There are two gospel passages that may be read on this last Sunday of the church year when on most Sundays the gospel lesson is from Luke. The passage we did not hear is the short narrative from Luke’s account of the crucifixion in which two wrongdoers, who were crucified with Jesus, speak to him. One of the two, the only person in Luke to address the Lord by his personal name, which means, “Savior” or “He will save,”[1] and also “The Lord has saved,”[2] is the wrongdoer who says, to the other who has mocked Jesus, “We are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.”[3] Turning to Jesus, this man says, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”[4] Jesus responds, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”[5]
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