In this short passage, telling us of Jesus commissioning seventy-two disciples, Luke has presented several doctrinal points for our consideration and for the Church to develop in its missionary work. Let us consider two of them.

Luke is the only Evangelist to record this incident. His account shows that the instructions which Jesus gave to the seventy-two disciples are almost exactly the same as those which he gave to the twelve Apostles. Though St Luke and the early Church did not think in terms of clergy and laity, the parallelism of Twelve Apostles and Seventy-two Disciples provides a starting point for an authentic theological reflection on the missionary vocation of the laity as full members of the Church.

As he sends them out, Jesus reminds them of the need to pray for more workers in the Lord's vineyard. Let us seriously think of the whole world as the Lord's vineyard and pray that all members of the Church in their own way may be instruments of the Gospel and bring God's truth and justice to all who share with us the dignity of being the children of God.