ST. JOHN the EVANGELIST CCD
Grades:  Kindergarten through Junior High
Phone: 916 -483-4628
Email: ccd@sjecarmichael.org

September 19

Our Divine Father has called all our CCD children and their devoted catechists to join us on Sunday, September 26, at 8:55 am to travel again down the path in the footsteps of Jesus for our Religious Education Program. God bless all our catechists, who came forward this Sunday to be blessed and commissioned to exercise the ministry of Catholic Religious Instruction at St. John the Evangelist Parish.

On Tuesday, September 21, we will celebrate the feast day of one of the most prominent writers of the New Testament, St. Matthew the Apostle. Although little is known about his personal life, St. Matthew is considered to be the patron saint of tax collectors, accountants, bankers, and bookkeepers. Historians know that Matthew was from the tribe of Levi, his father’s name was Alpheus, and he was contracted by the Roman Empire to collect taxes from the Jews in Capernaum. Actually, the name Matthew was probably a more personal name.

As a Jew, stepping into the profession of a tax collector was truly an act of betrayal to his people. Tax collectors, or publicans, meticulously recorded and documented tax information for the government. In these times, tax collectors were well known for lying about the amount that the people owed, and they often pocketed the difference between what the people actually owed, and what the tax collectors were charging them. Frequently, they stole from the poorest people. The Jewish populace despised tax collectors for their unfairness and their greed, and they were considered to be the embodiment of sin.

When Jesus called Matthew to follow Him, he was in Capernaum, a city on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. This is Matthew’s own account of how he began his new life with Jesus. “As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. ‘Follow me’, He told him, and Matthew got up and followed Him.” Matthew 9:9. The Jewish people could not imagine a more unlikely person for Jesus to call in as a companion. Tax collectors were even excluded from synagogues and temples. Then, on the next day, Jesus even ate at Matthew’s house with Matthew’s friends. Local leaders in Capernaum later commented, “Why does He eat with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus’ response to this remark was, “Those who are well have no need of a doctor; sick people do.” So, because Matthew was in need of friendship, Jesus invited him to receive the healing friendship of God. Jesus showed us all that no matter who you are, God wants all of us to share in His life. By calling Matthew to become His disciple, Jesus was proclaiming that no one would be excluded from His movement, not even those that society considered to be irredeemable. Throughout Jesus’ ministry, Matthew was in Jesus’ inner circle of followers.

According to tradition, Matthew wrote down all the stories of Jesus in Aramaic, which was the ancient Hebrew language used in Palestine. His Gospels were written between 42 A.D. and 50 A.D. or later to convince all believers and non-believers that the Messiah had come in the person of Jesus Christ. Matthew’s Gospels stressed Jesus’ human and kingly characteristics. It has been recorded that Matthew’s apostolic activity was first confined to communities in Palestine, but he also labored in Ethiopia, Parthia, and Persia. There were reports that St. Matthew died a martyr’s death in Ethiopia, but he may have died a natural death. St. Matthew’s image in art is often portrayed with an angel, and he is also called the Apostle of Ethiopia.
OUR PRAYER:  GOD, YOU CHOSE ST. MATTHEW THE PUBLICAN TO BECOME AN APOSTLE. BY FOLLOWING HIS EXAMPLE, MAY WE ALWAYS FOLLOW AND ABIDE BY YOUR WILL. AMEN

Yours in Christ,
Mrs. Joanne Giffard, CCD/Religious Education Coordinator                                                                                   ccd@sjecarmichael.org