Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's

 

 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk. And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men. Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceive their wickedness, and said, 'Why do you test Me, you hypcrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  they said to Him, "Caesar's." And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.

 

- Matthew 22:15–22 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus answered and spoke to the chief priests and elders again by parables and said:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come.  Again, he sent out other servants, saying, "Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready.  Come to the wedding."'  But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business.  And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them.  But when the king heard about it, he was furious.  And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.  Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.  Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.'  So those servants went out into the highways gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good.  And the wedding hall was filled with guests.  But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment.  So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?'  So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?'  And he was speechless.  Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.  For many are called, but few are chosen."

 

  Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk. And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men. Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceive their wickedness, and said, 'Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  they said to Him, "Caesar's." And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.  This question on taxation is designed as a trap for Jesus.  If He replied "yes" to the question, it would turn the Jewish people against Him.  If He replied "no" it would bring a charge of treason by the Romans.  But Christ's answer yet again evades the intentions of those who question Him and gives a perspective they don't expect.  Christ's answer shows that a believer can render the state its due, and at the same time serve God (Romans 13:1-7).  My study Bible explains that as the coin bears the image of the emperor and is properly paid to him, so each person bears the image of God and therefore belongs to God.  Conflict arises only when the state demands that which is contrary to God.  

 

Christ's answer (and my study Bible's explanation) suggests something interesting to us. If there is not necessarily a contradiction between service to state and service to God; that is, if we can honor both our obligations to the state and to God at the same time, then it is fundamentally possible for even the state to designate "good" as something pleasing to God.  Obviously, human beings need good governance.  Whatever problems we have in the world with power and governments, they do not come about because no government is the answer or pleasing to God.  On the contrary, we understand from the creation story in the Bible that our world is meant to be not a place of chaos and anarchy, not a place where we human beings simply struggle against one another for limited goods, or a life of "all against all."  The Bible tells us that God organized life from its fundamental beginnings, separating land and sea, ocean from ocean, putting man in a specific garden.  Moreover to guide human beings and human enterprises, God gives us angels.  In the Revelation we read of each angel meant to lead every church St. John is told to write to; The Lord tells John to write separate messages to the angels of the churches of Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and the church of the Laodicaeans.  In fact, it is an angel sent by the Lord, by Christ, to tell John all of the instructions of the Revelation to the churches.  In the tradition of our faith we understand that angels are put in charge of states, nations, cities, that even each one of us has a particular guardian angel.  What that tells us, then, is that the normal human activities of the regulation of states need not conflict at all with our duty to God.  But, of course, this would mean that the state align itself with the will of God in some sense, for in that case there is no conflict with our loyalty to God.  Good governance is something respected in the Bible, particularly in the New Testament and in the writing of St. Paul (such as the passage in Romans 13:1-7, cited by my study Bible).  Clearly, human beings need governments and states of various kinds, but we may seek good government in accordance with the values of our faith.  Moreover there is a subtle emphasis implied here on the responsibility of the people, both communally and individually.  For in each case we may render proper duty to God and to the state.  Of course, what all of this tells us is that our first duty is to God, and that this is also true of the state.  In a conscientiously secular modern sense, we expect the government to impose no religion upon us, but we cannot get away from conscience and our love of God, for these are where values come from to begin with.  Our very concepts of human rights in a modern sense were developed culturally as a result of our faith (see the book by Tom Holland titled Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World for a greater eye-opening discussion on just how much modern life owes to the Christian faith).  In the ancient world, of course, and in the context of our reading, Caesar was worshiped as a god, and thereby the Jews and many Christians to come would be persecuted.  But Jesus teaches here -- as does the whole history of Christian faith and its effects on culture and society -- that our first duty is to live faithfully to the extent that we are able, for we are first those who render the soul unto God, and the rest of life, including its necessities, follows.  What we observe about today's reading also hinges on another aspect of Jesus' response to these men, and that is that He openly calls them hypocrites. Indeed, the Pharisees, who are exceptionally prideful of their intensely scrupulous observance of the law, here ally themselves with the Herodians, who are the followers of Herod's court, which serves Caesar and rules Israel.  What kind of partnership is that for those who quiz Him regarding paying taxes to Caesar and the Jewish law?  Their own hypocrisy exposes them in their murderous envy of Christ, and the greed for which they are known themselves.  So in the light of today's reading, let us consider what a true examination of conscience is and means.  It does not imply that we ascribe to a particular political theory or philosophy.  Neither does rendering our due to the Lord mean separating ourselves from participation in worldly life.  We walk a fine line by rendering unto both God and Caesar what belongs properly to each, with our faith being the guide for what is good and what is not.

 

 

 

Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's

 

A silver denarius

So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, that they might seize on His words, in order to deliver Him to the power and the authority of the governor.  Then they asked Him, saying, "Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth:  Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?"  But He perceived their craftiness, and said to them, "Why do you test Me?"  Show Me a denarius.  Whose image and inscription does it have?"  They answered and said, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  But they could not catch Him in His words in the presence of the people.  And they marveled at His answer and kept silent.

 

- Luke 20:19–26 

 

Yesterday we read that, while teaching in the temple, Jesus began to tell the people this parable:  "A certain man planted a vineyard, leased it to vinedressers, and went into a far country for a long time.  Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that they might give him some of the fruit of the vineyard.  But the vinedressers beat him and sent him away empty-handed.  Again he sent another servant; and they beat him also, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.  And again he sent a third; and they wounded him also and cast him out.  Then the owner of the vineyard said, 'What shall I do?  I will send my beloved son.  Probably they will respect him when they see him.'  But when the vinedressers saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, 'This is the heir.  Come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.'  So they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him.  Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do to them?  He will come and destroy those vinedressers and give the vineyard to others."  And when they heard it they said, "Certainly not!"  Then He looked at them and said, "What then is this that is written:  'The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone'?  Whoever falls on that stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder."  And the chief priests and the scribes that very hour sought to lay hands on Him, but they feared the people -- for they knew He had spoken this parable against them.

 

 So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, that they might seize on His words, in order to deliver Him to the power and the authority of the governor.  Then they asked Him, saying, "Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth:  Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?"  But He perceived their craftiness, and said to them, "Why do you test Me?"  Show Me a denarius.  Whose image and inscription does it have?"  They answered and said, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  But they could not catch Him in His words in the presence of the people.  And they marveled at His answer and kept silent.  My study Bible says that this question on taxation is designed to trap Jesus.  A "yes" answer would turn the Jewish people against Him.  A "no" would bring a charge of treason by the Romans.  His answer is a defeat to their cunning, and it shows that a believer can render to the state its due, while serving God (Romans 13:1-7).  As the coin bears the image of the emperor and is properly paid to him, my study Bible tells us, so each person bears the image of God and therefore belongs to God.  Conflict arises only when the state demands that which is contrary to God.

 

 I always find Jesus' assertive rebuffs and answers given to the religious leaders who come to test Him quite intriguing.  This is because they are illuminating as examples of how to respond to those who quiz with the intent of entrapment or denigration of faith.  In our lives, we might find challenges to the things we believe, and often beliefs will be ascribed to us that we don't actually hold.  Similarly to the question in today's reading which is posed to Jesus, we might be offered dilemmas -- and assumptions contained therein -- that don't at all reflect the fullness of our values and beliefs.  In this case, Jesus is openly teaching in the temple, and so He has deliberately come to Jerusalem to make His Triumphal Entry, and to do as He is doing.   Without openly declaring so Himself, He is there in the temple at Jerusalem as a messianic figure.   He has already expressed this in the cleansing of the temple (see this reading).  So, as these men seek to trap Him in a "yes" or "no" answer, Jesus gives us an example of responding to such questions given with these types of motives.  He doesn't accept their dichotomy, the choices offered through the question.  Instead He asserts His own teachings, and does so using the brilliant example of a coin of the realm, a Roman coin printed by the state authority that controls Israel.  To paraphrase His response, "Whose face and inscription are on that coin?," Jesus asks.  Clearly the coin is printed by Ceasar's government, for currency exchange within the Roman system of administration.  Under an emperor such as Caesar, whatever is imprinted with his image or insignia is an extension of himself, his authority, and his power.  But by the same token, as those who are created by God, we also bear an image and inscription within ourselves, and so we belong to God, as my study Bible points out.  In His teaching and His response, Jesus not only refutes without falling into their trap or accepting their potential responses, He also teaches us about who we are.  He gives us a teaching that is essential to Christian faith.  As we are created in the image and likeness of God, and Christ Himself became Incarnate as a human being, so we are saved through His Incarnation in that we are to follow and become like Him -- to grow in that image and inscription of the name of God within us.  For this is eternal salvation, that we may come to dwell with God, and be a part of God's kingdom.  Every ruler, every state, mints coins and currency that bear the stamp of authority and belonging to its realm.  So we also bear God's image.  In this one instant, in these few words directing these men to render unto Caesar what is Caesar's, and unto God what is God's, we receive the gospel message and the power of salvation from our Lord, the Messiah, Jesus Christ.  And in the presence of all the people, all these men who seek to entrap Him can do is to marvel at His answer.  Would that we all could be so eloquent, using so few words, as Jesus is, and know what we are to be about as His followers. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's

 

 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk.  And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men.  Tell us, therefore, what do You think?  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.

 

- Matthew 22:15-22 

 

In our current readings, it is Holy Week, and Jesus is in Jerusalem.  He has made His Triumphal Entry; He has cleansed the temple; He has been questioned by the religious leaders as to His authority to do so.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come.  Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready.  Come to the wedding."'  But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business.  And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them.  But when the king heard about it, he was furious.  And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.  Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.  Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.'  So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good.  And the wedding hall was filled with guests.  But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment.  So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?'  And he was speechless.  Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'  For many are called, but few are chosen."

 

  Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk.  And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men.  Tell us, therefore, what do You think?  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.  My study Bible explains that this question on taxation is a design to trap Jesus.  A "yes" answer will turn the people against Him, but a "no" would bring a charge of treason by the Romans.  Christ's answer defeats this effort to entrap Him, and shows that the faithful can render the state its due, while serving God (Romans 13:1-7; contrast with Acts 4:19; 5:29).  As the coin bears the image of the emperor, and is properly paid to him, my study Bible notes, so each person bears the image of God and therefore belongs to God.  Conflict comes when the state demands that which is in opposition to God.   So, the division of things that are Caesar's and things that are God's doesn't mean we divide life into two compartments, the secular and the sacred.  Instead, we know God is the Lord over all of life, including our secular lives.  But we fulfill the requirements of government that don't conflict with that first, primary responsibility to the One who holds all of life.  To pay taxes and other civil duties are not detrimental to holiness.  

How does life get divided between the sacred and the secular?  Perhaps it is wise, in pondering this question, to consider the parable Jesus taught in yesterday's reading (see above).  When we consider the question of the wedding garment, required for attendance and participation at the wedding of Christ the Bridegroom, and His Bride, the Church, we are left with an understanding that all of our lives -- whatever we participate in life -- contributes to that wedding garment, or it does not.  If we understand the wedding garment as the condition in which our soul meets the occasion of the wedding feast and the judgment that accompanies it, then we see life as weaving that garment, or leaving us without it.  The garment, according to the parable, is provided by the King.  That is, God has given us all we need to inhabit that garment, to live to its beauty and image, or not.  So secular life and sacred life are all of a piece, because -- as my study Bible puts it -- all belongs to God.  This is the rock and foundation of life.  God "weaves" opportunities for the creation of that wedding garment into all the parts of our lives, private, public, sacred, and secular.  Each moment may be an occasion for prayerful living, a life filled with the presence of God, regardless of what we're offered in our experiences.  Just as Christ is here faced with a test designed to entrap Him, He takes His time and uses His tremendous capacity for words and teaching to assert His own response.  He will not simply follow where He is led by these men who are trying to entrap Him and destroy His ministry and mission.  He asserts the truth of God.  So Christ forms for us an example of what it means to cling to truth regardless of circumstances and the temptations and traps life might present to us.  Let us endeavor to remain grounded in that truth, as He sets the example, so that wherever we find ourselves, we stand on that rock -- we weave the wedding garment of the soul we want to present to God.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's

 

 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk.  And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men.  Tell us, therefore, what do You think?  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.

 

- Matthew 22:15-22 

 

In yesterday's reading, Jesus gave the parable of the Wedding Feast, as He continued to respond to the religious authorities in the temple at Jerusalem.  He said:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come.  Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready.  Come to the wedding."'  But they made light of it and went their own ways, one to his own farm, another to his business.  And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them.  But when the king heard about it, he was furious.  And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.  Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.  Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.'  So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good.  And the wedding hall was filled with guests.  But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment.  So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?'  And he was speechless.  Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'  For many are called, but few are chosen."

 

 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk.  And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men.  Tell us, therefore, what do You think?  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.  The Pharisees seek to entangle Jesus by asking a kind of trick question, which works as a trap.  If Jesus gave a "yes" answer it would turn the Jewish people against Him (as they suffer under the oppressive taxation of the Romans).  But a "no" answer would bring a charge of treason by the Romans.  But yet again, the Word Himself is the master of all communication.  His answer defeats their cunning, showing that a believer can render the state its due while serving God (Romans 13:1-7).  More to the point, as the coin bears the image of the emperor and is more properly paid to him, each person bears the image of God and therefore belongs to God.  Conflict arises, my study Bible explains, when the state demands that which is contrary to God.  It notes also that the distinction between things that are Caesar's and things that are God's does not imply the division of a believer's life into the secular and the sacred.  Instead, we are to know that God is Lord over all of life, including the secular.  However, we fulfill governmental requirements that don't conflict with our first responsibility to God (see also Acts 4:19, 4:29).  To pay taxes and fulfill similar civil duties is not detrimental to holiness.  

 

 In Christ's time, we know the demand that was there to overthrow the Romans.  Indeed, many looked to an image of the prophesied Messiah who would be a worldly king, establishing again a throne of Israel and overthrowing foreign rule, with a powerful kingdom which could conquer all enemies.  So the question is more powerfully relative to Jesus than we might at first think.  While the Pharisees seek to entrap Him -- either with the ruling Romans or with the people of Israel -- Jesus is also the Christ, and the nature of this Messiah is not the one anticipated nor possibly even "demanded" by the people in this political sense.  So the question about Roman taxes has not only religious but also politically revolutionary overtones.  We should also note that among those who come to quiz Jesus are both the disciples of the Pharisees, together with their allies the Herodians:  that is, those who support the dynasty of Herod the Great which rules for Rome.  We know that the people (stirred up by the religious leadership who wants rid of Jesus) will demand that Barabbas, a violent rebel, be freed instead of Jesus at His Crucifixion (Matthew 27:15-26), so again, we can't overlook how powerfully relevant these issues really are to Jesus and very nature of His messianic ministry -- and particularly the central role of His Passion.  It makes us reflect upon the nature of what it is for Him to be the Suffering Servant who was prophesied by Isaiah (Isaiah 42:1–4; 49:1–6; 50:4–11; 52:13–53:12).  While there are certainly injustices done by the Romans -- and much more to follow even to the Church -- Jesus makes us think hard about what forms of revolution or rebellion are really about.  How do we correct injustice and throw off oppressive rule?  Of course, at the time of Christ there had never been an empire quite like the Roman Empire and Constitutional rule of law was not something that existed in the forms we know today.  So national expectations of wealth from conquered territory (including in the form of slavery which was virtually universal) also played a role in the ways that people thought about violence and the change of rule.  But let us consider what Jesus seems to be teaching us.  First of all, there is the sense of civic duties that exist for us all, regardless of what type of government we have.  We tend to think very individualistically compared with perspectives in the Bible and the historical perspectives of peoples everywhere.  Christ's response frames this question in both a communal and individual framework.  Whose business is it to govern?  Who mints the coin, who rules trade and exchange?  But both communally and individually, what's our duty to God?  How is our soul loyal to God, and at the same time we have civic duty to function among the wider community?  While faith in Christ calls on us for a type of radical conversion (that is, the loyalty of heart and soul and mind and strength in our love of God), how does that work out in terms of our relationship to neighbor, to community?  The faith of Christ in this sense turns political revolution as solution to spiritual problems upside down:  everything begins with the soul, with an internal loyalty and radical commitment to love of God first coupled and enacted through love of neighbor.   This itself can create radical change within us as individuals, as so many have found in the experience of their faith, but it is a kind of internal transformation and revolution against the things that get in the way of our love of God and its realization in our lives.  It is an overthrow of loyalty to the purely worldly and material with a commitment to put faith first in God's love and how we live it.  In this understanding, our internal change or transformation is also a "rebellion" against the one whom Jesus calls the prince or ruler of this world (John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11; Ephesians 2:2), the one who thrives on sin and all its forms including abuse and injustice and cruelty.  In this understanding, we might discern that abusive and oppressive rule is a product of sin, of "the evil one" (Matthew 5:37, 6:13).  We "render therefore to Caesar" practical and reasonable civic duty, but to render unto God what is God's demands of us no stone left unturned in an ongoing internal repentance, a commitment to knowing God and living as God's children that deepens as we mature and grow in faith.  This just might be the greatest power for transformation we can give to the world, for it goes to the real root of worldly problems.  Let us start there when we look for the change and good we desire.

 

 

 

 

 

Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's

 

 And the chief priests and the scribes that very hour sought to lay hands on Him, but they feared the people -- for they knew He had spoken this parable against them.

So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, that they might seize on His words, in order to deliver Him to the power and the authority of the governor.  Then they asked Him, saying, "Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth.  Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?"  But He perceived their craftiness, and said to them, "Why do you test Me?  Show Me a denarius.  Whose image and inscription does it have?"  They answered and said, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  But they could not catch Him in His words in the presence of the people.  And they marveled at His answer and kept silent.

 

- Luke 20:19–26 

 

Yesterday we read that, after disputing with the religious leaders over His authority regarding His Triumphal Entry, and also to preach and to cleanse the temple, Jesus began to tell the people this parable:  "A certain man planted a vineyard, leased it to vinedressers, and went into a far country for a long time.  Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that they might give him some of the fruit of the vineyard.  But the vinedressers beat him and sent him away empty-handed.  Again he sent another servant; and they beat him also, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.  And again he sent a third; and they wounded him also and cast him out.  Then the owner of the vineyard said, 'What shall I do?  I will send my beloved son.  Probably they will respect him when they see him.'  But when the vinedressers saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, 'This is the heir.  Come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.'  So they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him.  Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do to them?  He will come and destroy those vinedressers and give the vineyard to others."  And when they heard it they said, "Certainly not!"  Then He looked at them and said, "What then is this that is written:  'The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone'?  Whoever falls on that stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder."  And the chief priests and the scribes that very hour sought to lay hands on Him, but they feared the people -- for they knew He had spoken this parable against them. 

 And the chief priests and the scribes that very hour sought to lay hands on Him, but they feared the people -- for they knew He had spoken this parable against them.  This verse refers to Jesus' telling of the parable of the Wicked Vinedressers, in yesterday's reading, above.  

So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, that they might seize on His words, in order to deliver Him to the power and the authority of the governor.  Then they asked Him, saying, "Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth.  Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?"  But He perceived their craftiness, and said to them, "Why do you test Me?  Show Me a denarius.  Whose image and inscription does it have?"  They answered and said, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  But they could not catch Him in His words in the presence of the people.  And they marveled at His answer and kept silent.  My study Bible explains that this question on taxation is a trap designed to catch Jesus one way or the other.  A "yes" answer will turn the Jewish people against Him.  A "no" answer can bring a charge of treason by the Romans.  But the way that He chooses to answer is a defeat of the trap, and those who designed it.  What it shows is that a believer can render the state its due, while serving God (Romans 13:1-7).  My study Bible explains that as the coin bears the image of the emperor, and is properly paid to him, so each person bears the image of God, and therefore belongs to God.  Conflict arises in the instance when the state demands that which is contrary to God.

Jesus' brilliance in dialogue is always striking, and it teaches us something powerful about argument.  As the religious leaders "spar off," so to speak, against Jesus, what we witness is not a battle with munitions and soldiers and armaments of all kinds, but rather a battle for truth.  This is because it is essentially a battle at the deepest levels of human capacity for awareness and understanding, and it's a battle for truth at the deepest root of what truth is.  This is, in effect, a kind of spiritual battle, and it's one where the battleground is hearts and souls and minds.  It is a battle in the place where we are to love God, according to what Jesus has called the "first and great commandment" -- "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind."  He coupled it with the commandment to love neighbor as oneself, and proclaimed that upon these two hang all the Law and the Prophets.  See Matthew 22:36-40.  But this place of the heart, soul, and mind is the place where this conflict between Christ and the religious leaders is really taking place, and so, at this stage, it takes place in debate, in words, in Christ's expression of the truth that finds loopholes in all of their arguments, and reasons beyond their capacity to grasp in the first place.  This is a battle waged by the very Person who is Logos Himself, and it is a battle for the hearts, minds, and souls of all people.  It is the very thing for which He has come into the world.  It is the light that He has brought into the darkness (John 1:5).  This is a battle for truth of the deepest kind, that lies most deeply within a person and unites a cosmological order.  In the modern world, we are used to the bandied use of words that whittles their meanings down to nothing.  We're used to loose language, that today expresses one thing, and tomorrow another.  We hear theories and slogans of all kinds that are often deceptive -- used to imply conclusions that the words themselves don't actually mean -- or twisted meanings that seem to link a political or social movement with some "good" things we know from the past, but used in fact to contradict the very things the words refer to.  If equality once implied a democratic meritocracy, or the measure of a person based on the content of their character, today we might hear slogans and theories claiming to be democratic but demeaning the whole concept of character at all.  Such assertions have even been made supposedly while evoking great figures of the past whose very words extolled the virtue of character as measure of a person, while effectively denouncing that very thing for which they advocated.  When language is used in such way for manipulation -- effectively telling lies in order to coerce others to follow for another's political or social gain -- then truth is absent.  It is a way to mess with hearts and souls and minds, and to destroy meaning itself.  But Christ is the Logos:  He is the spoken truth, the word, the logic and reason, the wisdom, the One who puts things in order and gives us the things of God that form the deepest substance of truth and reality.  Jesus says of Himself, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6).  And in this debate in the temple what we have is essentially the Logos who comes into the world and teaches the truths that we need to hear.  He evades the traps of the religious leadership by brilliantly staking out His own ground upon which this battle takes place:  there is another way to answer the question which they can't possibly anticipate.  Let us note that for every parry and thrust of these debates in the temple, all the people are listening.  They are the ones whose hearts and minds and souls form the real battleground where this challenge for truth takes place.  It is Jesus who has taught us that to know the truth makes us free (John 8:32), and we must also carefully understand its opposite:  those who seek to mislead, to twist meaning beyond its truth, to misuse meanings and language, always seek to make others slaves in some sense.  One popular term for performed magic on a stage is "sleight of hand," and the manipulation of words is used in this same way, to distract from what is really happening.  If it is the truth that makes us free, it is clearly lies that bind us in chains and keep us in darkness, so that we cannot make choices which are best for us.  This is why we trust in Christ, the Logos, who comes into the world to bring us light and truth so that we are no longer slaves to that which seeks to manipulate, to lie, to coerce, and to make us servants to that which only seeks its own power, and not the well-being and welfare of human beings that Christ the Physician -- the One being condemned for healing on the Sabbath -- brings to us.  He is the One who has declared that the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27).  This is the One who proclaims the reality of God -- who is love, and healing, and the bedrock of truth; He is the One in whom we can trust.  My study bible explains that Logos can mean "wisdom," "reason," and "action" as well as "word," and all of these are attributes of the Son of God.  He speaks to us the realities of the Father (John 14:7), teaching us the truth that we are loved, worthy of salvation and effort of all kind to heal and to retrieve in loving embrace of our Creator.  Let us put our trust in Him, even when -- and especially then -- when all else seems designed to confuse and distract.  For worship belongs only to God, and all else is a false idol.

Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's

Peter Paul Rubens, The Tribute Money, ca. 1612.  Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco - Legion of Honor

 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk.  And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men.  Tell us, therefore, what do You think?  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And he said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.

- Matthew 22:15-22

Yesterday we read that Jesus spoke another parable to the chief priests and elders who questioned Him regarding His authority (after the cleansing of the temple):  "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come.  Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready.  Come to the wedding." '  But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business.  And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them.  But when the king heard about it, he was furious.  And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.  Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.  Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.'  So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good.  And the wedding hall was filled with guests.  But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment.  So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?'  And he was speechless.  Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'  For many are called, but few are chosen."

 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk.  And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men.  Tell us, therefore, what do You think?  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And he said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.  In the questions so far brought to bear upon Jesus by the leaders in the temple, we can see how strong a role the opinion of the public plays.  Jesus subtly turned the tables on His questioners when He asked them about John the Baptist, as John was revered by the people as holy man and prophet, and so the leadership was afraid to say anything against the Baptist (see Tuesday's reading).  In Wednesday's reading, we were told that the leaders wanted to seize Jesus right away, but they feared the crowds, who believe that Jesus is a prophet.  Into this context, and the backdrop of the highly favorable opinion of the crowd to Jesus, comes this question which is posed as a kind of test.  It's, in fact, designed as a trap for Jesus.  If He answers "yes," it would turn the Jewish people against Him, who resent the taxes they're forced to pay to the Romans (and the Jewish tax collectors who take those taxes).  If Jesus gives a "no" answer, it would bring on charges of treason by the Roman state.  But, my study bible says, Jesus defeats their plan and shows that a believer is capable of rendering the state its due while serving God (Romans 13:1-7).  As the coin bears the image of the Roman emperor and is properly paid to him, so each person bears the image of God and therefore belongs to God, my study bible explains.  Conflict arises when the state demands that which is contrary to God.  In another note, my study bible adds that the distinction between things that are Caesar's and things that are God's doesn't imply that there is a division of one's life into the secular and the sacred.  Instead, we must understand that God is Lord over all of life, even including the secular.  We fulfill governmental requirements that don't conflict with our first responsibility to God (contrast the passage in Romans cited above with Acts 4:19, 5:29).  To pay taxes and uphold similar civil duties are not detrimental to personal holiness.

When do civil or other duties contradict with our belonging to God?  In much of the Gospels, we read about "the name of Jesus," or things done "in His name."  See, for example, John 14:14, in which Jesus teaches the disciples, "If you ask anything in My name, I will do it."   This understanding of the name of Christ, or when we use the sign of the Cross, saying, "In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit" comes precisely from the time when the image and name of the emperor were essential to the understanding of this question in today's reading.  To do something "in the name" of the emperor or ruler or monarch was to be under his (or her) house, a part of personal identity.  Moreover, anything that denoted the presence of the emperor -- such as an image on a coin -- denoted this name and thereby this authority.   So another question here that possibly cuts to the heart of the matter, and one which would be so crucial to the earliest Christians who might face martyrdom over such a question, is just how far and how deep each identity goes.  If we are, in fact, part of the "house" of Caesar because we are Roman citizens, and yet we are also praying and seeking to live our lives "in the name" of Jesus Christ, where does the conflict come in?  The same could be true of family duties, in which our family name also reveals identity as part of a "house."  Do parents have absolute rights over the souls or their children?  Do brothers and sisters, or husbands and wives?  In such a context, we also have answers from Jesus as well, found elsewhere in the Gospels.  Jesus emphasizes the true permanent monogamous state of holy matrimony, but also makes note for us that such bonds can be broken by sin, and that there are conditions under which divorce is permissible (see 5:32, 19:9), conditions which were expanded in the early Church.  While family or state might demand ultimate authority over identity and loyalty, in truth there is only one authority which is ultimate, and that is the author of our very lives and souls -- the One who bestows and creates all things to begin with.  This is precisely the question which early Christians struggled with in determining a course of action that might result in martyrdom.  Many early saints were soldiers, for example, and those who fought valiantly.  Martyrdom, however, came when they had to choose to accept honors given for their valor, and whether or not that constituted accepting religious loyalty to another god.  These are the saints known as military saints, who refused to participate in Imperial cult rituals although they served as loyal soldiers, such as St. George.  These questions remain important to us today, but also in the sense of loyalty to group, clan, political party, or any other affiliation we might have.  We have to decide to whom we ultimately truly belong, and where our ultimate loyalty and identity are sourced.  These are not simple questions, as St. Paul discusses at length in the Epistle to the Romans.  He clearly indicates an important and good place for ruling authorities, and for the duty of paying taxes (Romans 13:1-7).  But he also notes that while disputes among Christians are possible, they are not worthwhile.  They may do damage to the community, while it is at the same time acceptable for each to follow conscience -- even if that means different choices for different people.  Whatever choices we make according to faith or conscience, each must do according to the Lord and seek to avoid scandalizing others in the faith so as to weaken the community (Romans 14).  Therefore we are to understand that in the fullness of life, all must "live or die" to the Lord.  Therefore what we seek is a life lived through the examples of both John the Baptist and of Jesus, "for John came neither eating nor drinking" and Jesus "the Son of Man came eating and drinking."  While both were condemned by the religious leaders, Jesus said that wisdom is justified by all her children.  (See Matthew 11:1-19.)   In all things, we must seek to live prayerful lives, and be accompanied by prayer through all we do and choose.   St. Paul advises us, "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you" (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).   In today's reading Jesus clearly gives us the understanding that to pay a tax is not a sin so long as we understand our true and ultimate loyalty to God.  In the Church we are given ways to shore up that loyalty, to make good decisions, and help to do so through the tools we're offered, the saints which surround us, our brothers and sisters, and especially the prayer that connects us all in the Body of Christ.  Let us not forget the Holy Trinity dwells in each one (John 14:15-21), and keep that prayerful communication strong and continual so that we are rooted in the right relations in which we belong, and through which we take meaning and identity.   Our ultimate solution to each question lies in this loyalty, and not in the abstractions of philosophies and debates, for it is here where beauty, truth, and goodness dwell.  Let us keep our connection strong to the place where the Source of love calls us.  This is the fullness through which we find the truly rooted answer to every question, and no real contradiction.

Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more

 And everyone went to his own house.  But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them.  Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery.  And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act.  Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned.  But what do You say?"  This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him.  But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.  So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first."  And again He stopped down and wrote on the ground.  Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last.  And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.  When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours?  Has no one condemned you?"  She said, "No one, Lord."  And Jesus said to her, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more." 

- John 7:53-8:11

Yesterday we read that, on the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."  But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.  Therefore many from the crowd, when they heard this saying, said, "Truly this is the Prophet."  Others said, "This is the Christ."  But some said, "Will the Christ come out of Galilee?  Has not Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where David was?"  So there was a division among the people because of Him.  Now some of them wanted to take Him, but no one laid hands on Him.  Then the officers came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, "Why have you not brought Him?"  The officers answered, "No man ever spoke like this Man!"  Then the Pharisees answered them, "Are you also deceived?  Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in Him?  But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed."  Nicodemus (he who came to Jesus by night, being one of them) said to them, "Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?"  They answered and said to him, "Are you also from Galilee?  Search and look, for no prophet has arisen out of Galilee."

 And everyone went to his own house.  But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.  After the tumultuous events in the temple, all depart for the evening, and Jesus spends the night with the pilgrims, on the Mount of Olives.

Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them.  Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery.  And when they had set her in the midst, they said to Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act."   Today's entire reading, from 7:53 (above) to the story of the woman caught in adultery, is not found in several ancient manuscripts.  Neither is it covered in the commentaries of St. John Chrysostom and certain other Patristic writers.  But, my study bible says, it is still sealed by the Church as inspired, authentic, canonical Scripture, and therefore bears the same authority as all other Scripture.  This story is found in over 900 manuscripts.

"Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned.  But what do You say?"  This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him.  But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.  My study bible tells us that the law dictated the death penalty for adulterers (Leviticus 20:10).  If we read the law carefully, we note it stipulates the death penalty for both parties, not just the woman.   My study bible adds that this ordinance was not observed to the letter at the time of Jesus.  The Pharisees bring this woman to Him simply because it was an opportunity to test Him.  If Jesus objects to the punishment, He can be accused of opposing the Law.  If He upholds the punishment, He can be accused of showing no mercy to sinners.  Interestingly, this is the single place in the New Testament in which we're told that Jesus wrote something.  There are several theories regarding what He wrote.  Some say that He wrote the Ten Commandments, which each of the accusers have violated at least once.  Others say that He wrote the names of the accusers who had committed adultery themselves.

So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first."  And again He stopped down and wrote on the ground.  Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last.  And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.  When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, "Woman, where are those accusers of yours?  Has no one condemned you?"  She said, "No one, Lord."  And Jesus said to her, "Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more."  My study bible says that Jesus' answer confounds the Pharisees, as He upholds a great principle of the Law -- that the wages of sin is death (Genesis 2:17, Romans 6:23) -- but without neglecting its greater aspect of mercy (Deuteronomy 13:17, Psalms 116:2-117:4, Hosea 6:6).  This mercy, my study bible tells us, is offered freely to all repentant sinners.  But in order to receive that gift, we must make the effort to flee from sin, as Christ commands in the final verse.

It's interesting to observe that Jesus is, in some sense, the God of second chances.  He is our Lord of mercy, but He does not cease to preach "go and sin no more."  He does not say that what she did is fine, He simply refuses to condemn, and teaches her that she must change her conduct.  These things form a delicate balance, which some people frequently find difficult to grasp.  "Mercy" is construed as something the opposite of "justice."  But this simply isn't the case.  One doesn't leave the other out.  Rather, they are part and parcel of one another.  What Christ does here is illustrate our lives as a continuum, in which we are called to learn and to grow, in which we are constantly called back to God, to the place where we need to be, the road we need to be on.  These are our "second chances," and they don't neglect the weighty matters of spiritual law.  Instead, they give us a kind of roadmap, a place to find our way, the GPS of God, if you will.  Our Lord always calls us back, but neither does He make excuses -- instead He holds us accountable for the things of which we are capable, for the "better behavior" that He knows we must accept to live and to make a part of our lives in this world.  Over the course of the past three readings, we have observed how John's Gospel concerns itself with matters of justice, of good judgment, of righteous judgment.  Here, Jesus shows righteous judgment not only by not condemning this woman and giving her a second chance, but through some mysterious factor sending those away who are also not without sin.  Modern ears such as ours may view this law which gives a death penalty for adultery as extreme and bad on its face.  But let us not forget that my study bible tells us that even in Christ's time it wasn't enforced.  And certainly it included the same penalty for both parties engaged in adultery -- and where is the man with whom this woman is accused of committing the crime?  Noticeably absent, and perhaps one of the men in the crowd at that.  Quite possibly the entire episode is one which is deliberately "set up" in order to trap Jesus in the first place.  As Jesus does not pronounce the woman entirely innocent of committing adultery, we might presume she was someone rather notorious or known for such -- and in such a case, Jesus' giving her a second chance adds an even deeper meaning to His notion of justice.  For if this woman indeed is an adulterer (which Jesus certainly seems to acknowledge as true), He is giving to her a road out of the habitual pattern of her life.  He's offering to her a way to set her own life straight and out of the grip of sin.  Thus, His refusal to condemn is also a refusal to pigeon-hole, to set her in a place where she has a permanent label of adulteress.  He gives her new life, exactly as He has promised in His sermons that He has come to bestow on all, if we but grasp it and take hold of His way.  And that is the real story here about righteous judgment, that we each have a way out of our habitual patterns, the labels we put upon ourselves or which others put upon us.  Our Lord is the God of second chances, the One who does not turn away, who offers us a way out, if we will but grasp the mission, the effort, the life and commands He places before us.  Let us note, in keeping with modern phrases regarding justice and judgment, that this is not a "Get Out of Jail Free" card.  Jesus doesn't give easy excuses or free passes.  Instead, He gives new life, a second chance, a new way to go forward.  He offers us a map for salvation, a plan, because we are not capable of designing such roads and maps ourselves.  He gives us what we need most, a "way," as in "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (14:6), in which way is translated from the Greek word which also means road or path.  Christ's justice does not bypass the law nor sin, but neither does it neglect mercy.  It offers us second chances, and His call or command to "Follow Me" must be understood as always calling us back to His way, which He has described as straight and narrow (Matthew 7:14).  This is the path we seek and follow, calling us back to Him -- the One who is both the path and the door (10:7).  Let us find and seek His way to righteous judgment, and the life He offers which is always new (Revelation 21:5), and through which we are always called forward.

Whose image and inscription is this?

The Tribute Money (Caesar's Coin), Peter Paul Rubens (1612-1614).  Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Palace of the Legion of Honor

Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk.  And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men.  Tell us, therefore, what do You think?  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.

- Matthew 22:15-22

Yesterday we read that Jesus answered and spoke to leadership once again by parables and said:  "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come.  Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, 'See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready.  Come to the wedding." '  But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business.  And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them.  But when the king heard about it, he was furious.   And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.  Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy.  Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.'  So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good.  And the wedding hall was filled with guests.  But when the king came into to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment.  So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?  And he was speechless.  Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.  For many are called, but few are chosen."

  Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk.  And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men.  Tell us, therefore, what do You think?  Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?"  But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?  Show Me the tax money."  So they brought Him a denarius.  And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?"  They said to Him, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.  My study bible notes that this question is designed to trap Jesus, as the text tells us, the attempt is to entangle Him in His talk.  Let's note that the Herodians are those followers of Herod's court, and so are close to the Roman state.  So, this question is a trap, in the sense that if Jesus answers "yes," it will turn the Jewish people against Him.  But if He answers "no" (especially in the presence of the Herodians) it will bring a charge of treason by the Romans.  My study bible says that Christ's answer defeats their cunning and shows that a believer can render the state its due while serving God.  As the coin bears the image of the emperor and is properly paid to him.  At the same time, each person bears the image of God and therefore belongs to God.  A conflict forms, my study bible says, only at those times when the state demands that which is contrary to God.  It also adds that Jesus' answer doesn't imply that there is a division in our lives into the secular and the sacred.  Instead, we know that God is Lord over all life, including the secular.  But to fulfill governmental requirements that do not conflict with our first responsibility to God is appropriate and important (see (Romans 13:1-7; contrast with Acts 4:19, 5:29).  To pay taxes and fulfill civil duties is not detrimental to holiness.

For our earliest Christian ancestors, this particular teaching would remain key to their lives, for many of our earliest saints and martyrs had to make precisely this distinction.  When was it proper to render to Caesar, and when to God?  Early martyrs and saints included young women who had decided to devote their lives to God, and so resisted being married to men of high rank.  This meant even a defiance of parents, and their stories include several young women who perished through collusion of parents and state.  Some martyrs died simply from local persecutions by mobs or citizens agitated against Christians for all kinds of reasons, including simple prejudice.  But others were those who had to choose between allegiance to God and allegiance to other secular authorities, such as parents (in the case of the young women who did not wish to be married or forced to give up their faith), or the state, as in the case of soldiers who, having dutifully served in the military, did not wish to participate in pagan services, or even in some cases, to receive the laurel crown, also associated with pagan worship.  At any rate, studying these histories gives us a sense that the real crisis occurs precisely as my study bible says it does:  when governmental or other requirements from authority conflict with our first responsibility to God, especially the care and allegiance of our souls.  Those faithful, for example, might be slaves who chose to resist particular compulsion to worship idols.  In any case, from the stories we have we can conclude that at some crisis point -- just as with the Passion of Christ -- it comes down to having to choose a loyalty especially of the soul.  That is, to whom do we have a greater allegiance?  There are all kinds of ways in which we serve our countries, our communities, our governments, and other forms of secular institutions.  There will be things we support and even things we don't support, such as various political or social or cultural opinions.  But the real conflict comes when there is a question of loyalty and allegiance in terms of the soul's dedication to God, and there each must make a choice in accordance with a prayerful life for what is appropriate.  In the example cited by my study bible of Romans 13, St. Paul writes, "Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities" and "Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor."  From this we can understand a Christian life as one which seeks in righteousness to maintain peace and honor with neighbor through the institutions of our governments and communities, but that there may come a time when it becomes a matter of having to choose between the soul's love of God and such duties.  Jesus' answer tells us something very important about the balance between the secular and the sacred.  In a "holistic" pattern of life, where we do not divide up where God is and isn't (for God is "everywhere present and filling all things," according to an Orthodox prayer to the Holy Spirit), we seek to serve God at all times, even when fulfilling our duties as good citizens and good neighbors, as dutiful children or responsible family members.  But our prayerful life keeps us also participating in the life of Christ.  We note through the Gospels that He chose His battles; there were times to avoid the authorities, and now, finally, He is in Jerusalem and the time of His hour of Passion is coming.  So we are to do likewise, to see fit to live our lives in accordance with prayer and the guidance of our communities; to live in peace, but to understand the deeply loyal allegiance of our souls to our Creator.  In this we begin and we also end.  We are called not to complacency but rather to a higher kind of order of awareness and also of responsibility.  Our lives are not worthless tools of any state, but neither are they merely resistant to anything we don't necessarily "like."  We are called to something better and deeper, to a responsible mindfulness, a reverence for life as created by God, a valuing of the true worth of the soul -- we're not to give it away easily.  Consider that this is the real basis for our freedom.  Let us be truly mindful and grateful for the Incarnation we are about to celebrate.  Advent is a traditional time in the Church not for hustle and bustle and material preparations and consumption, but rather even of fasting and reflection in preparation for our feast.  Let us take time out for what is important, for where our souls must truly dwell -- but most especially, to deepen our understanding of whose image and inscription they must bear.

Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's

 So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, but that they might seize on His words, in order to deliver Him to the power and the authority of the governor.  Then they asked Him, saying, "Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth:  Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?"  But He perceived their craftiness, and said to them, "Why do you test Me?  Show Me a denarius.  Whose image and inscription does it have?"  They answered and said, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  But they could not catch Him in His words in the presence of the people.  And they marveled at His answer and kept silent.

- Luke 20:19-26

 
In our current readings in Luke, it is Holy Week, and Jesus daily teaches in the temple.  He has been confronted by the leadership regarding His authority.  Yesterday we read that He began to tell the people this parable:  "A certain man planted a vineyard, leased it to vinedressers, and went into a far country for a long time.  Now at vintage-time he sent a servant to the vinedressers, that they might give him some of the fruit of the vineyard.  But the vinedressers beat him and sent him away empty-handed.  Again he sent another servant; and they beat him also, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.  And again he sent a third; and they wounded him also and cast him out.  Then the owner of the vineyard said, "What shall I do?  I will send my beloved son.  Probably they will respect him when they see him.'  But when the vinedressers saw him, they reasoned among themselves, saying, 'This is the heir.  Come, let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours.'  So they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him.  Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do to them?  He will come and destroy those vine-dressers and give the vineyard to others."  And when they heard it they said, "Certainly not!"  Then He looked at them and said, "What then is this that is written:  'The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone'?  Whoever falls on that stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder."  And the chief priests and the scribes that very hour sought to lay hands on Him, but they feared the people -- for they knew He had spoken this parable against them. 

  So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, but that they might seize on His words, in order to deliver Him to the power and the authority of the governor.  Then they asked Him, saying, "Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth:  Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?"  But He perceived their craftiness, and said to them, "Why do you test Me?  Show Me a denarius.  Whose image and inscription does it have?"  They answered and said, "Caesar's."  And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."  But they could not catch Him in His words in the presence of the people.  And they marveled at His answer and kept silent.  My study bible explains that the question on taxation is a trap, as Jesus implies by His question, "Why do you test Me?"  If He answers "yes" it will turn the Jewish people against Him.  If He answers "no" it will bring a charge of treason by the Romans.  His answer, my study bible says, establishes that a believer can at the same time render the state its due while serving God (Romans 13:1-7).  As the coin bears the image of the emperor, it is properly paid to him.  So also every person bears the image of God and therefore belongs to God.  The conflict between these loyalties arise when that which the state demands in contrary to God.

The question posed to Jesus reflects well the political nature of the expectations of the Messiah.  The people await one who will re-establish David's kingdom, throwing off the rule of the Roman Empire.   This is reflected, for instance, in John's Gospel, after Jesus feeds the multitude in the wilderness, whereupon we're told that Jesus understood they wanted to seize Him and make Him king by force (John 6:15).  When the crowds finally catch up to Him again the following day in Capernaum, He tells them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him" (John 6:26-27; see John 6 here).  The people are concerned with their daily lives.  They want a Messiah who will be the king they desire, who can live up to their political and material expectations.  But Jesus' mission is to teach about the kingdom of heaven that is in the midst of them.  Here in today's reading, the question posed to Jesus, designed not simply to discredit Him, but also to place Him in the sights of the authorities so that He may be done away with, reflects these political aims and aspirations.  Is He going to be a nationalist king, who will fight against the Romans, and drive them out of Israel?  Will He object to paying taxes to them as a matter of the religious law?  Let us remember that these expectations of the Messiah are not expectations of the divine Person of Christ, the Theanthropos ("God-man"), the One who is both human and divine in His Incarnation.  These considerations are stunning to the people, a stumbling block.  In their eyes, God may choose the one who is an anointed king, but Christ is something altogether different, and the Incarnation is the story here in itself.  As Son of Man and Son of God Jesus can say, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."   He can teach us that we each belong to God, while we live in the world.  His is not a question of constant political warfare, of slogans and warring armies, but a question of the soul -- and how truly to live as faithful to God and fully a part of this world.  But His answer gives us even more than that to ponder -- and that is to consider that all abstract or political questions regarding ethical or nationalist interests are not necessarily those things we need to act upon or consider uppermost in our service to God.  Too often we confuse absolute "rules" regarding political or social questions as if they were absolute rules imposed by God.  Do we always vote for this political party or that one because one is pleasing to God and others are not?  Do we treat our acquaintances with such absolute strictures, thinking we may associate with one and not with another because God decrees it forever and as an absolute?  Christ's life does not impose such absolutes upon us.  There is one absolute, and that is our love of God -- because this is the true nature of God, which calls us to worship God.   But within the worship of God and the life we seek to live of the Kingdom which Christ brings into the world, there is a life that asks of us alertness, awareness, a way of living that practices love, that may call on us for change and growth and learning.  This is discipleship.  Christ's way of life is one that calls us to repentance and to healing; it is a way of the heart and the soul.   As such, we render unto Caesar that which is Caesar's, and unto God that which is God's.  There might be a time when a tax is an outrage to our religious faith, and another time when it is perfectly just and reasonable, depending upon what is being directly asked of us.  Jesus Himself kept His identity secret and hidden until it was time for the Triumphal Entry, and even then defies the expectations about what the Messiah would be.  His ministry had to unfold in a particular way, through particular times -- as did the discipleship of those who would become the apostles of the Church.  Our love of Christ becomes, in this understanding, not simply a matter of abstract principles applied to political or civic affairs, but a question of heart and soul and spirit and strength -- and growth in understanding His love and how we live it.  Most distinctive of all, Christ's love is one that includes mercy.  When He teaches a story about what it means to be a neighbor, His finest example of being a neighbor is a Samaritan, a member of a hated group of enemies to the Jews.  On His way to His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, welcomed as Messiah, He calls out and stays at the home of the chief tax collector in a place notorious for sinfulness, and restores this man through repentance and his own recompense.  He touches a leper to heal him although it is forbidden to touch the unclean.  He praises a woman for her faith in front of the crowds, when her blood flow makes her unclean -- after she has surreptitiously touched the hem of His garment.  Each of these actions happen in a particular way and a particular time, and always within a sphere of faith.   Christ's work in the world and His continual presence to us together with the Father and the Spirit is one of active love, which cannot be contained in slogans and questions of which "side" we're on.  The absolute here is the Presence of God, our capacity for worship and life in the Kingdom He brings into the world (10:9-11), and for living a life activated by faith -- love of God which teaches us love of neighbor.  Let us consider all the riot of political, civic, personal, ethical, social rules we have -- and put them under the umbrella of the one absolute we have:  love of God which teaches us love of neighbor.  It is through Christ's love -- working in and through the great cloud of witnesses by which we are surrounded -- that we seek to make our proper way in the world, and live His Way which is a long, long learning curve, an entire journey of discipleship.  That is His call to us, the voice of our Shepherd which we always seek through prayer and through His love.