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The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. He said to them, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few."

Luke 10:1-2

Today, we celebrate St. Luke the Evangelist, who was a physician, author of two extensive texts in the New Testament and follower of St. Paul. We see in today's first reading that St. Luke remains with him while everyone else seemingly abandons the Pharisee turned Apostle. The author of one of the gospels would have understood the need to stay out in the field. 

In today's reading, St. Luke relays the event of Our Lord appointing the seventy (or seventy-two, according to ancient sources), sending them out two by two. Our Lord then remarks, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few.” Concerning those being sent out, St. Augustine comments the following, “Now as no one doubts that the twelve Apostles foreshadowed the order of Bishops, so also we must know that these seventy-two represented the presbytery, (that is, the second order of priests.)” Even today, Christ continues to call on young men to get up and go into His divine vineyard. 

If you are a young man of our diocese who feels like God is calling you into the vineyard, what is stopping you from taking the leap?

Almighty Father, through the intercession of St. Luke, may young men answer the call to labor for the salvation of souls.

Isaac Cruz is a seminarian for the Diocese of St. Petersburg in his Sophomore year at St. Joseph Seminary College in Louisiana. His home parish is St. Michael the Archangel in Clearwater. He was born in Deland, Florida, and raised in Mount Olive, New Jersey. He is a convert to the Catholic Church. 

Pray with us for the men and women discerning the priesthood and religious life.