Feast of St Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist
Born at Capernaum, St Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist, was working as a tax collector when he was called by Jesus. He wrote his gospel in Hebrew and is said to have preached in the East [cf the Office of Readings, for the Feast of Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist (September 21), Liturgy of the Hours].
He was the son of Alpheus and is known as Levi in the gospels of Mark and Luke. Thus, it is thought that Matthew is the name given him by Christ. He is represented with an angel as a sign of his new life as a messenger of Christ. The angel (or figure of a man) can be found in the symbolism of Revelation, Ezekiel and elsewhere in Scripture. St Matthew, himself, is only mentioned five times in the New Testament. And, in the New Testament, the phrase “The Kingdom of Heaven” is used exclusively by him. He is the patron saint of accountants and bankers, bookkeepers, financial officers and tax collectors, stock brokers, guards and security personnel, among others.
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Art for this post on St Matthew the Evangelist and Apostle: St Matthew the Evangelist (shown with his traditional symbol; at St. Anthony’s Catholic Church, Steinauer, Nebraska, USA), Corbert Gauthier, 2013, copyright, all rights reserved, used with permission.
