Feast of Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist

Biographical Information about St. Matthew

"St. Matthew and the Angel"
by Simone Cantarini, 1645-48

 
Readings for the Feast of Saint Matthew [1]
 
Readings from the Jerusalem Bible [2]
 
Readings and Commentary: [3]
 
Reading 1: Ephesians 4:1-7, 11-13
 
Brothers and sisters:
I, a prisoner for the Lord,
urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received,
with all humility and gentleness, with patience,
bearing with one another through love,
striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit
through the bond of peace:
one Body and one Spirit,
as you were also called to the one hope of your call;
one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
one God and Father of all,
who is over all and through all and in all.
But grace was given to each of us
according to the measure of Christ's gift.
And he gave some as Apostles, others as prophets,
others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers,
to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry,
for building up the Body of Christ,
until we all attain to the unity of faith
and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood,
to the extent of the full stature of Christ.
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Commentary on Eph 4:1-7, 11-13
 
St. Paul enjoins the Church at Ephesus to holiness and unity as part of his instructions on what it means to live the Christian life. Through one baptism (“the call you have received”) we are united in Christ and through Christ to God the Father. While humility is not listed in the Greek lists as a virtue, the evangelist raises self-effacing service of others to this status (see also 1 Corinthians 13:4, Galatians 5:22, and Colossians 3:12).
 
He goes on speaking of the unity of different parts of the living body of Christ, the Church, saying that different gifts were given (similar lists are found at Romans 12:3-8 and 1 Corinthians 12:1-31). He begins the list of gifts with those of spiritual leadership: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. These have been called to service to others.
 
CCC: Eph 4-6 1454; Eph 4-5 1971; Eph 4:2 2219; Eph 4:3-5 866; Eph 4:3 814; Eph 4:4-6 172, 249, 2790; Eph 4:7 913; Eph 4:11-16 794; Eph 4:11-13 669; Eph 4:11 1575; Eph 4:13 674, 695, 2045
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Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 19:2-3, 4-5
 
R. (5) Their message goes out through all the earth.
The heavens declare the glory of God;
and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
Day pours out the word to day;
and night to night imparts knowledge.
R. Their message goes out through all the earth.
Not a word nor a discourse
whose voice is not heard;
Through all the earth their voice resounds,
and to the ends of the world, their message.
R. Their message goes out through all the earth.
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Commentary on Ps 19:2-3, 4-5
 
Psalm 19 is a hymn of praise. In these opening strophes, the psalmist rejoices in God’s visible hand, revealed in all creation. It is the first of two themes expressed in the psalm (the other is in praise of the Law). While no word of God announces his presence, his glory is revealed in the creation of all things.
 
CCC: Ps 19:2-5 299; Ps 19:2 326
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Gospel: Matthew 9:9-13
 
As Jesus passed by,
he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post.
He said to him, “Follow me.”
And he got up and followed him.
While he was at table in his house,
many tax collectors and sinners came
and sat with Jesus and his disciples.
The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples,
“Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
He heard this and said,
“Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.
Go and learn the meaning of the words,
I desire mercy, not sacrifice.
I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”
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Commentary on Mt 9:9-13
 
The journey of Jesus continues with the Lord’s encounter with Matthew (Levi in St. Mark’s Gospel), the tax collector. The Pharisees are scandalized because this renowned teacher (Jesus) has chosen to associate with “sinners,” who clearly violate some of the numerous laws about ritual purity (Matthew 5:46). Jesus’ response, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice,” makes it clear that interior faith is more highly prized than purely ritualistic rigor.
 
This passage is the call of St. Matthew into discipleship. His profession, as customs worker or tax collector, would have stimulated controversy among the scribes and Pharisees, and the presence of others of the same type at the meal described, would have caused ritual impurity. However, as with his disciples, Peter, Andrew, James, and John, Jesus calls Matthew as he was engaged in his profession. The question the Pharisees ask, because such contact would have caused ritual impurity, would have been construed as a critical remark. The Lord responded with a challenge, quoting Hosea 6:6, and punctuated his response with the observation that those who were critical of his associations did not understand the scriptures they professed to represent.
 
CCC: Mt 9:12 581; Mt 9:13 589, 2100
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Reflection:
 
Have you ever wondered why the Church celebrates memorials and feasts dedicated to certain individuals whom we call saints, and for certain events in the life of the Church? Why is it important to remember, for instance, Saint Matthew the Evangelist? It is not as if we could forget who he is. He wrote one of the four Gospels and is listed as one of the Apostles.
 
Have you recently celebrated a birthday or anniversary for a member of your own family? Why do we do that? It is, first of all, to celebrate the gift of that person in our lives, and to honor them as member of our family or circle of friends. During these occasions, especially the more formal ones, we frequently recall a person’s exploits, accomplishments, and contributions to either our family or society as a whole. It is also a way of remembering them. We often celebrate birthdays (albeit frequently in a more somber way) of our loved ones who have passed from this life to the next. In love, we remember their contributions to our lives, and recognize their importance to us, even though they have gone on before us.
 
Today, as a community of faith, we remember St. Matthew (aka Levi), tax collector and, in the eyes of his contemporaries, a sinner. He was called to serve the Lord without fanfare while going about his daily work, work which was not held in high esteem by polite and religious society of the time. We especially remember him because Jesus chose him. No mention is made about any previous contact. The Lord just saw him sitting there and said “Follow me.” And he did.
 
We remember the fact that he didn’t have a long discussion about the practical virtues of his post vs. embarking on a road of poverty with an itinerant preacher who passed by. He did not say, “Let me think about it.” He followed, then and there. While we don’t hear much about his exploits while he walked with Jesus in those three years of his active ministry, we know he was there. We know this because he recorded it for us to read about. Isn’t it ironic that we know so little about the person who crafted one of the principal works of scripture? Even in the Gospel attributed to him, he never calls himself any more than a follower of Jesus. St. John had a habit of repeating at various times the phrase ”the disciple whom Jesus loved,” presumably himself (e.g. John 13:23; John 19:26; John 21:7). St. Matthew did no such thing. His humility is inspirational and quite appropriate, since he followed one who “emptied himself, taking the form of a slave” (Philippians 2:7).
 
To answer the rhetorical question asked at the beginning, we celebrate the lives of saints for the same reason we celebrate other important people and events in our lives. First, to give them honor, and second to remember the impact they have had on our lives. In St. Matthew’s case, as Apostle and Evangelist, he shaped us and the Church. Much like a parent (in this case something like a very good godfather) he made us into the people we are. For this we give him thanks, and ask in a special way for his ongoing prayers of intercession, for certainly one who walked with the Lord in life would be close to him in his heavenly kingdom.
 
Pax
 
In other years on this date: Tuesday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time
 

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[1] The picture is "St. Matthew and the Angel" by Simone Cantarini, 1645-48.
[2] S.S Commemoratio
[3] The readings are taken from the New American Bible, with the exception of the psalm and its response which were developed by the International Committee for English in Liturgy (ICEL). This republication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.