Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Luke (6: 12-19) in which Jesus goes off by himself to pray about the selection his twelve Apostles. Fr Paul says prayer is important to Luke, which is why he shows Jesus spending the whole night in prayer before selecting the Twelve. The disciples find Jesus in prayer, also, when he teaches them the Lord’s Prayer and about the importance of persistence in prayer. Luke gives us the parable about humility in prayer as well as examples of prayer such as the three great canticles of the infancy narratives, not to mention other instances of prayer at critical moments in Jesus’ life; like when Jesus in the Garden and as he prays for the forgiveness of his executioners; so there is a beautiful rhythm of prayer throughout Luke’s Gospel. Fr Paul says it is also interesting to note that Luke alone mentions that Jesus ‘called them Apostles’, a title he reserves for those who witness to the Resurrection of the Jesus whom they have known in life, for this is their primary task. So it is Luke alone who makes the distinction between disciples and Apostles. Fr Paul says today’s Gospel Challenge is, simply, to recognise the importance of prayer in my life.
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