This is a reflection on the Mass readings of the day.
Matthew, whose feast we celebrate today, is best known for being a person sick with sin, a resented tax collector, whom Jesus came to heal. Oh and also, for writing one of the four most important texts in history: The Gospel of St. Matthew.
As so often is the case, the interplay between today’s first reading and today’s gospel is fascinating. Paul starts us off with a plea for unity, echoing Jesus’ priestly prayer in Jn. 17. Repeating a favorite theme of his, Paul talks about how people have different gifts, but all are necessary for the health and function of the one body.
If we look through history, what is the great destroyer of unity? The fundamental answer is obvious: It is the sin of the human will through pride and sensuality, and the consequent clouding of the human intellect. Sin sets us against one another, and as a result of sin, our intellects assess and understand reality differently from one another, sometimes radically so.
But let us take a closer look at the cause for disunity in the Christian Church, specifically. Why has the Church broken apart in ages past, and what strains it most today? In addition to the sins of Christians, it is our reaction to and magnification of the sins of others that performs the coup de grace on Christian unity.
Consider the Protestant Reformation. Hey Pope, you’re doing bad things. You’re living a worldly, sinful life, you are sensual and arrogant, and you are abusing the faithful through the sale of indulgences and similar misuses of power. So what am I going to do to purify the Church? Leave. I’m taking my ball and going home. Your sin trumps my loyalty to the Church that Christ founded.
We can wag our finger at Martin Luther and fellow reformers all we want, but how often do we act similarly? You, fellow Catholic, or maybe pastor of my parish, are superficial, arrogant, not spiritual, hypocritical, etc. So, I am going to criticize you bitterly, commit the grievous sin of gossip with no remorse, and even lose hope in Christ’s promise to protect His Church.
In doing all of this, even if I am a “faithful,” orthodox Catholic, a daily Mass-goer, etc., I am the one who is driving the definitive cleaver into Church unity.
What lies at the root of this sin? The root lies in a lack of the theological virtues, especially all-important Hope, without which Charity is impossible.. And the root of this lack, as of so many things, is a lack of a healthy prayer life. Even the benefit of frequent reception of the sacraments is severely truncated when we do not dedicate time to the cultivation of a vibrant life of contemplative prayer, that is, simple, daily dialogue with Jesus Christ where we seek to know His Heart. It is in the school of prayer that we learn Jesus’ view of our fellow Christians, which is not one of bitter, frustrated condemnation, but rather one of patient and loving mercy.
The apostles, even with all the flaws we may perceive in them in the Gospel, provide us with a mute but eloquent example for Christian unity. Never once do we see them questioning Jesus for inviting Matthew, a greedy and worldly tax collector, to be one of His disciples. Never do we see the thoughtful apostle St. John upbraiding the brash Peter, or questioning Jesus’ decision to choose him as prince of the apostles. Later, St. Paul, in questioning Peter on various Church matters, does so with a respect devoid of bitterness and harsh judgement.
What is the key to the unity and lack of bitterness among the apostles? It is contact with Jesus, and His treatment of the other, His love for their particular potential even in the midst of their weakness and sin. It is contact with Jesus that will build unity in today’s Church as well, and this contact for us translates into the powerful blend of contemplative prayer and sacramental life. This unconquerable blend turns our bitterness toward our fellow sinful Christians into recognition of their potential, and passionate zeal for their spiritual and temporal welfare, built upon serene, unshakable trust in the triumph of Jesus Christ.
Ideas for conversation with the Lord: Think of a fellow Christian with whom your struggle. Maybe it’s someone close, even your spouse; maybe it’s a more public figure. Ask Jesus how His heart contemplates that person, and what He wants for them. Ask Him to form your heart to be more like His. Maybe, like Matthew, that person will be called to turn around and make a powerful contribution to the welfare of the Church–through your love and intercession.
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