Saint Matthew			 September 21
Apostle, Evangelist
Matthew is listed as one of the twelve apostles of Jesus in Mark, Matthew, Luke and Acts. In Matthew’s Gospel he is identified as the tax collector who left his occupation to follow Jesus. In Mark and Luke, this same tax collector is called Levi, and it is usually assumed that Levi and Matthew are one and the same person, though that cannot be proved.
If Matthew is Levi, then he apparently collected taxes around Capernaum, which was in the district controlled by Herod Antipas. In Palestine, as elsewhere in the Roman Empire, the collection of taxes was farmed out to private entrepreneurs. The taxes were for Herod’s treasury, not Rome’s. Rome exacted tribute from its subject territories rather than direct taxes. According to Luke, when Levi became a follower of Jesus, he held a feast in Jesus’ honour, possibly in response to Jesus’ acceptance of him despite his despised occupation. He occupation would have made his fellow Jews regard him as being in the same category as robbers, prostitutes and sinners generally who were beyond God’s grace.
The early church believed that Matthew was the author of the Gospel that bears his name. Matthew may well be a significant figure associated with the origins of the Gospel. However, the Gospel as we have it has been shaped by the community of which Matthew was once part. The Gospel was put together by the final editor or redactor, who used most of Mark’s Gospel, a collection of Jesus’ teachings also used by Luke, and a smaller amount of independent material presumably from Matthaean church circles.
There are later legends surrounding Matthew and his exploits as an apostle and evangelist in the east, but they are of no historical value.
For Liturgical Use
Matthew’s name appears in lists of the twelve apostles of Jesus. According to Matthew’s Gospel, Matthew was a tax collector, though Mark and Luke call the tax collector Levi. According to Luke, when he became a follower of Jesus, Levi or Matthew held a feast in Jesus’ honour. Nothing else is known for certain about Matthew. The Gospel that bears his name may originate from a church associated with him, but it owes much also to other proclamations of the gospel message.
Sentence, Prayers and Readings as in A New Zealand Prayer Book - He Karakia Mihinare o Aotearoa, page 664-665