We often don’t see the direct and practical implications of the various dogmas. To the point that we keep them in the “belief” area of our christian life and not our Spiritual practical life area. We lose a lot by not seeing the direct inner relationship between each dogma and our personal life.

Following the Apostle Journey of Faith, this groundbreaking lecture opens a new way of understanding the Immaculate Conception and its “use” in our daily life.

First Part of the audio recording:

Second Part:

179- Luke’s Final Pentecost

Introduction

The goal of this short work is to present the final version of St Luke’s theological account of Pentecost. Throughout the different amendments of his texts (his Gospel and the book of the Acts of the Apostles), St Luke had different approaches to the event of Pentecost. The versions of Luke and Acts we have today in the New Testament are his final amended versions. In them we have a revolutionized way of understanding how Pentecost is applied and lived by each and every reader of his work. What is most surprising is that one event overshadows the rest, both in Acts and throughout Luke’s entire Gospel, most importantly in Chapter 1, and at its very heart – the Visitation of Mary to her kinswoman Elisabeth.  In this sense/Indeed this event illustrates that we are all called to be like Elisabeth and receive the Visit of Our Lady, bearing Our Lord, and to be filled with the Holy Spirit.  

In this sense, the true meaning of the title, i.e. “Luke’s final Pentecost” should really be: Luke’s final version of Pentecost. In other words: Luke’s final theological understanding of how Pentecost can occur in the life of the reader.

A Question of Methodology

Note:If the reader is in a hurry, he or she can skip this part and start from the one that follows it: “When Luke was writing?”

All that follows is based on the exegetical work of two Dominican Exegetes, M.-E. Boismard op and A. Lamouille op. When I say “based” I don’t mean that this is what they say, but what will be stated below fits in well with their more recent research and findings on the New Testament writings and exegetical analysis. Throughout this article, their tandem work will be considered as one. From very early time (the seventies) the suggested options of Boismard on the history of the redaction of the texts seemed complex and were generally abandoned by many if not the majority, because of their complexities! People prefer a simplistic rendering of reality, even if, when one looks at the process of composition of an opus of many writers, it is often complex and would be even more complicated than Boismard’s idea of the history of the composition of the texts of the New Testament.

Even as a Theologian, I was never a great fan of the “fantasies” many exegetes brought to the public domain about the Bible, especially from the seventies onward. Faced with such extravagant analysis and opinions I followed the advice of my great master, Fr Louis Guillet ocd: it is better to stick to the most secure/certain conclusions of Exegetes and leave the rest until we have better results. This is wise advice, and it is what the Church usually does.

Accordingly, I paid attention to the most balanced Exegetes and built on their conclusions. My spiritual life and my field of specialisation, namely, Spiritual Theology, draw me to daily contact with the Scriptures. The Fathers of the Church and the mystics’ Exegesis helped me considerably. The synthetic presentation made by Henri de Lubac in his various books (“History and the Spirit”, “Mediaeval Exegesis”, “Bible in Tradition”,), show the great depths we can find in any passage of the Scriptures, and this remains a constant light valid for us even today. I always carried on deepening the legacy of the Fathers of the Church and the Mystics, day after day.

It is only providentially that I recently in 2017 came across Father Marie-Emile Boismard op and his teammate Father Arnaud Lamouille op. In fact, the timing was amazing, because all my reading and analysis of St Luke had prepared me to be open to their work. Seen from afar, their work might seem very dry, as it dissects the New Testament in search of the history of the redaction of the texts! My approach – especially to St Luke’s writings – is different: already for many years in my Lectio Divinaand my personal prayerful meditation of the Scriptures I had sensed in St Luke a certain purpose different from the most common ones we find amongst scholars and the general teaching. Because of my teaching, I spent hours meditating and commenting on the first chapter of St Luke’s Gospel! Certainly, my reading of some Exegesis books on his first two chapters left a deep imprint on my mind and heart, for example, Laurentin’s work on the Luke 1-2. More recently I tried to see if what the Lord was showing me in St Luke was confirmed by exegesis or was a pure fantasy of mine! If that was the case, then I felt I would have to abandon my foolish idea.

Consequently, in recent years, I have read a few books on Luke to update myself and see if what I saw corresponded to the sentiments of the Exegetes. It was fine. Sometimes they added amazingly interesting insights, like for instance some see in the narrative of the Visitation of Mary to her cousin Elisabeth (Luke 1) reminiscences from 1 Samuel 6 when the Ark of the Covenant is moved. But generally, my understanding wasn’t countered by exegesis.

When I came across the first texts of Fr. Boismard and saw his “theory” on how the Gospels were composed, it made a lot of sense to me and matched very well with what I was seeing already. Not only that but it even started to add more depth and clarity to what I was already noticing in general in amongst the Gospels.

Like many other exegetes - he doesn’t have an isolated option - Boismard shows us that for instance the gospel of St Luke had many layers of redaction of the texts of the Gospels. Through a very minute internal analysis of the texts (vocabulary, grammatical forms…) - studying the story of the redaction of the text - exegesis can find older layers within the text and therefore offer different plausible versions. When one looks for instance at the first possible versions of Luke and Acts and compares them with the last ones, one can notice some shifts, moves, decisions, options taken. This is utterly fascinating, especially if it all goes in a certain direction and confirms some intuition that one already can spot in the text in general exegesis.

When we consider the book of Acts we find another dimension to St Luke’s Theology, that is, we find the interwoven relationship between St Paul and St Luke. Of course, this is Luke’s account, not Paul’s. In this narrative we find what was the initial understanding of Christianity: Faith, Baptism, Pentecost, the Holy Spirit, and the new conditions offered to the Greeks. When studying the different layers of redaction, we can see as well that in the last versions there is a rethinking of the different elements. This certainly happened a few years later because of certain circumstances (see below).

In fact, willingly or not, Boismard is taking us through the history of the first decades after the Resurrection, until the final versions of the books of the New Testament as we have them now! Despite the number of books published, the task is not finished and is waiting for others to continue it.

The aim of this introduction is to say: what I am about to say is based on evidence coming from both Exegetical and Theological standpoints. What will follow, not only doesn’t challenge our actual perception of our faith, but it deepens it. Nonetheless, it is true that we are in for a great surprise! A very orthodox surprise but still a surprise.

When was Luke writing?

We often read, here and there, scholars and preachers saying that Luke is Paul’s disciple! We base that on the “we” accounts in Acts of the Apostle. There are accounts where Luke instead of saying “I” did this and says: “we”. And the events clearly involve the presence of Paul. We deduce of course that Luke and Paul are together. On the other hand, some scholars do underline the difference between what Paul says about himself and his understanding of Faith and Christian Doctrine, and what Luke says about Paul. This is already a step towards some clarity.

Luke might have been a colleague or even a disciple of St Paul. There is nothing wrong in thinking this. But a closer look shows us the differences between the two doctrines. [“Luke in Acts shows little acquaintance with Paul’s Theology and no acquaintance with Paul’s letters” (Karris, The New Jerome Biblical Commentary, p.675).] They are never opposed but one needs to bear in mind that Paul dies around the year 67. The last trip according to acts where they might have been united dates back to 58 maybe. It is true that the second letter to Timothy implies that Luke is with Paul almost until his death (67). When does Luke put his last touches to his writings? It could go as far as 84 or even toward the end of the 80s. This leaves Luke a lot of time to ponder and weigh things up and receive whatever graces he needed to address certain issues that St Paul didn’t have time to address!

Let us remember that a letter cannot be amended! We can have letters written after Paul has died bearing his name, which is quite commonly stated by many exegetes, but we never have a re-writing of a letter! We only have an initial one and only version, then we might have it copied and spread around in this way. Usually, no substantial change is made! In any case, this is how Exegesis works.

But, a Gospel or a book like the Acts of the Apostles has time till the last minute of the life of the author to be revised, improved, amended, changed!

What Paul says for instance in his most important letters (to the Galatians and to the Romans, to name some) has never been touched since and is like a still taken of what he thought around the years 53-58. A still is a still. The picture won’t change. In a sense, all that St Paul says is an early version of the understanding of Christian Doctrine! Probably the earliest! If one considers the fifteen to more than twenty-five years in which his understanding of Christian Doctrine matured, one can accept that this evolved, improved and deepened. In addition, the Communities might have faced different “dangers” and would have had time, with the help of the Holy Spirit to respond to it. Here is the Prophecy Luke puts into St Paul’s mouth: “I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.” (Acts 20:28) Here is the full text:

“From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. When they arrived, he said to them: “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia. I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of my Jewish opponents. You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeksthat they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus. “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me - the task of testifying to the Good News ofGod’s Grace.

“Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of any of you. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among youand will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard!Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.

“Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”(Acts 20:13-35)

Note:The two letters to Timothy show us the general belief in a prophecy saying that "in the last days terrible times will come" (2 Timothy 3:1). "last days" means after Paul's death. "Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons" (1 Timothy 4:1). "For the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine, but with itching ears they will gather around themselves teachers to suit their own desires."(2 Timothy 4:3)

Did Paul really say this Prophecy, exactly as stated? It is possible; the letters to Timothy seem to confirm it! What is certain is that this is what Luke wants us to know and think. Paul dies as a martyr around 67! What happened after that? Who are these wolves? What did they want? What did they preach and claim? Luke alone had to deal with it, until the end of his life in 80? Longer?! (Of course, this is only if we accept the fact that the author of all the versions of Luke’s writings is the same author.) This gave Luke a lot of time! To the point that some consider the author of Acts as being another author belonging to the third generation of Christians.

In fact, I find great coherence between the actual final forms of Acts and Luke and do accept that the author is the same throughout, i.e. Luke himself.

The Importance of the Johannites’ Crisis

The “Johannites” is a coined expression used by some Exegetes to allude to a group of Disciples of St John the Baptist, who received his Baptism, who then recognised Jesus as the real Messiah, but wo had never heard of any other Baptism!

Many of Jesus’ Disciples and Apostles were first disciples of the Baptist himself. There is nothing strange about this. We usually consider that the majority of them became disciples of Jesus! But this is not the only case! A growing community of followers of the Baptist, who recognised Jesus as the real Messiah, grew after the resurrection and Paul’s evangelisation.

Now, before talking about what should be considered as a real crisis in the Church, let us examine the first Crisis as stated by St Luke in Acts 15: is the Gospel also for the Greeks (the Gentiles) or is it only for the Jews! We see by the accounts in Acts how the Apostles were forced to accept the Greeks into the new Faith, when they saw that God had also given the Holy Spirit to the Greeks.

Now the first crisis emerges with the following double question: what should we impose on the Greeks? Should we impose the Law of Moses on them? Should we not impose it? If so, how then can they be justified? How can they please God?

The first Council of Jerusalem, St Paul’s intervention and later letters to the Galatians and to the Romans are key elements that offer the divine solution to the first Crisis of the Church. It completely opened the way for the rest of the non-Jewish world to receive salvation, and in addition, through Jesus, it offered a deeper understanding of the New Law and its fulfilment: to believe in Jesus and receive his Holy Spirit, to be purified and therefore guided by the Holy Spirit, fulfilled all the Law and Prophets and offered real change in the human being and finally perfection.

If we read the Acts of the Apostles in a hasty way, we may conclude that this was the central crisis and once resolved they lived happily ever after and all was fine! However, in fact, this is only the first crisis. Maybe Luke didn’t have the time and desire to re-write his book, but a few years afterwards another crisis emerged! We have enough traces of it in the book of Acts and the Gospel of St Luke that we need to address it: it is the emergence of the sect of the Johannites amongst Christians! They recognise Jesus as the true and only Messiah, but the problem with them is that they have no idea or recognition of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit -  they have never heard of the existence of the Holy Spirit! Can we have a Christianity without the Holy Spirit? Certainly not! So, what shall we do?

In my humble opinion, if we carefully read the exegetical works of Boismard-Lamouille (amongst others) we can have a clearer idea of the solutions adopted by the “final Luke”, i.e. the last redaction of Acts and Luke’s Gospel.

What follows shows how Luke introduces us to the crisis. One has to admit that it is done in a very gentle and undramatic way, while in fact, theologically, it constitutes a powerful storm that could have wiped out Christianity at its core: the Holy Spirit and His role in the Church:

Chapter 18 from Acts:

“Paul stayed on in Corinth for some time. Then he left the brothers and sisters and sailed for Syria, accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila. Before he sailed, he had his hair cut off at Cenchreae because of a vow he had taken. They arrived at Ephesus, where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. He himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. When they asked him to spend more time with them, he declined. But as he left, he promised, “I will come back if it is God’s will.” Then he set sail from Ephesus. When he landed at Caesarea, he went up to Jerusalem and greeted the church and then went down to Antioch. After spending some time in Antioch, Paul set out from there and travelled from place to place throughout the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples. Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the Way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervour and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John. He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the Way of God with greater accuracy. When Apollos wanted to go to Achaia, the brothers and sisters encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. When he arrived, he was a great help to those who by grace had believed. For he vigorously refuted his Jewish opponents in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Messiah.”(Acts 18:18-28)

 Chapter 19 from Acts:

“While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” So, Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?” “John’s baptism,”they replied. Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. There were about twelve menin all. Paul entered the synagogue and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God.  But some of them became obstinate; they refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way. So, Paul left them. He took the disciples with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. This went on for two years, so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.”(Acts 19:1-10)

As we can see, Luke is clearly indicating that there are disciples (Apollos and the twelve disciples at Ephesus) who, at a certain point, mysteriously, didn’t have any clue about the Holy Spirit! Although we can see that a solution is quickly offered (a “quick fix”) the fact in itself is shocking, and nobody can stop us from thinking that the phenomena could have been in fact bigger or later spread once Paul had left Ephesus and other places and died. Paul’s warning certainly continued to resonate in the ears of the Ephesians and of St Luke: “Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard!” “Savage wolves” What greater distortion would a Christianity be without the Holy Spirit! I don’t know which is worse, the first crisis (moving on to Preaching to the Gentiles) or this one!

As a conclusion, it is fair to say that a serious crisis arose in the Church after the death of St Paul and it seems that Luke alone had to deal with it. No Council was convoked, no decisions were taken by the Apostles. But we have better evidence than that in a lasting combined document that makes up a little more than a quarter of the New Testament (27.5%): the last amendments of Luke’s entire writings, namely, his Gospel and Acts.

The Aim of the Gospel of St Luke: To Offer A Personal Pentecost

Now that Luke alone has to face this new Crisis – Paul is probably dead by now – what are the solutions? Boismard shows us at least two different layers in the redaction of the account of Pentecost! An earlier one where the accent was on the extraordinary manifestations of the Holy Spirit (speaking in tongues, prophesizing,) and then a later one where the focus became one more on what could and should apply to all.

Let us be aware that very probably Luke feels the responsibility to clarify everything concerning the Holy Spirit. Everyone needs to receive the Holy Spirit. If on one hand he told us the story of how the Holy Spirit came upon the Apostles gathered with Mary in the upper room, and if he showed us in different places in Acts how different groups received the Holy Spirit, his concern can be definitely seen to be for his reader: how could we offer the reader the possibility of having a personal experience of the Holy Spirit! If not this, then Christianity would become very similar to the cult of the Johannites, and even if it can bore any other name, the reality would be the same: they would be followers of Jesus who did not have the faintest knowledge of the existence of the Holy Spirit and most importantly did not experience Him.

Luke’s task is daunting: how can he offer the reader of the fourth, fifth and further generations, the experience of the Holy Spirit through a text, a narrative!

It is with this aim in mind that he will offer us the last revised text of his Gospel, the version we all can open and read today. The entire Gospel will be revised (and maybe Luke and Acts were one work and now are divided into two), having in mind a very clear task: to offer a more precise and accurate understanding of Christianity, which means keeping the entire pneumatic dimension, that is, the dimension of the Holy Spirit (Pneuma). This is evidenced in the event concerning Apollos that we have read above: “When Priscilla and Aquila heard him [Apollos], they invited him to their home and explained to him the Way of God with greater accuracy.”This perfectly illustrates Luke’s purpose: precision. And it is not at all a chronological or historical precision that he is aiming for, as many commentators put it. In fact, the structure of his entire Gospel is not at all chronologically historical because his plan is to go from Galilee to Jerusalem, so everything is following this plan. The precision is a doctrinal precision as explained by Act 18: Priscilla and Aquila explained the Way of God “with greater accuracy”! Let us, therefore, see how Luke introduces his Gospel in the light of what is at stake: bringing more accuracy about the doctrine of the Way (Christianity was considered as “the Way”), clarifying all that regards the Coming of the Holy Spirit, the personal Pentecost offered to the reader, to every reader, throughout the ages that follow:

“1 Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and became servants of the Word. 3 It seemed good also to me, having been acquainted from the beginning with all things carefully (with accuracy) with method (an orderly account) to write to you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.”(Luke 1:1-4)

As we can see, “accuracy” is mentioned in the introduction of his work.

The entire structure of St Luke's Gospel aims to offer a way of personally receiving the Holy Spirit. Of course, there are other goals, but the final version and revision made to the Gospel of St Luke, particularly emphasises this aspect.

Bearing this in mind, let us follow Luke’s own words: what He wants to show us is a way to "become servants/ministers of the Word". "Word" here is the living Jesus, being God's Word for each one of us, all His Word, light, guide and presence on the journey. The Holy Spirit, in veritas, has a central role in the journey of becoming a servant of the Word! As we will see in the next section, the Act of Faith always relates to a Word uttered by God to the human being, and faith is to believe that God is capable of fulfilling what He says to us, and this He fulfils with the Help of the Holy Spirit. Let us remember that the key to the incarnation and the immediate explanation the Angel offers as to how "this can happen" is: "the Holy Spirit will come upon you…".

The First Chapter of St Luke's Gospel

The Conditions for a True Pentecost

One has to admit that the first chapter of St Luke's Gospel is a masterpiece, probably the most accomplished piece of the entire New Testament. It is probably one of the last pieces of the entire New Testament and one of the most mature ones, for it is a masterpiece of theological craftsmanship.

Since the general goal of St Luke is to offer us a means of becoming servants of the Word, the main act that commands the needed transformation is the Act of Faith. In the first chapter, St Luke lays down the foundations for the Act of Faith and he offers us Our Lady not only as an emblematic person who makes the Act of faith, but he will go further by stating that:

1- only Mary is capable to believe and this

2- she is the mother of all the believers.

Moreover, there is no contradiction between the teaching of St Paul and the one of St Luke. St Luke himself says at the beginning of his Gospel (see Luke 1:1) that he is basing his teaching on the previous existing teaching. Remember, St Luke claims to add greater precision and a "theological" order to the Christian Doctrine. Even given this, certainly, the core of the teaching is the same.

If St Paul and St Luke agree that it is necessary to justify Faith (see the letter to the Romans and the letter to the Galatians), there are differences! As we have said, Luke did have fifteen to twenty-five years to mature and deepen the conditions (requirements) of Justification. This deepening included what St Paul had essentially said in his letter to the Romans, and in his previous shorter letter to the Galatians (written in the years 53-58).

The first different element from St Paul is the exclusivity of Mary's Faith (excluding of course the faith of Abraham and others). Another point that we don't find in St Paul is the necessity of Mary's faith for all of us, clearly signified by the presence of Mary at Pentecost, with the apostles gathered around her. The necessity of acknowledging that Mary believed for me - this is God's plan for all of us!

For this reason, from the beginning of his Gospel Luke offers us a diptych: two annunciations, one that embodies any of us, the annunciation of the Angel Gabriel to Zachariah, and the second that offer us Our Lady.

If St Luke is keen on showing us how Zachariah and his wife are righteous in the eyes of God and fulfilling all Moses' commandments, and despite all this Zachariah (representing each one of us) is not capable of believing the Word the Angel Gabriel is conveying to him from God, this shows us that the righteousness of the first Covenant is not enough to make us believe in the Word of God: i.e. to listen to it and put it into practice. Something more is needed.

Believing in the Word of God, believing that God can fulfil what He says is the "act of faith" according to St Luke, which Zachariah fails to make. He moves on now to the second Annunciation showing us the only person who is capable of believing: Mary. She believes in all that the Angel imparts to her from God. But the most important part in Mary's annunciation is the second half of it where he mentions the ones who couldn't believe the Words of God transmitted by the Angel: Zachariah (and Elisabeth). When the Angel mentions Elisabeth, we can clearly see that Luke shows the challenging aspect of believing that Elisabeth is pregnant: she is old and wasn't able of conceiving.

By interweaving the two narratives and the faith, or lack of it, of the recipients in the two annunciations, Luke has a very clear aim which, furthermore, will be developed and confirmed in the visitation and the Magnificatin order to show us, first, that anyone, and not only Zachariah, is incapable of believing in the Word of God, in the New Covenant, and secondly that only Mary, the real golden Ark of the Covenant (Full-of-grace), is capable of believing, and last but not least, that Mary believed for herself and for each one of us when she believed that her cousin (who is old and barren) was pregnant.

It is during the Visitation of Our Lady to her cousin Elisabeth where Luke develops these aspects by showing us the meeting between the only one who is capable of believing, Luke will develop these aspects during the Visitation of Our Lady to her cousin Elisabeth by showing us the meeting between the only one who is able of believing and where the inability to believe is clearly acknowledged in the person of her cousin! acknowledgment of the incapacity to believe!

What we need to "see" here is something of utmost importance: Elisabeth, hearing Mary's greeting, is filled by the Holy Spirit. It is Luke's way of offering each one of us, through the person of Elisabeth a personal Pentecost, giving us in great detail the conditions for this Pentecost, and its use: giving birth in us to the first Act of faith in the Word, and ensuring that we make such acts of faith for the rest of our lives. for the rest of our life to make such acts of Faith.

Mary, in her Magnificat, will confirm this deep and new dimension of her spiritual maternity toward each one of us by saying: "all generations will call me blessed"! Elisabeth had previously explained why Mary should be considered "Blessed": "blessed is she who believed in the fulfilment of what was spoken to her from God" (Luke 1:45). This verse is amazingly crafted showing the most important aspect of Mary, and at the same time the practical structure of the Act of Faith. Mary herself is the perfect, unique embodiment of the Act of Faith as presented by St Luke: "let it be to me according to your Word". She believed that the double word said by the Angel could be realised by God, by his Power: the Holy Spirit.

(*Note that by “double word” is meant: one for Mary (she will conceive) and one about her Cousin (she conceived despite the fact that she is old and barren))

As Mary did with Elizabeth and Zachariah, going to visit them in haste, she does with each one of us. To each one of us Christians, there is a moment when Mary comes and knocks at the door of our hearts and greets us. When the Angel mentioned to Mary that her cousin was already pregnant, he waited for her Act of Faith, her “yes” to this news as well as to her own. In fact, she answered God and said: “let it be for me according to your word".

Her “yes” is for two Words given by the angel: the word for her and the word for and about her cousin. Elisabeth represents all of us, and Mary’s "yes" is said for all of us. This is why Luke presents this episode to us, and this is why Mary will say: “all the Generations (all of us) will call me blessed”! It is because she believed for each one of us, becoming thereby the mother of our Faith.

In this way, and after receiving the Holy Spirit upon hearing Mary’s Greeting, her Cousin, through her and with her, was enabled to say: “yes” thereby acknowledging that Mary was blessed because she believed for Zachariah and for all of us.

In a word then, Luke is telling us that Mary’s knocks comes to each one of us, comes at the door of our life, and brings us the “capacity to believe”.

Note:And, "en passant", let us notice how the text places John the Baptist in his rightful place, well beneath the only Saviour, his own Saviour: Jesus. As the Angel prophesized to Zachariah, John the Baptist was filled by the Saviour's Grace, by the Mother of the Saviour's Greeting, by the Holy Spirit, an essential point for Luke! If we now recall the “Johannites” crisis, we can see that this is the "final nail in the coffin" for their theories and very incomplete faith. Here is what Elizabeth says: "from where is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?"(Luke 1:43)

General Note:Luke's influence on our faith, on the entire Christian Revelation. Luke is not only the one who composed Luke and Acts, but he also  had an influence on other writings. We need to add that according to Father Boismard and other Exegetes, the Gospels of Matthew and John were revised and brought into harmony with this last version of St Luke's writings! In this sense the footprint of St Luke in Christianity is huge! Not only did he he quantitatively write a third of the New Testament (Luke and Acts), but he contributed to the final blending of the gospels of  with St Matthew and St John! Impressive!

Conclusion

Finally, what is the conclusion we can come to for all this? Luke was faced with clear evidence of the potential development the potential developing of a new deviation in the faith, coming from the Johnnanite's interpretation of the Messiah and his message, his salvation, and, as a result, he had to find answers to this. He saw what St Paul, his companion and maybe early master, offered: his letters to the Romans and to the Galatians. He certainly received very deep graces and help from God in order to find a solution. Indeed! We can't explain his solutions with the early data he had available from the Apostles and from St Paul were it not for these graces. What he is offering is a new and higher synthesis of Christianity, and a new description of Our Lady as a key person for Faith. The Faith that St Paul praised relentlessly in his letter to the Romans and the author of the letter to the Hebrews, now, under Luke's pen is embodied in one person: the unique and perfect disciple of Jesus, Mary, and the mother of all potential disciples! This is quite a statement!

Not only this, but at the same time, the Holy Spirit has in the version of the Way, a clearer and sharper role to play: He is the one who helps incarnate the Word of God.

We reach, here, the most perfect and final version of St Luke's writings.

Here is Luke’s good news for our Faith: Mary is knocking at the door of your heart; do you hear her knocking? And when you open to her, do you hear her personal greeting to you? Do you acknowledge that you can’t believe for Faith is a Gift? That she believed for you? That you can now believe through Mary’s Faith?

The final and wondrous conclusion we come to is that by receiving Mary’s visit and greeting we have our personal Pentecost! We experience God’s Mercy, giving us not only Faith, but the one who is our mother in Faith, the one who believed for us. We then can celebrate God’s Mercy with Mary our Mother.

Jean Khoury

Monday Pentecost 2018: Feast of Mary Mother of the Church
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