By Bishop Gregorios of Mesaoria
Today the Church commemorates the Holy Apostle and Evangelist Luke, the author of the homonymous Gospel and of the Book of Acts, two of the 27 canonical books of the New Testament.
Originating from the great spiritual center of the antiquity and Christianity, the famous Antioch of Syria, Luke studied Greek medical arts and became an excellent physician. Following his meeting with the Apostle Paul, in Greece where he practiced medicine, he faithfully followed him on his tours and offered him much more than the necessary medical care. Indeed, as the Apostle to the Nations states, only Luke accompanied him and supported him even during his imprisonment.
After the martyrdom of his teacher (64 AD), he traveled to various places, especially in central Greece, where he preached and contributed greatly to the prevalence of Christianity.
He died and was buried in the area of Boeotia at the age of about 80. In the 4th century his relic was transferred to Constantinople and was deposited in the church of the Holy Apostles.
Evangelist Luke is considered to be the first hagiographer of the Church, having, according to tradition, made three icons of Theotokos with wax and mastic, which he exhibited to the Virgin Mary herself and She blessed them (including the icon of Eleousa of Kykkos monastery). According to tradition, Evangelist Luke painted more than seventy icons of Theotokos, which are found in various monasteries and shrines of Cyprus and the broader Orthodox world.
Today, among other temples, the parishes of Saint Luke at the Turkish-occupied part of Cyprus are also celebrating, such as the one in Old Nicosia, where the church has remained dormant and unopened since 1958, the one in Musulita, the parish church of Lapithos and the homonymous chapel at Chrysida in Kythrea. Also the parish churches in Famagusta, in Palaichori, in the township of Kokkines in Strovolos, in Paphos, in Limassol and in Aradippou, are celebrating.
Source: Church of Cyprus
