Jesus saw him through the eyes of mercy and chose him

Today, September 21st , as our church celebrates the Feast of Matthew, Evangelist, Apostle, our Church invites us to first read reflect on a passage from Saint Paul's letter to the Ephesians (4: 1-16), entitled "The different graces in the one body". Our treasure, which follows, is from a homily by Saint Bede the Venerable, priest. Born in Capernaum, Saint Matthew 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. The Gospel accounts of Mark and Luke, like Matthew's own, describe the encounter between Jesus and Matthew under the surprising circumstances of Matthew's tax-collecting duties. Jewish publicans, who collected taxes on behalf of the Roman rulers of first-century Judea, were objects of scorn and even hatred among their own communities, since they worked on behalf of the occupying power and often earned their living by collecting more than the state's due. Although relatively little is known about the life of St. Matthew, the account he wrote of Christ's ministry – traditionally considered to be the first of the four Gospels - is of inestimable value to the Church, particularly in its verification of Jesus as the Messiah. Saint Bede was an early eighth century English monk and an author and scholar. Saint Bede, trained by Saint Benedict, is one of the few saints honored as such during his lifetime. His writings were filled with such faith and learning that, even while he was still alive, a church Council ordered them to be read publicly in the churches. He is best known for his work, the "Ecclesial History of the English People", a source vital to the history of the conversion to Christianity of the Anglo-Saxon tribes. The central message of Epistle to the Ephesians is that God's plan is to unite all things in Jesus Christ and to form those who belong to Him into one holy Body, the Church. Through Christ's death and Resurrection, we are saved by grace, reconciled to God and to one another, and given a new identity as members of His Body, each receiving gifts from the Holy Spirit for the building up of the whole community. At its heart, Ephesians teaches that salvation is not simply something Christ does for us individually; Christ transforms us, unites us with Himself and one another, and sends us to live as His Body in the world. Taken together, today's readings teach that Christ calls each of us personally through His mercy, transforms us by His grace, and gives us a particular mission within His one Body, the Church. In our first reading from Ephesians, Saint Paul explains that Christ gives different gifts and ministries—apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers—not to elevate individuals but to build up the whole Body of Christ in unity and holiness; in our "treasure" from his homily, Bede the Venerable reflects on Jesus looking upon Matthew, a sinful tax collector, "with the eyes of mercy" and calling him to follow. Together these readings teach that Christ does not wait until we are perfect before calling us; He meets us as we are, looks upon us with mercy, calls us to leave behind what separates us from Him, transforms us through grace, and then sends us—with our particular gifts—to help build up His Church and lead others toward Him.