Apostle and Evangelist Luke.

Saint Luke was a native of Syrian Antioch and a physician, and from his youth he applied himself to seek after wisdom and to study the arts and sciences. He traveled all over the world to quench his thirst for knowledge, and had particular skill as a physician and in painting. Many scholars believe that Luke was a physician who lived in the Hellenistic city of Antioch in Ancient Syria, born of a Greek family, though his exact ethnic background—whether he was a Gentile or a Hellenic Jew—has been debated among scholars.

The Gospel he wrote shows his excellent command of Greek; he also knew Hebrew and Aramaic. This multilingual competence and rhetorical sophistication would later enable him to communicate the Gospel across diverse communities in the Mediterranean world. There is a tradition that Luke was one of the Seventy Disciples that the Lord Jesus Christ sent before Him, two by two, to announce salvation in the towns and villages. Luke was in Jerusalem at the time of the life-giving Passion and, on Easter morning, walked with Cleopas (October 30) towards the village of Emmaus, distraught at the loss of the Master.

Luke wrote his Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles at Rome in obedience to Paul, dedicating the Acts to Theophilus, the Governor of Achaia, who was a convert. In his Gospel, Luke adds details which are not found in the first two evangelists: in telling of the Savior's life, he especially stresses His mercy and compassion for sinful humanity that He has come to visit as a Physician (Luke 4:23; 5:31). And in the Acts, after telling of all that happened in the foundation of the Church at Jerusalem, he gives most attention to the work of his master, Saint Paul, who labored more abundantly than all the other Apostles in spreading the glad tidings of salvation.

Luke accompanied Saint Paul on his second missionary journey, and from that time they were inseparable. When Paul's coworkers had forsaken him, only Luke remained to assist him in his ministry (2 Tim. 4:10-11). After two years of imprisonment in Rome, Paul was released and immediately resumed his traveling ministry, followed by his faithful disciple Luke. Luke's presence with Paul during his final imprisonment in Rome is attested in Scripture itself, where Paul writes, "Only Luke is with me" (2 Timothy 4:11).

After the martyric death of the First-Ranked Apostles Peter and Paul, Saint Luke left Rome to preach in Achaia, Libya, Egypt and the Thebaid. On his return to Greece, Luke became Bishop of Thebes in Boeotia; he ordained priests and deacons, established churches and healed the sick in soul and body by his prayer. Luke was 84 years old when the wicked idolaters tortured him for the sake of Christ and hanged him from an olive tree in the town of Thebes, in Beothia of Greece. Though some sources say Saint Luke died here in peace in his eighties, other sources say he was crucified here to an olive tree and died a martyric death. The tomb works miracles even today. In December 22, 1997 at 1.30pm myrrh appeared on the tomb's marble and since then the interior of the marble sarcophagus is fragrant. The olive tree is still living to the right side of the cemetery in Thebes.

It is the tradition of the Church that Saint Luke was the first iconographer and that he painted an image of the Holy Mother of God in her earthly lifetime. The All Holy Virgin praised this representation and said, "May the grace of Him who was born of me be upon this image." Saint Luke afterwards painted other images of the All Holy Virgin and of the Apostles, giving rise in the Church to the devout and holy tradition of veneration of the icons of Christ and of His Saints. He painted icons of the Most-holy Theotokos—not just one, but three—as well as icons of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. For this reason, St. Luke is considered the founder of Christian iconography.

The Eastern Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic church and other major denominations venerate him as Saint Luke the Evangelist and as a patron saint of artists, physicians, bachelors, notaries, butchers, brewers, and others; his feast day is 18 October. His feast days are celebrated on October 18; on April 22 with Apostles Nathaniel and Clement; on June 20 on which day his relics, among others, were translated to the Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople; and on January 4, the synaxis of the Seventy. The veneration of icons throughout Orthodox Christianity stands as Luke's most enduring legacy, as his evangelistic work through art and word continues to bear fruit in the faithful's encounter with the sacred.

Saint Luke the Apostle and Evangelist was a native of Syrian Antioch, a physician enlightened in Greek medical arts, and one of the most accomplished figures in the early Church. As the author of more than one-quarter of the New Testament, Luke composed both the Gospel bearing his name and the Acts of the Apostles, dedicating both works to Theophilus, the Governor of Achaia. His writings preserve unique details about Christ's ministry and provide the only comprehensive account of the Church's foundation and expansion after the Resurrection.

From his youth, Luke devoted himself to the pursuit of wisdom and learning in the arts and sciences. He mastered multiple languages—Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic—and possessed a sophisticated literary style that distinguishes his Gospel as the most polished of the four. His medical knowledge is evident throughout his writings, particularly in the precise medical terminology he employs when describing afflictions and healings. He emphasizes Christ's merciful compassion toward sinners and the universal scope of salvation, showing special concern for the poor, women, and the marginalized.

Beyond his role as evangelist and historian, Luke is venerated throughout the Orthodox Church as the first iconographer. According to sacred Tradition, he painted several icons of the Most Holy Theotokos during her earthly lifetime, as well as images of the Apostles Peter and Paul. When the Virgin Mary beheld his icon of her holding the Christ Child, she pronounced a blessing: "May the grace of Him Who was born of Me and My mercy be with these icons." This tradition established the theological and devotional foundations for the veneration of sacred images in the Church. Luke is honored as the patron saint of painters, physicians, artists, and those engaged in the healing professions.

Following his faithful companionship with the Apostle Paul—remaining with him even when all other coworkers had abandoned him—Luke continued his missionary labors throughout Italy, Dalmatia, Macedonia, Libya, and Egypt. Tradition holds that he eventually became Bishop of Thebes in Boeotia, Greece, where he continued to preach and heal the sick. At the age of eighty-four, he was arrested by pagan authorities and martyred, reportedly hanged from an olive tree. His earthly struggles thus became a testimony to the faith he had proclaimed through both word and deed.