Saint Matthias the Apostle

Saint Matthias the Apostle was Judas' replacement. The book of Acts records that after the resurrection, the 12 disciples decided that they needed to appoint a replacement for the traitor Judas, and Matthias was chosen. Tradition records that Matthias was eventually martyred for his faith in Christ. We read reflections on the saint by St John Chrysostom, and Archbishop William Lori of the Roman Catholic diocese of Baltimore.

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Transcript

 God is glorious in his Saints! 
 

Welcome to the Christian Saints Podcast. My name is dr Darren Ong, recording from Malaysia. In this podcast, we explore the lives of the Christian saints, from the Anglican, Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions.
 
 Today we commemorate Saint Matthias the Apostle. He was the “substitute” of Jesus’ twleve disciples. Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples betrayed Jesus and commited suicide. After the resurrection the Christians gathered together and chose Matthias to be a replacement for Judas. 
 
 The example of Matthias is important as a precedent for apostolic succession – the idea that the apostles had the authority to select their successors. Matthias wasn’t chosen by Jesus directly, but was chosen by the apostles, who acted with the authority Jesus gave them. From this precedent bishops today claim the same apostolic authority, through an unbroken chain of succession going back to the first apostles.
 
 Matthias is only mentioned once in the Bible, in the first chapter of acts which describes how he was chosen. Let us read from this passage, Acts 1:15-26

 
15 In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) 16 and said, “Brothers and sisters,[b] the Scripture had to be fulfilled in which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus. 17 He was one of our number and shared in our ministry.”

18 (With the payment he received for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out. 19 Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)

20 “For,” said Peter, “it is written in the Book of Psalms:

“‘May his place be deserted;
     let there be no one to dwell in it,’[c]

and,

“‘May another take his place of leadership.’[d]

21 Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus was living among us, 22 beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.”

 23 So they nominated two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. 24 Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen 25 to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.” 26 Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.

No other mention of Matthias exists in the Bible. Church tradition holds that like many of the other disciples, Matthias went to far off lands to preach the gospel and ended up dying for his faith. Let us read from the website of the Orthdoxo church in America, about the traditions about St Matthias’ life 
 
 
 The Holy Apostle Matthias was born at Bethlehem of the Tribe of Judah. From his early childhood he studied the Law of God under the guidance of Saint Simeon the God-Receiver (February 3). 

When the Lord Jesus Christ revealed Himself to the world, Saint Matthias believed in Him as the Messiah, followed constantly after Him and was numbered among the Seventy Apostles, whom the Lord “sent them two by two before His face” (Luke 10:1). 

After the Ascension of the Savior, Saint Matthias was chosen by lot to replace Judas Iscariot as one of the Twelve Apostles (Acts 1:15-26). After the Descent of the Holy Spirit, the Apostle Matthias preached the Gospel at Jerusalem and in Judea together with the other Apostles (Acts 6:2, 8:14). From Jerusalem he went with the Apostles Peter and Andrew to Syrian Antioch, and was in the Cappadocian city of Tianum and Sinope. Here the Apostle Matthias was locked into prison, from which he was miraculously freed by Saint Andrew the First-Called. 

The Apostle Matthias journeyed after this to Amasea, a city on the shore of the sea. During a three year journey of the Apostle Andrew, Saint Matthias was with him at Edessa and Sebaste. According to Church Tradition, he was preaching at Pontine Ethiopia (presently Western Georgia) and Macedonia. He was frequently subjected to deadly peril, but the Lord preserved him to preach the Gospel. 

Once, pagans forced the saint to drink a poison potion. He drank it, and not only did he himself remain unharmed, but he also healed other prisoners who had been blinded by the potion. When Saint Matthias left the prison, the pagans searched for him in vain, for he had become invisible to them. Another time, when the pagans had become enraged intending to kill the Apostle, the earth opened up and engulfed them. 

The Apostle Matthias returned to Judea and did not cease to enlighten his countrymen with the light of Christ’s teachings. He worked great miracles in the Name of the Lord Jesus and he converted a great many to faith in Christ. 

The Jewish High Priest Ananias hated Christ and earlier had commanded the Apostle James, Brother of the Lord, to be flung down from the heights of the Temple, and now he ordered that the Apostle Matthias be arrested and brought for judgment before the Sanhedrin at Jerusalem. 

The impious Ananias uttered a speech in which he blasphemously slandered the Lord. Using the prophecies of the Old Testament, the Apostle Matthias demonstrated that Jesus Christ is the True God, the promised Messiah, the Son of God, Consubstantial and Coeternal with God the Father. After these words the Apostle Matthias was sentenced to death by the Sanhedrin and stoned. 

When Saint Matthias was already dead, the Jews, to hide their malefaction, cut off his head as an enemy of Caesar. (According to several historians, the Apostle Matthias was crucified, and indicate that he instead died at Colchis.) The Apostle Matthias received the martyr’s crown of glory in the year 63. 

Let us now read some homilies and reflections on St Matthias. First, a very ancient homily, by the great theologian St John Chrysostom. This homily focuses on the choice Peter and the apostles made to select Matthias, and how this choice reflects on the importance of being an eyewitness of the resurrection.
 
In those days, Peter, stood up in the midst of the disciples and said… As the fiery spirit to whom the flock was entrusted by Christ and as the leader in the band of the apostles, Peter always took the initiative in speaking: My brothers, we must choose from among our number. He left the decision to the whole body, at once augmenting the honor of those elected and avoiding any suspicion of partiality. For such great occasions can easily lead to trouble.

Did not Peter then have the right to make the choice himself? Certainly he had the right, but he did not want to give the appearance of showing special favor to anyone. Besides he was not yet endowed with the Spirit. And they nominated two,we read, Joseph, who was called Barsabbas and surnamed Justus, and Matthias.He himself did not nominate them; all present did. But it was he who brought the issue forward, pointing out that it was not his own idea but had been suggested to him by a scriptural prophecy. So he was speaking not as a teacher but as an interpreter.

So, he goes on, we must choose from those men who lived in our company. Notice how insistent he is that they should be eyewitnesses. Even though the Spirit would come to ratify the choice, Peter regards this prior qualification as most important.

Those who lived in our company, he continued, all through the time when the Lord Jesus came and went among us. He refers to those who had dwelt with Jesus, not just those who had been his disciples. For of course from the very beginning many had followed him. Notice how it is written that Peter himself was one of the two who had listened to John, and followed Jesus.

All through the time when the Lord Jesus came and went among us, beginning with the baptism of John – rightly so, because no one knew what had happened before that time, although they were to know of it later through the Spirit.

Up to the day, Peter added, on which he was taken up from us – one of these must be made a witness along with us of his resurrection. He did not say “a witness of the rest of his actions” but only a witness of the resurrection. That witness would be more believable who could declare that he who ate and drank and was crucified also rose from the dead. He needed to be a witness not of the times before or after that event, and not of the signs and wonders, but only of the resurrection itself. For the rest happened by general admission, openly; but the resurrection took place secretly, and was known to these men only.

And they all prayed together, saying: You, Lord, know the hearts of men; make your choice known to us. “You”, not “we”. Appropriately they said that he knew the hearts of men, because the choice was to be made by him, not by others.

They spoke with such confidence, because someone had to be appointed. They did not say “choose” but make known to us the chosen one; the one you choose, they said, fully aware that everything was pre-ordained by God. They then drew lots. For they did not think themselves worthy to make the choice of their own accord, and therefore they wanted some sign for their instruction.

***
 
 Let us also read a more mordern homily, this one given by the American Roman Catholic Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore in the year 2018. He gives this homily in St Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore, to young men studying to be priests and bishops. He uses the example of Matthias to compare his calling to that of the calling of a priest today. 
 
Archbishop William Lori, Baltimore

 It was forty-one years ago today, at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, that I was ordained to the priesthood by His Eminence, William Cardinal Baum. What a joy to celebrate this anniversary here, in our nation’s first seminary. I promise you that I will not reminisce (that I’ll do on my 45th anniversary) or theologize (that you can do in class and on your own time). Instead, I’ll say a word about today’s feast, St. Matthias the Apostle, first about his background, second about his election, and third about his ministry.

The defection of Judas left a vacancy in the college of apostles and so, under Peter’s direction, the Apostles set about filling it. They didn’t have the benefit of a vocations office, an HR department, or an on-line recruiting site replete with tracking software. Peter and the remaining apostles, nonetheless, knew what they were looking for. They were looking for someone who was with Jesus throughout his earthly ministry, from the very beginning until he was taken up into heaven. And they were looking for someone who was a witness to the resurrection. In addition, the Apostles were looking for someone who, as today’s Gospel intimates, was both disciple and a friend of Jesus, that is, one who absorbed what Jesus taught and knew what he was about, and was perhaps numbered among the 72 disciples whom Jesus first sent on mission. Two names popped up:  Joseph and Matthias.

Note that, from the very beginning, the Church has established qualifications for those who would serve the Church in ministry. We see this again in the passage in the Acts of the Apostles which describes how the Order of Deacons was established. So as the Church reviews our qualifications for ordination or for other forms of serve – let us be humble and open to God’s will – just as Matthias and Joseph were.

What about the election of Matthias? Again, this election of Matthias sets something of a pattern. The Apostles did not call a hasty meeting to review resumes but instead they did the one fundamental thing the Church should always do before making any important decision; they prayed: “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show us which of these two you have chosen to take the place in this apostolic ministry from which Judas turned away . . . .” In a word, they prayed to know God’s will.

The actual election procedure, drawing lots, we have to admit, strikes us as a bit capricious or arbitrary. It’s best for us to see in the Apostles’ method a radical trust in the Lord and an ardent desire not to impose their will on God’s will. At some time in our lives we will feel that this or that decision on the part of the Church is arbitrary and capricious, arrived at with less than Cartesian clarity… Let us seek in those decisions God’s will with a radical trust not unlike the Apostles.

The election of Matthias was not analogous to his becoming a partner in a law firm. It wasn’t a moment of personal triumph or the fulfillment of a life-long ambition. Rather, Jesus confided to Matthias what he says to us in the Gospel: “It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain . . . .” Once chosen, Matthias understood he was sent to proclaim the Gospel. Tradition tells us he proclaimed the Gospel throughout Judea, Ethiopia, & Jerusalem, and, that he died a martyr’s death . . .  One can surmise that his ministry was extraordinary fruitful as he opened the minds and hearts of many to Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life.

In the ordination of deacons and priests, the ordaining bishop says to the ordinandi: ‘Relying on the help of the Lord God and our Savior Jesus Christ, we chose these, our brothers, for the Order of the Diaconate or the Priesthood.’ If those words should be addressed to you this spring or any time in the near future, or if they have been addressed to you in the past, as they have to me, let us hear in them the echo of today’s Gospel: “It was not you who chose me but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain . . . .” To go beyond our comfort zone, to go not necessarily to the place of our choosing, and there to bear the good fruit of evangelization and holiness, to engender in those we serve the fruits of the Holy Spirit.

St. Matthias, pray for us!
 
St Matthias’ feast day is May 14 in the Roman Catholic church, February 24 in the Anglican church, and August 9 in the Eastern Orthodox church
 
 Thanks for listening to the Christian saints podcast. Look for the Christian Saints podcast page on Facebook or Instagram, or look for us on Twitter at podcast_saints. All music in this episode was composed by my good friend, James John Marks of Generative sounds. Please check out his music at https://generativesoundsjjm.bandcamp.com/. If you enjoyed this podcast, please consider giving us a 5-star review on Itunes or whatever podcast app you use, so more people can find the Christian saints podcast and be blessed by these stories of the saints.


 

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O God, who assigned Saint Matthias a place in the college of Apostles, grant us, through his intercession, that, rejoicing at how your love has been allotted to us, we may merit to be numbered among the elect. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever.
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