Saturday after Ash Wednesday
In today’s Gospel, we hear the call of the apostle Levi (otherwise known as Matthew). Levi, would have been despised at the time because of his status as a tax collector. Tax collectors had a bad reputation in the times of Ancient Israel. They were known for extorting money (especially from the poor) on behalf of the Roman government, and living comfortable lives. Additionally, Levi was Jewish, and the Jewish were hostile to the Roman government. This makes the call of Levi unique to the call of the other disciples. Jesus calls Levi while he is in the midst of his sin, while he is still in the midst of a secular life.
We can imagine Matthew sitting at the customs post, just another day of work, profiting from the local people. Jesus walks by and sees Matthew. Immediately Jesus sees his heart. He sees the heart his heavenly Father created, which is good and beautiful, but also broken. Finally, Jesus says to Matthew with great gentleness and love, “Follow Me.” Matthew, head bowed and tired, recognizes Jesus as the Messiah, “leaves everything behind” and follows him. This is the great depiction of Caravaggio’s The Calling of St. Matthew. Jesus calls us while we are still sinners. This is precisely the message that the Gospel writers want to convey. Jesus does not wait to call us until we are virtuous or at a certain point in our spiritual journey. Even greater, he continues to call us even after we have decided to follow him. But, the decision is still ours, we can choose to receive God’s mercy and follow him or be content with our lives. This Lenten season is the time for us to repent and open our hearts to God’s mercy. A question we can reflect on this Lent is, “How is Jesus calling me to receive his Mercy?”
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning” (Lam 3:20-25).
Reflection by Eric, seminarian
Posted in Articles for Lent, Lenten Resources