Saturday of the First Week In Ordinary Time
It’s striking how different Levi and the crowd that Jesus eats with in today’s gospel are from Saul in today’s first reading.
Saul, we hear, was the most handsome man in Israel; he “stood head and shoulders above the people” and had a “a stalwart man” for a father. We know from the readings over the past week or so that the elders of Israel demanded that Samuel give them a king to rule over them, so that they might be like all of the other nations. Samuel asks God to grant their desire and God does, designating Saul as the first king. By the description of Saul and his family, no one would have been surprised at the choice of Saul. He seems almost the very definition of a righteous man.
Levi (called Matthew in other gospels), on the other hand, is a tax collector. Tax collectors were so reviled by their fellow Jews because they worked for the Romans. Whatever extra money they collected over and above what Rome required became their payment. They often took full advantage of their position, extorting their fellow Jews in the name of the Empire that oppressed them. Jesus, however, calls Levi to be an apostle. The people, in this case the Pharisees, are surprised. Levi doesn’t seem like the likely type. If Jesus is the Messiah, God’s chosen one, why is he associating with such lowlifes?
Levi is a faithful follower of Jesus and a pillar of the early Church. Saul, on the other hand, turns out to be less-than-righteous in many ways.
One lesson for us to learn here is that God’s call of discipleship involves different missions; that is God charges each of us with different tasks in building the Kingdom of God. Secondly, and I think more importantly, these readings push us to ask questions about our desires and our expectations. Is there room for us to be surprised at God’s work and through whom He chooses to accomplish it? Do we allow the Holy Spirit enough room to work in our lives? Do we continue to look for God in all places, places as dark and scary as Calvary… in a collection of sinners? Or do we fit God into our own box, trying to make the Spirit conform to our expectations and desires?
- Tim Gabrielli