SAINT MATTHIAS, APOSTLE (FEAST)

Love one another as I love you. 

Although Matthias was counted as one of the Twelve, all that we reliably know about him is contained within just a few verses from Acts. We know he was a disciple “the whole time the Lord Jesus came and went among us” (Acts 1:21). We also know that he had seen the risen Lord. And we know that the Holy Spirit chose him to take the place of Judas Iscariot.

How could Matthias live up to such an important calling? By doing no more—and no less—than what every Christian is called and empowered to do: love as Christ loves.

It’s extremely simple.

But of course, it’s also extremely difficult.

How can any of us love as totally and as selflessly as Jesus loves? The key is found in those very words: “As I love you” (John 15:12). Matthias, like the other apostles, had to be convinced that Jesus Christ, the holy and eternal Son of God, loved him unconditionally. He had to be convinced too that Jesus had chosen him and called him to be an apostle. He had to believe that even though he was selected by lot, his choice was no accident.

Matthias found the courage to take up his calling and preach the gospel because he knew that Jesus didn’t love only him; he loved everyone, especially those who hadn’t heard about him yet. And so he longed to make Jesus and his resurrection known to anyone who would listen. It’s that desire that led him to lay down his own life, in imitation of Jesus, by preaching and by serving the early believers.

As we remember St. Matthias today, let’s give thanks to God for all the apostles who loved us to the point of giving up their whole lives to witness to the resurrection of Jesus. Let’s thank God that in the same way that Jesus continued to love and pour out his life for his disciples, these early apostles willingly did the same for us.

“St. Matthias, teach me to love as Christ loves me.”

Acts 1:15-17, 20-26
Psalm 113:1-8
John 15:9-17