He said to them, "Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God." When we first listen to this encounter between Jesus and the Pharisees, we sense two things going on. The first is the trap being set for Jesus. If He says, ‘don’t pay the tax,’ He becomes an enemy of Rome and will be arrested and killed. If He says pay it, He is an ally of the enemy, and the people will hate Him. He escapes that trap in what He says, pay your obligation to each according to what you value. The second instinct is to focus on the relationship between Church and government, and of course everyone’s general dislike of paying taxes.
He said to them, "Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God."
When we first listen to this encounter between Jesus and the Pharisees, we sense two things going on.
The first is the trap being set for Jesus. If He says, ‘don’t pay the tax,’ He becomes an enemy of Rome and will be arrested and killed. If He says pay it, He is an ally of the enemy, and the people will hate Him. He escapes that trap in what He says, pay your obligation to each according to what you value.
The second instinct is to focus on the relationship between Church and government, and of course everyone’s general dislike of paying taxes.
This brings us to a central question concerning what we value and the implication of obligations.
The word obligation comes from the Latin noun obligatio, meaning a pledge, or state of being bound. The word was adopted into English around 1300, originally referring to a binding pledge, a promise, or the conditions of a bargain. By around 1600, the meaning expanded to cover moral and legal duties.
That is a pretty negative take. No one wants to be bound or made to do anything. It is why we do not like the idea of taxes, being forced to pay money for things we know little to nothing about or for things we disagree with. We are bound to that by law.
We philosophically justify taxes by saying we get certain rights and protections as part of the equation. We get things like military and police protection, fire service, roads, and other positive benefits in this social bargain. We may even value those things at least to a certain extent.
In Church terms we may think of obligations as well. That includes showing up for worship, being generous, doing certain tasks and serving in ministries.
It is perhaps one of the issues in our Catholic faith. We speak in terms of obligations, requirements, duties, and do not see things as Jesus or St. Paul saw them: remembering you in our prayers, unceasingly calling to mind your work of faith and labor of love and endurance in hope of our Lord Jesus Christ.
St Paul, working off what Jesus taught, saw what we do for our Heavenly Father and the Church as acts of love and faith. They want us valuing what we have, what we are a part of, such that all is done from the totality of our being, putting our whole self – heart, soul, and body into it.
Certain things indeed are obligations and requirements. If we see Church as only that, all we are doing is making a bargain. A cheap bargain without love.
For us, what we do for Church must arise from our value – considering it as what is most important for life today and forever.
