Reading the Gospels Together The Call of the Disciples – Part 2 Matthew follows Mark quite closely with regard to the call of the disciples but he does add a few pieces of information that either clarify or confuse depending on one’s point of view. Like Mark, Matthew thinks of the first act Jesus does once he has arrived in Galilee is to call the first four disciples. Matthew tells the story in exactly the same way as Mark. Matthew tells the story of the call of a tax collector and it is obvious to readers that he has the same person in mind as Mark in his telling of the call of a tax collector, Levi. Matthew; however, changes the name of this tax collector – he is no longer called Levi but Matthew. Otherwise the story is essentially the same using almost exactly the same words. Why would Matthew have changed the name from Levi to Matthew? This has been a question pondered for a long time. Few of the answers given are fully satisfying. The popular answer is that the writer of Matthew’s gospel was identifying himself at this point. That is actually quite unlikely. As one reads the gospel of Matthew carefully it becomes more and more unlikely that any original disciple of Jesus wrote this book. The question ultimately is whether or not Matthew and Levi are two names for the same person. That is the assumption that the writer of Matthew makes. And likely does that because he wants this fifth disciple who is called to be in the list of the Twelve. In Matthew’s mind it would not be right that the tax collector is not among the Twelve so he solves the problem by collapsing Levi and Matthew into one person. I suppose that could be true and it really matters little but another very possible thought is that Matthew and Levi are two different people – that seems to be Mark’s assumption since he never brings the two names together. We will need to live with a mystery about Levi and Matthew. Like Mark, Matthew tells of Jesus summoning twelve out of what is apparently his many disciples and sets them apart as “The Twelve” Apostles. Matthew names the following twelve – Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew (who he identifies as the tax collector – an addition to Mark), James the son of Alpheaus, Thaddeaus, Simon the Cananean, and Judas Iscariot. Matthew’s list is identical to Mark’s with the exceptions that he identifies Matthew as the tax collector and he changes the order slightly placing Andrew second to be listed with his brother, Peter. Like Mark, Matthew is aware of the inner core of Peter, James, John, and sometimes Andrew. And like Mark, Matthew assumes that Jesus has called other disciples.