Feast of Saint
Matthew, apostle and evangelist
(Ephesians 4:1-7.11-13; Matthew 9:9-13)
Sometime near the year 90 of the Lord a man we know as
Matthew wrote his gospel. He took the
Gospel according to Mark, a book of sayings that was being circulated among
first century Christians, and his own sources to form a testimony to Jesus
Christ. It would enlighten his community
somewhere in Syria regarding its mission.
The end of the first century was a time of profound
change in the Christian world. The Jews
had reorganized after the destruction of the Temple twenty years earlier. They could no longer tolerate Christians in
their midst. Christians as a result were
more apostolic than ever. They were
founding their communities now more than ever in Gentile and not in Jewish
areas. By ending with Jesus’s sending
his disciples to all the nations of the world, Matthew’s gospel reflects this
change of concentration.
Today’s passage indicates how a shift of emphasis was
part of Jesus’ historical mission. The tax
collector Matthew was not the author of the gospel although it is possible that
he provided some of its source material.
In any case he is an outsider because he is considered an extortionist
and collaborator with the Roman oppressors of the Jewish people. Nevertheless, Jesus calls him to become his
disciple to the complete chagrin of the narrow-minded Pharisees. He too must repent of any sins he has
committed, but he should not be labelled as unfit just because he collected
taxes. Jesus calls us as well. We must turn from our sinful ways, especially
those which despise immigrants and other socially shunned groups.
