St. Matthew is very dear to my heart, I think because I connects with his Gospel writings very easily. Not to mention how Jesus shows through Matthew that He will call even the worst and most outcast of souls to follow Him – even while they are in their sin.
St. Matthew (also, Levi) is one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ and the traditional author of the first Synoptic Gospel. His symbol is an angel, and he is a patron saint of tax collectors and accountants.
According to Matthew 9:9 and Mark 2:14, Matthew was sitting by the customs house in Capernaum when Jesus called him into his company.
“As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him” – Matthew 9:9
It was at the dinner following Matthew’s call (Luke 5:29) and due to his previous occupation that Jesus answered, “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:15–17).
What makes Matthew important is that he later wrote an account of Jesus’s life and ministry. As an apostle he was also an eyewitness to the accounts he wrote about. What I most love of Matthew’s Gospel is that it reads like a novel. It’s a story line capturing Jesus’ life and ministry from a normal man’s view and experiences. Matthew makes his witness believable and readable. And, enjoyable to witness alongside him.
If you’re looking for a way to read the Bible daily, I highly recommend you start with Matthew – read and meditate slowly upon just a story a day.
His humility and focus on Jesus, may explain why he does not mention himself although he is there wherever it says “the apostles.” As someone who was literate he may have taken notes along the way which he later incorporated into his Gospel account.
The accounts of the birth of Jesus and details about the visit of the Magi suggest he had first-hand information from Mary, mother of Jesus herself.
After his appearance in the upper room in Acts, Matthew disappears from the story. As is often the case the gaps in the narrative are filled in by tradition or legend. He is believed to have evangelised in Parthia and “was slain with a halberd in the city of Nadabah, A.D. 60.”
His feast day September 21,