You're listening to a podcast on Catholic Saints.

This podcast is produced by the Augustine Institute, an Apostolate helping Catholics understand,

live and share their faith.

Welcome to Form Now.

I'm Tim Gray, President of the Augustine Institute, and joining me is Dr. Michael Barber,

who is a professor of scripture here at the Augustine Institute.

And we're going to talk about St. Matthew for his feast day and the Gospel of Matthew.

And really, Matthew is such an important gospel writer.

All four gospels give us a great window into the heart and life of Jesus Christ.

And out of all the Bible, and all of the Bible is fully inspired by the Word of God and the Spirit of God,

but the Gospels have pride of place.

You know, and the Catechism of the Catholic Church talks about that, that the Gospels have a pride of place.

And think about that. When you're at Mass and you hear the Old Testament reading, maybe from Moses, or you hear the Psalm reading that we sing and refrain, we're sitting.

But when you hear the gospel, and when you hear St. Paul in the letters, you're sitting.

But when you hear the gospel, what happens?

Everybody in the church rises and stands.

Because the gospels gives us, in a sense, the heart of Christ.

It's the sacred heart of all of the Word of God, of all the Bible.

And so because it really is giving us the life of Christ and it's the center of our faith,

the Gospels are something we should be deeply familiar with as Christians.

You know, and it's great to read St. Augustine's Confessions,

or to read St. Teresa of Avala or St. Teresa Luz, or, you know, Mother Teresa of Calcutta,

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