As faithful citizen's learn and take action to make the Heavenly Kingdom present among us

Jesus said to them "Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God." This may be a familiar saying of Jesus, but what point was he trying to make?  Some background on the situation may be helpful to provide some insight. The Pharisees were the Jewish religious leaders who would act pious, but in their hearts were far from God.  They

were constantly trying to accuse Jesus of violating the Jewish laws. The Pharisees were also in opposition to Roman’s whose emperor Caesar, claimed to be divine.  Roman currency had Caesar’s image stamped on one side and his claim divinity on the other.  The Pharisees would not permit Jews to use the coins, as Caesar’s image was a form of idolatry.  Moneychangers exchanged Roman coin for unmarked copper coins for trade in the Jewish community. The Herodian’s were a group of Jews who supported the Romans, so they could receive favored treatment.  They would inform the Romans of anyone who opposed them.  Herodian’s did not have anything in common with Pharisees. 

Why would these two opposing groups come together? So, Jesus could be trapped and put him to shame, to get rid of him. They thought that by asking Jesus if it were lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, he would be in a no-win situation. If Jesus said it was ok to pay the taxes the Pharisees would turn the Jewish people against him.  If Jesus said paying taxes was unlawful the Herodian’s would report him to the Roman authorities and have him hauled off to prison. The Pharisee’s had it all worked out to get rid of Jesus.

But Jesus knew their hearts were up to no good. True to form Jesus catches them in hypocrisy by asking for a coin used to pay the census taxes. The Pharisees produced a Roman coin, but if they were practiced what they preach, they would not have any.  The answer Jesus gave them is not what they expected: to pay what’s due to both Caesar and to God.  The Jews were living under Roman occupation and had to coexist with them.  If they did not pay the tax, they would be subject to punishment or even death by the Romans.  So, paying the census tax to peacefully coexist was a necessity.

Jesus was trying to make a point to his adversaries: God is the one they owe their greatest debt.  The Herodian’s and Pharisees were both Jews. As Jews they were to give their all to God: to love him with all their heart, mind, and soul and to love their neighbor as their self. They owed everything to God because he is author of life.  The Herodian’s and Pharisees were only concerned about themselves and all the privileges they received, rather than being the selfless servant as Jesus was. They weren’t open to Jesus as being the Messiah and his message of making present the Kingdom of Heaven by loving God and neighbor.  

We are blessed to live in the United States where we are free to worship God and have the right to vote for those who govern us. Unfortunately, some of our elected leaders and government policies and laws do not follow the ways our faith teaches.  God has allowed these leaders to be in power. We are called to pray for them to govern justly, respecting human life and dignity, family and education, social justice, and religious liberty. As Catholics, we live in the world, but we are not of the world. While we are citizens of the United States, our ultimate citizenship is the Kingdom of Heaven. If there is something contrary to God’s ways in our government, we can promote changes to help make the Kingdom of Heaven present. 

How can we do this? By learning about what our Catholic faith teaches about social issues that affect the common good. The Indiana Catholic Conference is an organization that can

help us learn about these teachings. The Indiana Catholic Conference is the public policy voice of the Catholic Church in Indiana. They advocate for policies that promote social teaching of the Catholic faith in our government. School choice vouchers which has benefited many of our school families is one of the policies advocated by the Indiana Catholic Conference. Their website has a wealth of information to learn and stay informed about social issues and what the Church teaches at a state and national level. 

Actively getting involved to support change is another way we can make a difference.  A model for promoting change through peaceful ways on social issues was Dorothy Day.  In her younger days in the 1920’s, Dorothy was involved in movements to protest unjust labor

practices, joining in on picket lines and writing for labor newspapers about injustices. She was not Catholic but would spend time in church praying in the presence of the Eucharist, while being involved in these movements.  After the birth of her first child and deciding to have her baptized, she finally decided to become Catholic herself. She intensively lived her faith, attending Mass daily, which shaped the rest of her life. Shortly after becoming Catholic Dorothy started the Catholic Worker Movement remained actively involved in peaceful movement throughout her life, being jailed when she was protesting nuclear weapons, and again at the age of 75 in support of conditions for migrant farm workers.  Pope Francis said about her during a speech to Congress in 2015, "Her social activism, her passion for justice and for the cause of the oppressed, were inspired by the Gospel, her faith, and the example of the saints,"  Dorothy Day’s cause for Sainthood is currently in the final phases.

As citizens of the United States, we are subject to taxes just like the Jews were to the Romans.  As citizens of heaven, we’re called to help bring about the Kingdom of Heaven. We can actively do this by promoting social issues consistent with our faith, through our participation as citizens of our country.  The currency we use has an important reminder on it: “In God we trust.”  This is a reminder for us that God is the one we really owe everything:  our country, homes, families, and our own lives.  As we come forward for the Eucharist today let’s thank God for all he has given us and ask for the grace to enable us to give Him all our heart, mind, and soul.