Two days ago, at entrance into the fast, we heard the Lord command St. Philip, “Follow me.” Today, we hear him give that same command to Saint Matthew, and Matthew, like Philip, obeys. He leaves his tax booth and walks in the footsteps of the Lord. We know that tax collectors were notorious, public sinners in those days, but his sins did not hold St. Matthew back when he heard the Lord’s call. Likewise, let us not use our sins as an excuse to ignore God’s calling for us. Now is the time to repent, to labor, to hope: we should not squander this precious gift of time. No matter what our sins are, God can rejuvenate us and make our lives as white as a first-fallen snow. If we but listen to his voice and follow his loving lead, we will be as little lambs in the flock of the most gentle Shepherd of Souls, the snow-bearded Savior Jesus Christ (Rev. 1:14). We take comfort in the vision of the Lord seen by the holy martyr Perpetua: “Then I saw an immense garden, and in it a gray-haired man sat in shepherd’s garb; tall he was, and milking sheep. And standing around him were many thousands of people clad in white garments. He raised his head, looked at me, and said: ‘I am glad you have come, my child.’”
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