29TH SUNDAY HOMILY, IN ORDINARY TIME, YEAR A.
By Rev. Sylvanus Amaobi
(1st Reading, Is. 45:1, 4-6; 2nd Reading, 1 Thess. 1: 1-5; Gospel, Matt. 22:15-21)
THEME: FULFILLING OUR CIVIC RESPONSIBILITIES AND RENDERING WORSHIP TO GOD
Dear brothers and sisters, “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24).
THE TRICKY QUESTION
In today’s gospel reading (Matt. 22: 15-21), we are presented with this plot by the Pharisees and Herodians to entrap Jesus Christ. They asked him this tricky and mischievous, “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not.” Jesus saw their hypocrisy and knew their intent was malicious. They asked the question to put Him in a tight corner so that any position he took would be problematic for Him. If he said, “Do not pay taxes to Caesar,” he would be accused of undermining and subverting the Roman government’s authorities. And if he said, “Pay taxes to Caesar,” he would definitely draw upon himself the hostility of the people who hate paying taxes to the Roman authorities and colonizers.
Jesus Christ would have to draw from the remarkable advice He previously gave to His apostles. Therefore, he would be wise as a serpent and humble as a dove (Matt.10:16). I believe his answer stunned his questioners, and that was not what they expected. He requested for a coin to be given to him. Whose image is on the coin? He inquired! Caesar’s, they replied. He said, “Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and God what belongs to God.”
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OUR CIVIC RESPONSIBILITIES
What was Jesus Christ’s message in his answer? As human beings, we live in a society and under civil authority, too. As people living in a society, we have responsibilities toward the ordering of our society. This responsibility is called civic responsibility or duty. Paying taxes is one of those responsibilities. The proceeds of the taxes we pay are used to develop our society and, therefore, for our own good. We can never abdicate from that responsibility, not on any religious pretense. Thus, Jesus, by saying, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s,” is telling us to involve ourselves in fulfilling our civic responsibilities such as paying taxes, voting, holding government accountable, and helping in the development and improvement of our society.
In his admonition to the Romans, Paul reminded them that all authorities are from God (Rom. 13:1). The civil authorities are there to direct and guide us to our proper end, even though some of them may not know God. In the first reading, we saw how God used Cyrus to liberate Israel’s people, even though he knew God not. We need to obey the civil authority and do our diligent and active duties for our society.
RENDER TO GOD WHAT BELONG TO GOD
Jesus also told the Pharisees and Herodians to render to God what belongs to God. The question we should ask ourselves is, what are the things that belong to God? What truly belongs to God? I will say that our soul is the principal and primary thing that belongs to God. This answer is right because, in Genesis 1:27, the bible says, “God created man in his own image and likeness.” We bear in us the image of God. Therefore, what makes a person is God’s image in him or her, the vital principle, the soul. It truly belongs to God and should be rendered back to God. St Augustine says our soul is restless until it rests in God. We must give our souls to God by worshiping, adoring, praising, and honoring Him.
We give or offer our souls to God by having a relationship with Him through faith that culminates in obedience to His will and commandments. We render our souls to God through worship, adoration, praise, honor, and thanksgiving. Therefore, worship is an act of homage through which the soul is totally rendered to God. By worshiping God as our creator and the owner of our souls, we give Him what rightly belongs to Him.
Always remember that Jesus loves you!
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