Scriptural Reflection on the Readings for Sunday, October 16, 2011 | Carl E. Olson
Readings:
• Is 45:1, 4-6
• Ps 96:1, 3, 4-5, 7-8, 9-10
• 1 Thes 1:1-5b
• Matt 22:15-21
“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” This well-known saying was first written by Daniel Defoe and then made famous by Benjamin Franklin. It reflects a rather fatalistic view of life, one that wryly admits it is hard to avoid the reach of the State and impossible to escape the cold hand of death.
Sadly, some people do hold to this grim view of life, and many others live as if it is true. For them, life seems pointless, empty, and hopeless; it appears to be a sort of cosmic joke with a casket for a punch line.
While some people despair because they believe this world is all there is, others are desperate to believe and prove that this world is all there is—and any belief in God is a danger to the State and the good of society. For these people, the concept of a separation of Church and State is nearly sacred since they think any and all religious beliefs should be kept out of the public square. The political realm fills the public square, they insist, while the religious realm should stay at home and keep quietly to itself.
Strangely enough, today’s Gospel reading has sometimes been misinterpreted in an attempt to uphold this secularist stance. However, the debate over taxes described by Matthew actually presents a much different perspective.
When Jesus was approached by the Pharisee’s disciples and some Herodians, it was undoubtedly a strange sight. The two groups were not natural allies; in fact, they did not get along at all. The Herodians supported King Herod and Roman taxes. The Pharisees vehemently opposed those taxes since paying them meant acknowledging foreign, pagan sovereignty over Israel. That they joined together indicated how eager both groups were to be rid of Jesus.
The question—“Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?”—was a clever attempt to trap Jesus. A positive answer would give the Pharisees grounds to condemn him, while a negative answer would allow the Herodians to charge him with stirring up political unrest.
Knowing their intent, Jesus asked to see “the Roman coin.” That coin was marked with the image of Tiberius Caesar (A.D. 14-37). The inscription referred to by Jesus read: “Tiberius Caesar son of the divine Augustus, great high priest.” Jesus then uttered the enigmatic words: “Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”
On one level, this simply means that since the coin contained Caesar’s image, it belonged to him. But it goes deeper. Man, who is made in the “image of God” (Gen 1:27) has a duty to give himself to God. This is the greater duty as we owe everything, including our very existence, to God. Jesus’ remark implies that if the Israelites had been committed to giving God what was due Him—worship, love, and obedience—they wouldn’t be suffering under Roman rule.
The State is necessary for the ordering of temporal affairs and for upholding social order. We should support a properly ordered government, which includes paying just taxes, even if it isn’t perfect (cf., Rom 13:6-7; 1 Pet 2:13-15). But, as the Catechism points out, “the citizen is obliged in conscience not to follow the directives of civil authorities when they are contrary to the demands of the moral order, to the fundamental rights of persons or the teachings of the Gospel” (CCC 2242).
Man’s ultimate duty is to God. After all, man is made in the image of God and he is invited to share in eternal communion with God. It is God who gives life and makes sense of life; without Him, our existence is pointless, empty, and hopeless. Our belief in God should direct our actions, including those regarding political and social matters.
Taxes and death may be certain in this world, but in the next world there is this one certainty: the judgment seat and then either heaven or hell. Live accordingly.
(This "Opening the Word" column originally appeared in the October 19, 2008, edition of Our Sunday Visitor newspaper.)
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