Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist

The Collect
We thank you, heavenly Father, for the witness of your apostle and evangelist Matthew to the Gospel of your Son our Savior; and we pray that, after his example, we may with ready wills and hearts obey the calling of our Lord to follow him; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The Psalm
119:33-40

The Readings
Proverbs 3:1-6     +     II Timothy 3:14-17     +     Matthew 9:9-13

As for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it, and how from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 
~II Timothy 3:14-15

Of the four canonical Gospels, Matthew's is in many ways "the most Jewish." More than the others, his Gospel continually quotes the Old Testament scriptures to "prove" that they are fulfilled in Jesus, who is the long-awaited Messiah. And in structure, Matthew's Gospel presents Jesus as a new Moses, which may itself be seen as fulfillment of the prophecy that the LORD would raise up a prophet like Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15).

This devotion to the Law and the Prophets, to "the sacred writings," is reflected in the readings appointed for this feast of St. Matthew. And yet, somewhat ironically, the traditional author of this Gospel was hardly a pious scholar (at least not initially). As one of the twelve disciples, Matthew (or Levi) was called to leave a profession as tax-gatherer to follow Jesus. As Lesser Feasts and Fasts puts it:

"Tax collectors were viewed as collaborators with the Roman State, extortioners who took money from their own people to further the cause of Rome and to line their own pockets. They were spurned as traitors and outcasts. The Jews so abhorred them that pious Pharisees refused to marry into a family that had a publican as a member. Clearly, Matthew was hardly they type of man that a devout Jew would have had among his closest associates."

And yet this was the man chosen by the devout Jew Jesus to be a member of his inner circle. This was the man whose name is connected with the Gospel that seeks to plumb the depths of the scriptures, and finds in them a witness to the life and work of Jesus Christ.

Consider your own life in comparison to Matthew's. Where do you see yourself in relation to "the religious institution"? Are you, or have you ever been, "an outcast"? What bearing, if any, does that have on your relationship to Jesus? How does your past and present familiarity with scripture, or lack thereof, impact the way you hear and understand the story of Jesus? What is the call of Jesus to you today?

Closing Prayer
Almighty and everlasting God, by whose Spirit the whole body of your faithful people is governed and sanctified: receive our supplications and prayers, which we offer before you for all members of your holy Church, that in their vocation and ministry they may truly and devoutly serve you; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
~an Ember Day collect, 'For all Christians in their vocation' (BCP, p. 256)