St. Matthew Prayer for Accountants, Bankers and Honest Work

St. Matthew was a tax collector, despised by his neighbors, until Jesus looked at him and said, “Follow me.” He got up, left his money table and became an apostle and the author of the first Gospel. He is the patron saint of accountants, bankers, tax collectors and all who work with money, and a sign of hope for anyone who thinks he is too far from God to be called. Below are prayers to St. Matthew for honest work, for accountants and bankers, for those in financial trouble and for conversion, the Gospel of his call, and his story.

A prayer to St. Matthew

Written for this page:

St. Matthew, apostle and evangelist,
you left your money table the moment Jesus called you.
Pray for me, that I may hear his voice and follow him without delay,
use the things of this world honestly,
and treasure the Gospel above all riches.
Obtain for me the grace I ask: (name your intention). Amen.

A prayer for accountants, bankers and all who handle money

St. Matthew, patron of accountants and bankers,
bless all who work with money, accounts and taxes.
Make them honest and careful, fair to the poor,
and free from greed and every temptation to deceive.
Help them to remember that their work serves real people. Amen.

This prayer was written for this page. See patron saints of professions.

A prayer in financial trouble

St. Matthew, you knew the power money has over the heart.
I bring you my worries about debts and bills.
Help me to make wise decisions, to be honest in every dealing,
and to trust that God will provide what I truly need. Amen.

This prayer was written for this page. See the Catholic prayer for a job.

A prayer for conversion

St. Matthew, Jesus came to your house and ate with sinners.
Pray for (name), who feels far from God,
that he (she) may hear Jesus say “Follow me”
and find his mercy. Amen.

This prayer was written for this page.

The Gospel of his call

Matthew tells his own call in his Gospel:

And when Jesus passed on from hence, he saw a man sitting in the custom house, named Matthew; and he saith to him: Follow me. And he rose up and followed him.
And it came to pass as he was sitting at meat in the house, behold many publicans and sinners came, and sat down with Jesus and his disciples.
And the Pharisees seeing it, said to his disciples: Why doth your master eat with publicans and sinners?
But Jesus hearing it, said: They that are in health need not a physician, but they that are ill.
Go then and learn what this meaneth, I will have mercy and not sacrifice. For I am not come to call the just, but sinners.

St. Bede the Venerable, commenting on this passage, wrote that Jesus saw Matthew “by having mercy and by choosing” (miserando atque eligendo), the words Pope Francis took as his episcopal motto. Caravaggio’s famous painting The Calling of St. Matthew, in the church of San Luigi dei Francesi in Rome, shows Jesus pointing to Matthew at his counting table.

The life of St. Matthew

Matthew, also called Levi, the son of Alphaeus, was a tax collector at Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee, working for Herod Antipas and the Roman authorities. Tax collectors were seen as collaborators and cheats, and were counted among public sinners. When Jesus called him, Matthew gave a great feast for him in his house, inviting other tax collectors and sinners, and when the Pharisees complained, Jesus answered: “I am not come to call the just, but sinners.”

Matthew became one of the Twelve Apostles and a witness of the Resurrection. Early Christian writers say that he first preached to the Jews and wrote his Gospel for them, presenting Jesus as the Messiah who fulfills the Law and the Prophets. Tradition says that he later preached in other lands, in Ethiopia or Persia, and died a martyr. His relics are venerated in the Cathedral of Salerno, in southern Italy.

Feast day and patronage

Feast day: September 21. A novena can run from September 12 to 20.
Patron of: accountants, bankers, tax collectors, customs officers, bookkeepers and the city of Salerno.
Symbols: a winged man or angel (the symbol of his Gospel, which begins with the genealogy of Jesus), a money bag or coins, a book, and a pen.

Frequently asked questions

What is St. Matthew the patron saint of?

Accountants, bankers, tax collectors and all who work with money.

When is the feast of St. Matthew?

September 21.

Why is St. Matthew’s symbol an angel or winged man?

Because his Gospel begins with the human ancestry of Jesus. The four evangelists are traditionally shown as a man (Matthew), a lion (Mark), an ox (Luke) and an eagle (John).

St. Matthew Prayer: Prayers to St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist