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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.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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There was no one the Jews hated more in society than tax collectors. They were commonly known for being thieves, extorting exuberant amounts of money from citizens, even the poor.
The Jews had only one king – God – so paying taxes to the Romans was a type of infringement on God’s right as their sovereign king.
In fact, in Jewish law, tax collectors were forbidden from entering the synagogue; they were thrown into the same ritual lot as unclean animals, robbers, and murderers.
In a word, they were considered scum.
Yet it’s the tax collector, Matthew, whom Jesus invites in today’s Gospel to become his Apostle. This becomes one of the greatest examples of the Lord’s ability to see profoundly into the human heart, weighing not only what a person is, but also what they can become.
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For the next three years, Matthew will learn how to leave himself and his desires behind in order to follow Jesus. After the resurrection, he will set East to share the Gospel to the far edges of the known world – as far as Ethiopia, where traditionally he was martyred.
Matthew will leave behind his Gospel as a written testament to the transformation that Jesus causes – not only to a single human heart, but also to the world at large.
Each of us has been affected – changed – by the life and testimony of Matthew.
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He teaches us that following Christ can involve leaving worldly comforts behind in exchange for adventure.
Following Christ will make us shed our ego, putting on a new self.
Following Christ leads to a future unwritten – unknown to the human heart – but paved step by step in the Spirit.
“Can you leave yourself behind and follow me?” the Lord asks, not only to Matthew, but to each of us today.
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Image credits: (1) To follow Jesus, we must change our lives profoundly, National Catholic Reporter (2) The Calling of St. Matthew, Caravaggio (3) Whitehall Church of Christ