MATTHEW THE APOSTLE

Matthew the Apostle was, according to the Bible, one of the twelve Apostles of Jesus and, according to Christian tradition, one of the four Evangelists. The name "Matthew" means "gift of the Lord." Mark and Luke, in the story of his calling, name him "Levi." Perhaps this was his original name, and he received a new name from Jesus when he became a disciple. It has also been suggested that he was simply a member of the tribe of Levi. St.Matthew, is the author of the first Gospel. This has been the constant tradition of the Church and is confirmed by the Gospel itself. He was the son of Alpheus and was called to be an Apostle while sitting in the tax collectors place at Capernaum. Before his conversion he was a publican, i.e., a tax collector by profession. Although the first of the Synoptic Gospels is technically anonymous, traditionally, the Gospel of Matthew was held to be written by the apostle. As a government official in Capernaum, in "Galilee of the Gentiles", a tax-collector would probably have been literate in both Greek and Aramaic. Greek was the language used in the market-place. Some early church fathers recorded that Matthew originally wrote in "Hebrew", but still regarded the Greek text as canonical. According to the New Testament, he was one of the witnesses of the Resurrection and the Ascension. Like the other evangelists, Matthew is often depicted in Christian art with one of the four living creatures of Revelation.