Today we celebrate St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist. The calling of Matthew Levi by Jesus from among the ranks of a much-hated class of people, the tax-collectors, is described in today's Gospel Reading. The significant point in this account is Matthew's response - it was immediate, with no hesitation. With that beginning, Matthew went on to become Apostle and Evangelist.

St. Paul,writing to the Ephesians, described the characteristics expected of a worthy Christian, emphasising the unity of life among Christians which reflect the unity of belief. However, he also pointed out that unity did not mean uniformity. Rather, there could and should be diversity, diversity of each member of the body of Christ which was for the building of the whole. In Matthew, we see an example of God's diverse gifts - he was Apostle but also evangelist - spreading the good news of God's presence in the world through his Gospel.

Another example of God's diverse gifts is found in Franz Josef Haydn, who took the words of the psalm we read today and set them to music. His oratorio, "The Creation" contains the excerpt "The Heavens are Telling the Glory of God", based on Psalm 18. This beautiful chorale is world-famous. It proves that the glory of God can be made known and spread through a different talent. It also evangelises and contributes to the same destiny of being part of the fullness of Christ.