Matthew 9:9-13

Genesis 23:1-4, 19; 24:1-8, 62-67

Psalm 106:1b-2, 3-4a, 4b-5

Matthew 9:9-13

As Jesus passed by,

he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post.

He said to him, “Follow me.”

And he got up and followed him.

While he was at table in his house,

many tax collectors and sinners came

and sat with Jesus and his disciples.

The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples,

“Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

He heard this and said,

“Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.

Go and learn the meaning of the words,

I desire mercy, not sacrifice.

I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I offer you the sacrifice of my life, united to the sufferings of your Son. I will be merciful as you are merciful. I will strive for holiness and perfection as you are holy and perfect.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Matthew and the Economy of Salvation: In the Gospel, we learn about the call of Matthew the tax collector. As a tax collector, Matthew had the ability to read and write and was not illiterate. He produced the Gospel that bears his name. One of its characteristics is the economic language used all throughout the Gospel. He speaks about the debt of sin and the credit of righteousness, about storing up heavenly treasure, about how God forgives our enormous debt and expects us to forgive the debts of others, about how we will be paid for our labor, and about how we have been entrusted with the king’s talents and need to work to build up the Kingdom of the Heavens. We are able to do all of this because the Kingdom of the Heavens that Jesus has inaugurated has broken into this world. God’s grace given to us through Jesus and the Spirit empowers us to do meritorious works of charity that build up the Kingdom and store up heavenly treasure.

2. Mercy, Not Sacrifice: The Gospel highlights the contrast between the Pharisees and Jesus and how they deal with public sinners. The Pharisees were members of a reform movement that sought to live out the Law of Moses perfectly. The danger is that they have built up many human traditions to follow the Law and have forgotten the heart of the Law. Jesus invites the Pharisees to reflect on the meaning of Hosea 6:6: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” This is a Semitic way of contrasting two things and stressing which of the two is more important. God does not reject sacrificial worship. Both mercy and sacrifice are good. What the Pharisees have done is elevate meticulous observance of the Laws of sacrifice and have neglected the loving and merciful care of the people around them. “Life and liturgy are meant to form a unity, so that love for the Lord is expressed by obedience as well as ritual offerings (CCC, 2100). Going through the motions of worship without the heart’s adherence to God is hypocrisy (Isaiah 1:11-17; 29:13)” (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible, 1493). Jesus warns the Pharisees with Hosea’s words that their concern with ritual exactness has distracted them from the task of welcoming sinners back into a loving relationship with the Father.

3. Finding a Bride for Isaac: In the First Reading, Abraham is concerned with his son’s future. He doesn’t want him to marry a Canaanite woman. This anticipates a concern that marrying a foreign and pagan wife will lead to idolatry. A man will be tempted to worship the gods of his spouse (see Deuteronomy 7:1-4). The story in Genesis teaches us how God oversees everything in his providence and ensures the success of the mission of the servant to find a bride for Isaac. Both Abraham’s servant and Abraham’s son, Isaac, are presented as spiritual men who have personal and prayerful relationships with the Lord God. They sought to heed the word of God in all their actions.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I recognize myself as a sinner in need of your merciful love. Any victory I have over sin is due primarily to your grace and secondarily to my effort to collaborate with your grace. Do not let my heart grow prideful when I am victorious over sin. Do not let my heart be discouraged when I fail.

Living the Word of God: When I am with my friends, coworkers, and family, do I seek to share with them the love and mercy of God?