From the Pastor’s Desk…
‘Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God’ (Mark 12:13-17)
In Jesus’ day, Roman coins, like the denarius mentioned in the Gospel reading, bore an image of the Roman Emperor of the day, and an inscription declaring him to be divine and high priest.
However, Jesus’ response to those who try to trap him with their question about paying taxes to Caesar shows that the Roman Emperor is not to be considered God.
‘Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God’
There is a clear distinction to be made between Caesar and God.
God is God and Caesar is not God, in direct opposition to the image and title on Roman coins. What is due to God is far greater than what is due to Caesar. God is absolute and Caesar is relative. Jesus does not prohibit paying taxes to Caesar but he affirms that what is due to the true God is much greater.
The Gospel reminds us that our ultimate loyalty is to God. It is God who has first claim on our lives, not any human authority, be it political or religious.
Because we believe that Jesus is the full revelation of God in human form, to say that God has first claim on our lives is to say that Jesus, our Risen Lord, has first claim on our lives.
We have to assess all human claims on our lives in the light of that primary claim of the Lord. Allowing Jesus to be Lord of our lives will sometimes require us to resist the demands that human authorities make of us, especially when they are at odds… with what the Lord… is asking of us.
Father Ron
