Accounting Historians Notebook

Volume 23 Number 2 October 2000 Article 10

October 2000

St. Matthew from an accounting perspective

Andrew D. Sharp

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Recommended Citation Sharp, Andrew D. (2000) "St. Matthew from an accounting perspective," Accounting Historians Notebook: Vol. 23 : No. 2 , Article 10. Available at: https://egrove.olemiss.edu/aah_notebook/vol23/iss2/10

This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Archival Digital Accounting Collection at eGrove. It has been accepted for inclusion in Accounting Historians Notebook by an authorized editor of eGrove. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Sharp: St. Matthew from an accounting perspective ST MATTHEW FROM AN ACCOUNTING PERSPECTIVE by Andrew D. Sharp, Spring Hill College

St. Matthew is the patron of sources as to when the of St. Matthew accountants, collectors, bankers, customs was written. officers and security guards. He was origi­ nally called Levi; however, this follower of The Tax Collector took the name Matthew-the gift of Eliade [1987] reports that, during St. Yahweh-when called to be a . St. Matthew's time, tax collectors were viewed Matthew's feast day is celebrated on as serious sinners. Private entrepreneurs pur­ September 21st. chased the right from the government to col­ lect . These aggressive businessmen The Conversion were able to generate enormous profits to the Other than what is recorded in the detriment of the public. -that he was a tax collector by profes­ The Information Network sion-very little is known of the life of St. [1996] reveals similar thoughts regarding Matthew with the exception that he tax collectors during the first century. Most authored a gospel [Attwater, 1993]. He was people living in those early years disliked the the son of , worked as a - tax collectors. In the land of Palestine, tax tax collector-for the Romans in Capernaum, collectors were quick to bully people and fal­ and was of the Jewish race. Then, a conver­ sify records. Although a few tax collectors sion occurred as St. Matthew left the were mild and honest, they were still viewed despised tax collector profession at the call of as being legally impure and social outcasts. Jesus to be a disciple. Thus, St. Matthew the Customs and road tolls were calculated and tax collector, turned disciple. As a result, St. collected based on an unclear tariff that Matthew's old trade was traded-in for a new enabled the customs officer to exercise a service. The accountant was promoted to degree of profitable freedom. This trade was evangelist, and his ledgers and registers gave extremely lucrative and highly pursued. The way to his gospel. He became a follower of character of the officer determined how hon­ Jesus. estly or dishonestly the trade was practiced.

The Gospel of St. Matthew The Accountant of St. Matthew was written Through the years, accountants and many years ago. Farmer {1978} submits this accounting have been characterized by many gospel was written in the second half of the people as being overly boring and technical, first century. According to Eliade [1987], it as well as filled with endless amounts of was probably written in the last quarter of details, numbers and exact procedures. Thus, the first century in Syrian . Others the elements of flair, humor and side stories estimate St. Matthew authored his gospel appear to be missing from the tell-it-like-it- between the years 40 and 50 in Palestine was accounting profession. The Gospel of St. {Catholic Information Network, 1996}. A Matthew reflects some of these characteris­ 1997 report {Catholic Online} reflects that tics associated with accountants. the gospel was composed in Aramaic-the St. Matthew's gospel, through the eyes Hebrew tongue-between 42 and 50, or even of Farmer [1978], is extremely correct and later, yet prior to 70. Thus, there is a fair concise; moreover, such style makes it indeed amount of consistency among the four suitable for public reading. Biblical scholars

Published20 by eGrove, 2000 The Accounting Historians Notebook, October, 2000 1 Accounting Historians Notebook, Vol. 23 [2000], No. 2, Art. 10 at Catholic University [1967} observe that of evangelist, he is presented as a gospel St. Matthew's writing style is dry and spare writer positioned at his desk with an while covering only the doctrinal points at guiding his writing hand or holding his ink issue. In recording the events of his time, St. container. As an , St. Matthew is pre­ Matthew retained a common source in its sented with a money bag or slotted-top direct, original simplicity. The refining hand money box in hand. Painting from the late of St. Matthew is reflected nicely through his Middle Ages portrayed St. Matthew donning solid, workmanlike-to the point of being ele­ eye glasses as a means of aiding him in the gant-use of the Greek language. In addition, reading of his books of account. Thus, St. portions of his gospel are overflowing with Matthew was viewed as accountant-like by details. the artists. St. Matthew's gospel is a structured pre­ sentation of sermons and discourses. The Conclusion Catholic Information Network [1996] The Gospel of St. Matthew (ch. 6) refers describes the Gospel of St. Matthew as being to the birds in the sky who do not sow or very orderly and nearly ledger-like. St. reap, and never did a day's calculation while Matthew's mathematical tendencies are visi­ on earth. St. Matthew put this into practice ble with a specific arithmetical neatness: five as he surrendered his worldly possessions to talents-unit of money-(ch. 25); five loaves become one of the twelve . He left (ch. 14); five disputes with the the tax collecting business and never (chs. 12, 15, 16, 23); seven principal divi­ returned to it. Yet, accounting survived as sions that comprise his gospel; seven para­ the Gospel of St. John (ch. 13) reports that bles of the Kingdom (chs. 13, 21, 25); prob­ Judas kept the accounts for the twelve able number of seven (ch. 5); Apostles. seven woes of the Pharisees (ch. 23); seven invocations of 's (chs. 6, 7, Bibliography 11, 18). On the financial side, St. Matthew Attwater, Donald, A New Dictionary of includes the coverage of the Temple tax inci­ , The Liturgical Press, 1993. dent in his gospel replete with the technical Catholic Information Network, St. Matthew, issues of indirect tax and poll tax (ch. 17). St. Apostle, Evangelist, 1996. Mark and St. Luke fail to include the Temple tax incident in their . Thus, this is a Catholic Online Saints, Saint Matthew, 1997. sign of the customs officer's-St. Matthews- Catholic University of America, New special knowledge of finances and unique Catholic Encyclopedia, 9, MA-MOR, Vol. IX, way of seeing things. 1967. Eliade, Mircea, The Encyclopedia of The Stereotype Religion, #9, LIV-MITH, McMillan While some people debate whether Publishing Company, 1987. accounting is an art or a science, Farmer Farmer, , The Oxford Dictionary of [1978] observed how St. Matthew has been Saints, Clarendon Press, 1978. depicted in works of art. Paintings of St. Gospel of St. John. Matthew reflect characteristics that are many times attributed to accountants. In his role Gospel of St. Matthew.

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