Matthew, St

views updated

Matthew, St. One of the twelve Apostles and of the four Evangelists. In Matthew 10. 3 he is described as a tax collector. According to Papias he made a collection in Hebrew of the sayings of Jesus, and since the time of Irenaeus he has been credited with the authorship of the gospel bearing his name. In art he is depicted with a sword, a money-bag, or a carpenter's square. Feast day in the E., 16 Nov.; in the W., 21 Sept.

The Gospel according to Matthew is the opening book of the New Testament.

More From encyclopedia.com