Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Ngày 21/9 Lễ kính Thánh Matthêu Tông Đồ

 Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Ngày 21/9 Lễ kính Thánh Matthêu Tông Đồ

Trong tất cả những người đã theo Chúa Giêsu, Những người đã được chọn làm bạn và làm tông đồ của Ngài, chắc chắn ông Mathêu là người trong những người được Chúa chọn đã phải gặp rất nhiều tranh cãi nhất và là người có nghề nghiệp và đời sống khắc hẳn những người khác. Nhưng có một điều là ông là ngưòi có học, có khả năng và "thạo đời" hơn mọi người trong nhóm môn đệ của Chúa Giêsu. Sau hết, Ông là có một người nghề nghiệp 'chuyên môn' hơn trong số hầu hết là dân đánh cá. Nhưng "nghề" của ông trong những ngày đó, không phải là một nghề có rất uy tín "trong thực tế, đó là một nghề mà dân do thái được coi là một nghề tội lỗi vì là người thu thuế cho chính phủ ngoại bang. Để kiếm sống, những người làm nghề này thường lạm dụng quyền hành của mình để là giàu một cách nhanh chóng, họ luôn tìm cách áp đặt thuế nặng trên người dân, và vì thế Chúa Giêsu đã bị người pharisêu chỉ trích vì Ngài đã cùng ăn chung bàn với những Người Thu thuế .

Tin Mừng hôm nay cho chúng ta thấy việc Chúa Giêsu đã gọi Matthêu. Nhưng đoạn Tin Mừng này cũng nói thêm và chú trọng hơn về những gì xảy ra sau bữa ăn tối, Chúa Giêsu đã mạnh mẽ lên tiếng bênh vực cho người môn đệ mới của Ngài. Đối với nhóm người biệt phái, và những người chỉ biết quan tâm đến những việc thi hành luật lệ bề ngoài, Ngài nói: "Hãy đi và tìm hiểu về ý nghĩa của những Lời Chúa đã dạy: “ Những gì Ta muốn là tâm hồn có lòng biết thương xót, chứ không không là sự hy sinh". Nhiều người đã kinh ngạc và thất vọng vì Ngài đã nói rằng Ngài đã đến là để kêu gọi người tội lỗi, chứ không phải là những người đạo đức, thánh thiện. Những người Kitô hữu tốt, đôi khi đã bị sốc nặng khi được nhắc nhở về những lời của Chúa Giêsu, và Ngài đã dành nhiều thời giờ cho những người mà xã hội đã coi là "không thích hợp".

Trong số bạn bè, những theo Chúa đều không có sự giới hạn, và mỗi người chúng ta đều có một chỗ vị trí đặc biệt trong bàn tiệc với Chúa và chúng ta cũng có những vài trò riêng của chúng ta ngay tại bàn của Ngài.

Lạy Chúa, xin giúp chúng con được sống trưởng thành hơn trong tình bạn với Chúa và tất cả những người khác, trong cùng một Thân Thể Chúa Kitô.

Reflection SG 21/9 Saint Matthew

Of all the followers Jesus called to be His close friends and then apostles, surely Matthew must be the most controversial and different from the others. For one thing, he was likely the most “worldly-wise” of the whole group: he was, after all, a ‘professional’ among mostly fishermen. But his “profession” was, in those days, not a very reputable one” in fact, it was considered a sinful occupation because tax-collectors made their living by squeezing money from people, and they were sometimes really harsh and grasping. That Jesus counted tax-collectors among His friends was a constant criticism of Him by self-righteous people.

The Gospel is very brief about the actual calling of Matthew. But it says more about what happened afterwards at the dinner-table, when Jesus strongly spoke up for His new friend. To Pharisees, who were so keen on exact observance of God’s word and laws, He said: “Go and learn the meaning of the words: What I want is mercy, not sacrifice”. They must have been shocked at this; and even more when He said He had come to call sinners, not those already virtuous. Good Christians are sometimes shocked to be reminded of these words of Jesus, and that He spent time with people who were considered socially “improper”.

There is room for every sort of person among Jesus’ friends, and each of us has our own special place and role at His table.

Lord, help us to mature in friendship with all of the others, in the Body of Christ.

21/9 Saint Matthew 2022

Opening Prayer: Lord, thank you for calling me to this moment of prayer with you. You know my weaknesses, my faults, my sins, and you still call me into friendship with you. At this moment, help me say yes to whatever it is that you ask of me. Jesus, I believe in and trust in you. I offer this time out of love. Help me love you more.

Encountering Christ:

1. Follow Me: Jesus called Matthew amid his daily work—just as he called Simon and Andrew while they were fishing (Matthew 4:18) and James and John while they were mending their nets (Matthew 4:21). Today, Jesus calls us to follow him amid our duties in our state in life. He asks us to leave behind anything that keeps us from living a life centered on him. For some people, this may mean changing careers. For others, it may mean prioritizing one’s time so that the family receives more attention. Others may find that Jesus’ call to follow him means changing what they watch on TV, what movies they go to, or what they read. It may also be a call to follow Jesus into a life of simplicity, changing what one buys or what portion of income is given to support God’s work. May we generously respond to whatever Our Lord asks us to leave behind as we follow him more closely.

2. Sitting with Sinners: Most Gospel stories show Jesus meeting people somewhere other than a synagogue or the Temple. He went out to meet people where they lived and worked. In this Gospel passage, he went to the home of a sinner to meet other sinners. Pope Francis insists again and again that we go to the periphery of society to encounter and accompany those who are marginalized. In his encyclical Fratelli Tutti (On Fraternity and Social Friendship) the Holy Father writes, “Each of us can learn something from others. No one is useless and no one is expendable. This also means finding ways to include those on the peripheries of life. For they have another way of looking at things; they see aspects of reality that are invisible to the centers of power where weighty decisions are made” (n. 215). How open are we to others who see things differently from our point of view?

3. I Came to Call Sinners: St. John wrote, “If we say, ‘We are without sin,’ we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us’” (1 John 1:8). In other words, we are all sinners, and “we must admit our faults” in order to receive God’s mercy (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1847). As the Catechism further explains, “There are no limits to the mercy of God, but anyone who deliberately refuses to accept his mercy by repenting, rejects the forgiveness of his sins and the salvation offered by the Holy Spirit” (CCC 1864). How great that mercy is when one recognizes the need for repentance and turns to God. One story illustrating this is that of Dr. Bernard Nathanson, a man who accused himself of being involved in over 75,000 abortions. Just before becoming Catholic, he said, “I will be free from sin. For the first time in my life, I will feel the shelter and warmth of faith” (1996 interview in Crisis Magazine on EWTN website). May we see where we need the Lord’s mercy, especially in any areas of our life where we have rationalized or justified choices that are incongruent with the Gospel.

Conversing with Christ: Lord, there is no sin so great that it cannot be overcome by your mercy. Help me see those who seem far from you with your merciful eyes, and remember that you are calling them, even if they don’t hear your voice at this time. Lord, I ask that you give me the grace to stay close to you so that I can share you with all those I encounter in my daily life.

Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will pray one decade of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy slowly and thoughtfully for those I struggle to love.

21/9 2021 St. Matthew

Opening Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, I come before you in prayer. I consider it both a duty and an honor to spend time with you in prayer. Increase in me the virtues of faith, hope, and love. Please open my heart and mind with your grace, so that like St. Matthew I may hear your call and respond with generosity.

Encountering Christ:

· “Follow Me”: “As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post. “He said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him.” It is a mystery why Jesus called the men whom he did to be his apostles. Matthew was a tax collector, Simon was a Zealot, many were simple fishermen, and Judas would betray him. He was aware of who they were and what they would do, and still, he called them. In another passage, it states that Jesus “summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him” (Mark 3:13). Therefore, Jesus’s love for the soul is the reason for his call. Our Lord calls every soul to live in union with him. This is the universal call to holiness, which is at the heart of every vocation. However, Our Lord’s call is never generic. Jesus looks on each person with particular love and beckons them to a unique path (Mark 10:21).

· Matthew Immediately Followed: When Jesus called his apostles, they immediately left everything and followed him. The apostles’ immediacy says something about the command and attraction in Jesus’s voice and demeanor, but it also says something about the apostles since not everyone responded with such generosity (Mark 10:22). They were interiorly prepared to hear the call and respond. What was it that prepared them? How did grace touch their hearts prior to their encounter with Jesus? Specific to Matthew, we can imagine that certain fatigue and disillusionment with the lifestyle associated with being a tax collector had taken root. The high life of money and parties no longer filled him. He longed for more—for truth and for goodness. He longed for God. Then, when he heard Our Lord’s voice, a deep stirring in his spirit told him, “This is it—what you have been waiting for! Follow him!”

· “Many Tax Collectors and Sinners Came”: “While he was at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat with Jesus and his disciples.” Matthew may have come to despise the lifestyle he had been living, but he did not despise those with whom he had shared such a lifestyle. They had been his friends, and now he wanted to introduce them to Jesus, the rabbi who had so quickly and dramatically changed his own life. They came not only because of Matthew’s invitation, but because they had heard that Jesus was a friend of sinners and tax collectors (Matthew 11:19). Our Lord’s goodness gave them the confidence they needed to approach him. Perhaps several of them decided to follow Jesus that evening. Matthew had done so, why couldn’t they?

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus Christ, I marvel at the grandeur of your patient and persistent pursuit of each soul. However, you also seem to frequently gain followers in clusters. In calling Matthew to follow you, you also reached out to his immediate circle of friends and acquaintances. You called Andrew, Peter, James, and John as a group. In calling St. Bernard of Clairvaux to the monastery, you also encouraged his brothers and several friends to join him. May I also be so receptive to you that your grace may reach many more through me.

Resolution: Lord, today by your grace I will share with a friend something you have done to build up the Kingdom.

Suy Niện Tin Mừng Matthew 9:9-13. Lễ kính Thánh Mat-thêu Tông Đồ

Thánh Mat-thêu là một người Thu thuế và chắc chắn là Mat-thêu cũng đang cố gắng nhiệt tình và rất chăm chỉ trong việc làm của ông vì ông mong muốn có được sự giàu có. Nghề thu thuế của ông là nghề rất dễ làm giàu và cũng là nghề mà dân chúng Do Thái rất chê ghét và kinh miệt vì họ là những người thu thuế cho đế quốc La Mã và họ là những ngưòi hay dựa vào quyền thế của La Mã để hà hiếp và bóc lột dân lành bằng cách lấy thuế cao. Ông được xem như là người hợp tác với kẻ thù, làm giàu trên sự đau khổ và cực nhọc của dân Do Thái. Tất cả những người dân Do Thái dù là giàu hay là nghèo, dù là hợp pháp hay bất hợp pháp họ coi thường những người thu thế và thuờng hay tẩy chay họ. Để chấp nhận một cuộc sống như vậy, Mat-thêu phải có một tham vọng, phải ham muốn và đam mê sự giàu có.

Rồi một ngày đó, Chúa Giêsu dừng lại ngay bàn thuế nơi Mat-thêu làm việc. Chúa Giêsu chỉ nói ba tiếng ngăn gũi: “Hãy theo ta” Mat-thêu ngay lập tức đứng dậy, bỏ lại tất cả để theo Chúa, Mat-thêu đã bỏ lại sau lưng tất cả, thậm chí cả những mộng ước, và những đam mê trong việc làm giàu của mình, để theo Chúa Giêsu, để đi theo một lối sống bình dị, đơn sơ, nghèo đói, để phó thác và lệ thuộc hoàn toàn vào Chúa. Thánh Mat-thêu đã tìm thấy một tình yêu vô biên nơi Thiên Chúa còn quý trọng hơn nữa so với sự giàu có ỏ trần gian.

Chúng ta cũng mời gọi để theo Chúa làm làm tông đồ như Thánh Mat-thêu. Trong phép Thánh tẩy, mỗi người chúng ta đã nhận được ánh sáng của Chúa qua người đỡ đầu vì thế, hôm nay Thiên Chúa mong muốn chính chúng ta hãy thắp lên ngọn nến đó để toả sáng ánh sáng của Chúa Kitô đã ban cho chúng ta lúc Rửa tội để đọi chiếu ánh sáng Yêu Thương của Chúa Kitô và giá trị ơn cứu độ của Chúa cho thế giới trần thế của chúng ta hôm nay. Lòng tham muốn cho sự giàu có vật chất là một trong những trở ngại chính cho sự thành công trong nhiệm vụ này. Vì nếu như chúng ta thật lòng với chính mình, chúng ta phải thừa nhận rằng: những của cải vật chất thế trần này rồi sẽ mất đi, chỉ có tình yêu của Thiên Chúa mới có giá trị cho cuộc sống đời đời của Chúng ta.

Meditation:

What is God's call on your life? Jesus chose Matthew to be his follower and friend, not because Matthew was religious or learned, popular or saintly. Matthew appeared to be none of those. He chose to live a life of wealth and ease. His profession was probably the most corrupted and despised by everyone because tax collectors made themselves wealthy by over-charging and threatening people if they did not hand over their money to them. What did Jesus see in Matthew that others did not see? When the prophet Samuel came to the house of Jesse to anoint the future heir to the throne of Israel, he bypassed all the first seven sons and chose the last! "God looks at the heart and not at the appearance of a man" he declared. David's heart was like a compass looking for true north – it pointed to God. Matthew's heart must have yearned for God, even though he dare not show his face in a synagogue – the Jewish house of prayer and the study of Torah – God's law. When Jesus saw Matthew sitting at his tax office – no doubt counting his day's profit – Jesus spoke only two words – "follow me". Those two words changed Matthew from a self-serving profiteer to a God-serving apostle who would bring the treasures of God's kingdom to the poor and needy.

John Chrysostom, the great 5th century church father, describes Matthew's calling: "Why did Jesus not call Matthew at the same time as he called Peter and John and the rest? He came to each one at a particular time when he knew that they would respond to him. He came at a different time to call Matthew when he was assured that Matthew would surrender to his call. Similarly, he called Paul at a different time when he was vulnerable, after the resurrection, something like a hunter going after his quarry. for he who is acquainted with our inmost hearts and knows the secrets of our minds knows when each one of us is ready to respond fully. Therefore he did not call them all together at the beginning, when Matthew was still in a hardened condition. Rather, only after countless miracles, after his fame spread abroad, did he call Matthew. He knew Matthew had been softened for full responsiveness."

When the Pharisees challenged Jesus' unorthodox behavior in eating with public sinners, Jesus’ defense was quite simple. A doctor doesn’t need to visit healthy people; instead he goes to those who are sick. Jesus likewise sought out those in the greatest need. A true physician seeks healing of the whole person – body, mind, and spirit. Jesus came as the divine physician and good shepherd to care for his people and to restore them to wholeness of life. The orthodox were so preoccupied with their own practice of religion that they neglected to help the very people who needed spiritual care. Their religion was selfish because they didn’t want to have anything to do with people not like themselves. Jesus stated his mission in unequivocal terms: I came not to call the righteous, but to call sinners. Ironically the orthodox were as needy as those they despised. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).

On more than one occasion Jesus quoted the saying from the prophet Hosea: For I desire mercy and not sacrifice (Hosea 6:6). Do you thank the Lord for the great mercy he has shown to you? And do you show mercy to your neighbor as well?

"Lord Jesus, our Savior, let us now come to you: Our hearts are cold; Lord, warm them with your selfless love. Our hearts are sinful; cleanse them with your precious blood. Our hearts are weak; strengthen them with your joyous Spirit. Our hearts are empty; fill them with your divine presence. Lord Jesus, our hearts are yours; possess them always and only for yourself.” (Prayer of Augustine, 354-430)