Matthew - Do Not Judge
A Reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Ephesians
"Brothers and sisters, I, Paul, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.
It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ."
The Word of the Lord.
R\ Thanks be to God
A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew
At that time, as Jesus passed by, 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. While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples.
When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?" On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. Go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."
The Gospel of the Lord.
R\ Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ
Homily Reflection
Here today, on the feast of this apostle and evangelist, Saint Matthew, we can easily understand that God calls us because we need Him, not because we are already good.
We have a false puritanism in the Church, and surely in all Christian churches — a mindset that pretends only the "good" people can serve, read, sing, distribute Holy Communion, coordinate ministries, or act as church servants.
But those who consider themselves "good" in this way aren't actually good, at all; they are hypocritical Pharisees.
The Lord does not call those who label themselves "righteous"; He calls those who are in need of grace, and He pours out His grace upon those who need it. Those who believe they don't need grace end up serving not through God's power, but through their own self-indulgence.
When will we understand that service to God is not rendered by a person who is perfect and worthy, but by those who are instruments of God? And God creates that opportunity. We are sinners; we are human. It is sometimes incredible the false puritanism we harbor .
Yes, it is good to go to confession and strive to stay in a state of grace when serving — the closer we are to God's grace, the better.
What is not right, however, is thinking, "I don't feel worthy, so I can't serve," or even worse, "I deem that you are not in a state of grace, so you aren't allowed to serve."
Really? How do you or I know whether another person is in a state of grace? Am I their judge? We demand that people be flawless, but who made us judges over others?
We do a lot of damage to the faithful with these Pharisaic traditions that demand everyone measure up to your standard, and be pristine before they can step up.
I remember once such episode worth telling. I was assisting at another parish and, right as Sunday Mass was about to begin, an anxious lector came up to me and said, "Father, do you have time? I need to confess right now."
I told him, "Look, please now is not the time for confession - right before Sunday Mass with everything going on. Come later, or during the week, and I'll gladly sit down with you."
He insisted, "No, Father, it has to be right now!"
I told him, "Mass is starting. You know how the schedule works; let's begin." But he kept pressing, "It has to be now!"
When I asked him why, he replied, "Because we were told that if we are in sin, we cannot serve."
Immediately, I acted like I was removing my vestments, and said, "Ah, if that's how it is in this parish, then tell everyone I can't celebrate Mass, either, because I am not perfect. The righteous person falls seven times a day!
My goodness, even during the entrance procession any of us can fall into small faults—judging someone's outfit, getting annoyed at a ringing phone, looking a little too long at one of the girls, or complaining about the music ministry not singing loud enough! Wow, just during the procession, you've already stumbled.
So relax, go serve with humility and in service to the Lord, and we can address your sin later."
Through this Gospel and the feast of Saint Matthew, we learn that God does not call the perfect. God calls those in need of His grace, and He eats with them—even if it angers the hypocritical Pharisees who watch, point fingers, and judge. A sick person needs a doctor, Jesus says, and God's ministers and servants are not whole; they are in need of healing like anyone else.
Its even uglier when we think that being a church servant makes us better than others. But if we harbor that particular bit of pride, we will be judged even more strictly for using our position to crush and point fingers at others. Through Matthew, we learn that God calls whomever He wills, and even if they carry sin, God uses them as His instrument and pours out His grace. Service isn't performed by our own strength; it is performed through God's grace.
Again, it is wonderful to strive for holiness and purity, to invoke frequent confession, and so on - but let's not pretend we will ever be the pure one, without flaw. Beware of preaching this false puritanism.
Being wht we think is a good witness, hammering the Bible, staying close to the sacraments and more can all be confused with the pride of thinking we are clean, sinless, and better than others — when in reality, we might be the worst, because despite knowing God's Word, we continue to sin in our pride.
As servants, we are supposed to know God's Word, right?
So why do we criticize?
We are supposed to know God's love—so why do we judge?
We know God is good even to the ungrateful—so why do we condemn?
We servants are not better; we need Him just as much, if not more.
Today, let's ask the Lord to keep us humble. Let's not stand at the front, or on Facebook pointing fingers, because we all have weaknesses.
And regarding this obsession with human, "justice" — which often comes more from the enemy than from God when we use it to seek vengeance or comeuppance on others — real divine justice isn't about crushing, condemning, or destroying others.
Human harshness disguises itself as justice, but God's justice transforms lives.
Saint Francis of Assisi had a beautiful perspective on this. Even when he knew a local bishop was corrupt, he never pointed fingers or called him a thief. Saint Francis used to say, "God called me to transform lives, not to condemn them. That bishop will answer to God one day."
If I see something wrong, I should strive to do what is right instead of judging. Being with God isn't about crushing human beings; it's about making a loving difference as humble servants, not as grand, tyrannical Pharisees who act like God invited us to destroy others. God wants all people to be saved, and He extends His grace even to the ungrateful.
And if you are among those who feel unworthy, take heart! Do not feel discouraged; rest assured that God gives you His grace. You have a God who loves you and fights for you. And to all servants: never consider yourselves superior, but always in need of God's mercy.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
May Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, descend upon you and remain with you always.
Transcribed from a Youtube podcast by Father Robinson Gonzalez.
AI was used to create images and in some grammatical research
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