29th Sunday Of Ordinary Time: Give To God What Belongs To God

One of the gifts of social media is the increased opportunity to communicate with passive-aggression. I see it most often on the Nextdoor app, a neighborhood communication tool, where things like the following are communicated: “To the person on Mt. Baker Court who insists on putting their garbage containers so close to the road. I hope we’re not inconveniencing you by having to swerve to miss them”…or…”For those who plan to celebrate into the evening on July 4th, please be considerate of those of us who have jobs”.

Think of it: Without passive-aggression, teenagers would be denied their God-given right to meaningfully express discontent to their parents with words like, “Whatever!” and “Why are you determined to ruin my life?”

Today Jesus gets a dose of it too: ”Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man…you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth…you are not concerned with anyone's opinion… you do not regard a person's status. Tell us, then, what is your opinion….?”

This question was posed by representatives of two groups within Jewish society, Pharisees and Herodians. Herodians, were principally supporters of Herod, the quasi-Jewish king, a puppet of Rome. The Pharisees on the other hand, were devoutly religious and strict adherents to Jewish Law, and they despised Herod. These two groups were not ordinarily on friendly terms, but to put Jesus in a difficult position, they were willing to work together.

So back to their question, coated in false-flattery, about whether one should pay the census tax to Caesar. Their presumption was that Jesus’ response—regardless of how he answered—would incriminate him. If he said they should pay it, it would put him in hot-water with Law-abiding Jews. On the other hand, if he said they should not, the Roman authorities could punish him for encouraging rebellious behavior.

Jesus saw through their disingenuous intent and asked, “Why are you testing me?”  He then requested a coin, and one was promptly presented. It was a Roman coin, which would have borne an image of the Roman Emperor, along with the words, ”Tiberius Caesar, the good son of the divine Augustus”. For the Pharisees, calling Caesar ‘divine’ was blasphemous, and they did their best to avoid even touching the coins. So, we can reasonably surmise that it was one of the Herodians who produced the coin. As you can imagine, the emergence of this coin created an awkward tension between these two groups.

Jesus held the coin before them and answered in a way they wouldn’t have expected: “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God". The verse that follows this response tells us they walked away speechless. Why? The coin exposed the Herodians—Jews, mind you—for their cooperation with the Roman government.

But Jesus’ words also exposed the Pharisees. As pious Jews, they knew the scriptures thoroughly, including the words, “God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him” (Gen 1:27). Jesus’ response reminded them that just as the coin bearing the image of Caesar is owed to Caesar, the human person—stamped with and bearing the image of God—is owed to God: “(Give to) God what belongs to God”. They knew they were not living up to that command.

The coin bearing the image of Caesar contrasted with the people bearing the image of God, reflects our reality as people of two distinct worlds. Yet Jesus would remind us that we live in this world as pilgrims destined for another world. As we live in the tension between these contrasting realities, as people of God’s kingdom, does it not feel increasingly like we’re being marginalized, as though ushering all things religious into a room where we can be conveniently contained. For those driving this movement, religious freedom means that the Church is permitted to exist, not that she has a voice in guiding human society.

In this Respect Life month, but also as we uphold our civic responsibilities—including casting our ballots—may Jesus’ words serve to remind us, to guide and embolden us: Give to society what is required of you, and even try to make this world better…but never, ever forget that you bear on your very self, the image of a Father who created you, who breathed Himself into you, who is in you, and to whom you would return when you leave this life. That is who you are. Live in accord with that image. As you give to Caesar what is his, give to God what belongs to Him—your very self.