The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (1397 page)

(1572–1638).
Patriarch of Constantinople from 1620. His earlier experiences in church politics had turned him against Rome, and in correspondence with Dutch theologians he expressed more and more sympathy with the
Reformed churches
. His
Confession of Faith
published in Geneva in 1629 was an attempt to strengthen the Orthodox Church against Romanizing tendencies and bring it into dialogue with other Churches. His theology was finally condemned at the Synod of
Jerusalem
(1672).

 
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(Lat., ‘light-bringer’). In the
Vulgate
and
Authorized Version
of Isaiah 14. 12 (‘How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer’), an epithet for the king of Babylon. By some of the
fathers
it was taken in conjunction with Luke 10. 18 as a name for the
devil
, so that the whole passage Isaiah 14. 12–16 became one basis for the myth (developed in
Milton's
Paradise Lost
) that the devil is a rebellious
angel
cast into
hell
.

 
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(1504–88).
Spanish spiritual writer. Born in Granada, he became a
Dominican
in 1525. His spiritual writings, influenced by the
devotio moderna
, especially the
Imitation of Christ
and
Erasmus'
Encheiridion
, stress the importance of inward devotion. His books were condemned in 1559 but in revised form were widely influential, in particular on Francis
de Sales
.

 
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Luke, St
.

Travelling companion of
Paul
, and (according to tradition) author of the third gospel and
Acts of the Apostles
. Luke was a physician (Colossians 4. 11) who stayed with Paul in his imprisonment. Later tradition made him a painter, and in the Middle Ages a picture in Rome of the Virgin Mary was ascribed to him. He is the patron saint of doctors and artists. Feast day, 18 Oct.
The Gospel according to Luke is the third book of the New Testament. It forms a two-part work with the book of Acts.

 
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(Heb., ‘a shoot’). A palm branch connected with the Jewish
festival
of Sukkot. The lulav is one of the
four species
which are used in worship on the feast of Sukkot.

 
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(
c.
1233–1315).
Christian missionary, mystic and philosopher. At the age of 30, following a vision of the crucified Christ, he gave himself wholly to Christ's service as a
Franciscan
tertiary, and he sought in particular the conversion of Islam. He studied Arabic, went on various missionary journeys, and wrote. His system of thought is
contemplative
and
Neoplatonic
, and may owe something to
Sufism
. Among those he influenced was
Nicholas of Cusa
.
The Book of the Lover and the Beloved
describes how the lover (the faithful Christian) cannot reach the Beloved (God), except
through
love.

 
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