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| “Matthew and the Angel” by Caravaggio, 1602 |
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
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
song of praise with the earth’s elements proclaiming the greatness of God who
created them. In all that is, the handy
work of God is proclaimed. Placed as it
is on the feast of St. Matthew, this passage with its antiphon reminds us of
the great work of spreading the Gospel of Christ.
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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 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 him as he is 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.
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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 without fanfare while going about
his profession, one 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 itinerate 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 waked 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 principle 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 a various times the phrase”…the Disciple whom
Jesus loved” presumably himself. 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.”
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 on-going 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: Monday
of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time
[1]
S.S
Commemoratio
[2]
The picture is “Matthew and the Angel” by Caravaggio, 1602
[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
re-publication is not authorized by USCCB and is for private use only.
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