By his own admission, St. Luke was Divinely inspired to write his Gospel for this reason: “Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning and ministers of the word have handed them down to us, I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings you have received.” (1, 1-4)
St. Luke was also inspired to write the Acts of the Apostles (his “second volume,” so to speak), for this reason: to show how the salvation promised to Israel in the Old Testament and accomplished by Jesus was now under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and had been extended to the Gentiles. St. Luke tells how this was accomplished through the divinely chosen representatives (Acts 10, 41) whom Jesus prepared during His ministry (Acts 1, 21–22) and commissioned after His resurrection as witnesses to all that He taught.
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St. Peter is presented by St. Luke as one of the champions of the effort to “witness” to Jesus’ Resurrection and the descent of the Holy Spirit fifty days later. This week’s blog posts will give attention to St. Peter’s important role in the early Church and how that role is still visible and effective today. Tomorrow: St. Peter’s courage after having denied Jesus three times: a remarkable turnaround!
