St. Matthew

R.  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.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
We praise you, O God,
we acclaim you as Lord;
the glorious company of Apostles praise you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

– For the Church, a community of saints and sinners, that we, the People of God and our leaders, may not condemn those who have failed, but with God give them new chances in life, we pray:

– For people who have failed and no longer believe in themselves, in God or in the community, that they may draw new hope from our compassion and understanding, we pray:

– For priests and religious, that they may keep trusting in the Lord who called them notwithstanding their human frailty; that with Christ they may care especially for the poor and the weak, we pray:

Prayer over the Gifts

Lord God, merciful Father,
your Son, Jesus Christ, was eating
with tax collectors and sinners
because they needed him.
We bring this bread and this wine before you,
that he may sit at table with us
because we too, need him.
Accept his sacrifice and ours,
so that sins may be forgiven
and that we may live in your love,
now and for ever.

Prayer after Communion

Lord our God, merciful Father,
through your Son in our midst,
help us to be mild and compassionate
without condemning anyone,
for you have been gentle to us.
And do not let us boast
of our human achievements,
for we owe everything
to your grace and your call
in Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Blessing

“I desire mercy, not sacrifice. I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.” Let these words change our attitude toward people, also toward ourselves, and make us mild and understanding to everyone, with the blessing of Almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

REFLECTIONS

You cannot be the same 

In God’s sight, everyone is so precious and priceless treasure without any discrimination. God always loves us irrespective of the state or situation we are in. He loves us even when we are sinners and calls us to participate in his mission. We may be unworthy when we are called but once we are called, God wants us to become worthy of our call. The feast of St. Matthew teaches us exactly this. The Jews believed that they belonged to God and that they were obliged to pay tax only to God and to no one else. So, they hated paying taxes to the Romans, the foreigners and “the pagans”. Those who were collecting taxes for the Romans not only collected taxes from the citizens and paid to the foreigners but they also exploited and cheated the poor by collecting more than what was due in order to get more commission. Since Matthew was doing exactly this, he was hated greatly by the fellow Jews as traitor and exploiter. But see the compassionate attitude and sympathetic look of Jesus! Jesus loved him. Beyond his profession, Jesus saw the person Matthew and all that he was going through in him. The moment Matthew experienced the love of Jesus, the compassionate look of Jesus, he left immediately his job of collecting taxes for the Romans and became a new person, a new creation and committed himself totally for the mission. You cannot be the same after encountering Jesus!

21 September 2024

Jesus’ gaze transforms

Today, the Church celebrates the Feast of Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist. He is venerated as the patron saint of accountants, money managers, bankers, bookkeepers and finance officers.

Pope Francis says he developed a special devotion to St. Matthew when he was 17 years old. The gaze of Jesus completely overtook the tax collector and sinner Matthew. His gaze makes you feel that He loves you. This gives us the courage to follow Him. “Matthew got up and followed Him.” It changed Mathew’s life, and it changed Jorge Bergoglio’s life. “The calling of Matthew reminds us that when Christ makes us his disciples, he does not look to our past but to the future,” says the pope. He hopes that the gaze of Jesus changes our lives as well.

In today’s Gospel, we observe Jesus calling Matthew the tax collector. In Jewish society, tax collectors were frequently despised for collaborating with Roman occupiers and being corrupt. However, Jesus looks past Matthew’s job and social standing. Today, we are reminded that Jesus calls each of us, regardless of our past, to follow Him and be transformed. Matthew’s call encourages us to respond to Jesus’ call promptly and with a receptive attitude. It also challenges us to extend mercy and compassion to those around us, breaking down barriers of judgment and exclusion.

Jesus invites us to sit with him at the table of the Eucharist, in which he purifies us by the power of his word and by the sacrament unites us ever more deeply to himself. Citing the prophet Hosea, he tells us that what God desires is “mercy, not sacrifice”; true conversion of heart and not merely following some routine religious practices.