Feast of Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist
The Calling of Tax Collector- Mt 9:9-13
On his way to work that morning, Matthew did not plan anything extraordinary, he did not intend to change anything in his life. He was used to himself and his reputation. He did not know that that day someone was coming to meet him.
City.
Many towns and settlements grew up on Via Maris, but few had events such as those in Capernaum. The city's heartbeat was determined by the regular merchant caravans from Egypt through Damascus to Mesopotamia, and by the irregular news of Jesus' further deeds. Foreigners have already asked in the suburbs: is this the city of Jesus, is it his city, because the news is...
• Healed the fisherman Simon’s mother-in-law! - cried the young boy to market vendors thirsty for fresh sensations.
• Is it not the one who was lowered over the roof to be touched? - the depressed Pharisees asked, looking at the already efficient paralytic and paralyzed passer-by.
• How did he do it, that Deborah is well, that all bleeding stopped? - local medics wondered, reluctantly recognizing the effectiveness of his methods in the face of their twelve years of helplessness.
Even the Roman garrison shook as he healed centurion's servant. It was speculated in the city that this was a political move against the occupiers. And how much fear did the raising from the death of Jairus' daughter or the release of the possessed caused?
However, even the biggest events could not disrupt the daily profitable activities of the townspeople. It was only when the sun had gone to rest for the evening and the passing merchants had left everything, what they could have leave here, it was then that people went down to listen to him. Their sick were brought to the Rabbi to be touched by him.
Jesus loved these people very much. He did not demand payment for miracles and his teachings. All he wanted was faith. But that was the most difficult thing in the city. Unbelief was a common virus. A deadly virus. It is not known whether it was brought by foreigners or was it congenital, even genetically hereditary? Only the sick person could remove this virus. Even Jesus was helpless in the face of this affliction. Therefore, when he departed from there, he left a bitter reproach:” And as for you, Capernaum: ‘Will you be exalted to heaven? You will go down to the netherworld. For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.” (Mt 11:23). Many were outraged by the parting words, but no one sensed that they were a prophecy for the city. Seven centuries later, it disappeared completely from the face of the earth due to a strong earthquake.
The tax collector
As in every city, people are respected and there is a margin. There are religious people and those who have no place in such a community. The tax collector was on the same level with the thief, gambler and moneylender. In unblemished eyes he was unclean and regarded as a collaborator. The customs chamber which the Romans entrusted by the public tender was the cause of social stigma. The customs officer was a shame and an ulcer, the last man in town. On his way to work that morning, Mathew did not plan anything extraordinary, he did not intend to change anything in his life. He was used to himself and his reputation. He did not know that that day someone was coming to meet him, that he was looking for him, that that day would turn out to be different from others.
Jesus approached the chamber. He had no goods to declare. He came over to give Matthew a pearl that nobody in the city wanted to accept. He looked lovingly at the confused official. Matthew felt God's gaze on him. Sight that illuminates the heart. A sight that sees not only the sins of youth, but the potential of good that lies hidden in man. This sinner could even be an apostle!
• Follow me! said Jesus, destroying all the existing order, or rather the disorder of Matthew's life. As if he wanted to take him as a souvenir from this city. As if he wanted to blush the faces of all those, who came every day to listen to him and understood nothing, not believing him.
Matthew followed Jesus
Matthew got up and followed Jesus. It is impossible to resist God's love. The answer to it is madness, it is liberation, it is new life, it is the destruction of the old. Mathew understood that. The last in town followed Jesus first. He realized that he was condemned in the eyes of people, but not in the eyes of a merciful God!
And I?
A custom officer also lives in me, building customs chambers around and in them establishing selfishness as a tax tariff. Receiving praise, compliments, feelings, honors, favors, spiritual and material goods from other people. Often doing it dishonestly. This is a tax collector who thinks that happiness is about taking from others and keeping it only for himself. Jesus comes to call me out of this state, to deliver good in me. He shows me that love is giving yourself away to others.
How will I respond to Jesus' words and gaze? Will it be the answer of the inhabitant of Capernaum or of Matthew - the "inhabitant" of the customs chamber?
Caravaggio Painting: “The Calling of Saint Matthew”
This evangelical event can be admired on the beautiful Caravaggio painting “The Call of Matthew” Those of you who traveled with me to Rome had the opportunity to admire this masterpiece. On a canvas measuring 322 by 340 cm, Caravaggio depicted the moment in which Christ meets the tax collector Matthew (Levi) - an official collecting taxes and various types of fees for the Romans occupying Palestine.
The meeting between Matthew and Jesus is described in the words of the Gospel: " As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man named Matthew* sitting at the customs post. He said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. ” (Mt 9: 9). Caravaggio transferred this event to the present day. Jesus comes to the 16th-century customs chamber, a small, dark room with one small window, reminiscent of the atmosphere of Roman dives, where cards and dice were played, drinking alcohol at the same time. Contemporary for the artist are also the costumes of the five figures sitting at the table presented in the painting. Matthew, like his four companions, is dressed according to the current fashion. Here we see colorful velvets shimmering in the light and soft fur coats in contrasting green, red and gold colors, decorative feathers tucked behind the hats. They are juxtaposed with the modest and simple garments of Christ and St. Peter, who are wearing long, classic togas made of thick, heavy material in muted colors.
Matthew is sitting at a small table on the left side of the room. He is accompanied by four men of different ages, from an old man to a boy. A moment ago, they were probably busy talking and doing business, as evidenced by coins scattered on the table and a full purse lying in the right corner of the table, next to the inkwell and the open book. They were interrupted by the entrance of two men who can be seen on the right side of the painting, almost on the edge of it. It is Jesus and the apostle Peter, barefoot, modestly dressed as if they came from a different reality. Their figures are shaded, we only see the head and hand of Christ, and back and bare feet of St. Peter, covering the figure of Jesus.
The stares of the newcomers are directed towards Matthew, as is the outstretched hand of Christ resembling the hand of Adam in a fresco by Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel.
This gesture expresses the moment of calling, it is the embodiment of the Gospel words "Follow me!". In turn, the reference to Michelangelo's "Creation of Adam" emphasizes the relationship between the hand of God that creates and the hand of Jesus that saves. They can also be read as identifying vocation and conversion with the creation of man. Conversion allows one to be born again, to start a new life.
Matthew, however, does not seem to believe what is happening. He looks at the newcomers in amazement, points the finger of his left hand at himself, as if establishing a dialogue with Jesus. He is surprised that the choice of Christ falls on him - a tax collector, impostor, collaborator and sinner. So, we see Matthew at the most important moment in his life, when he must make a decision that will weigh on his fate. He knows that he has a free choice, that nobody is forcing him to do anything, but, as probably everyone, before making an important decision, he is afraid and hesitated. It is expressed in his surprised expression, his body language, his questioning gesture of his left hand, and his legs spread under the table, arranged as if he is about to rise.
Caravaggio showed the essence of the vocation in a masterful way. His painting clearly shows that the vocation can apply to every person of different age and social status, that it can come suddenly, at almost any moment and make a person give up their current life and choose a new path. He also emphasizes that not everyone will respond positively to Christ's call. The reactions of the men accompanying Matthew are very different. A boy sitting next to Levi, dressed in a golden garment, looks curiously at Jesus and the Apostle Peter. A young man with his back to the viewer reacts in a similar way; his silhouette turns towards the newcomers. The two figures on the left side of the painting seem completely uninterested in what is happening right now. The gray-haired old man leans over the table and, holding his glasses with his left hand, looks at the money scattered on the table. The dark-haired man sitting on the chair on the left is also indifferent to the situation. He leans over the table, carefully counting the coins. He remains indifferent to Christ's call, to God's light.
But Matthew got up and followed Jesus
Until Tomorrow
fr. george