Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Fr. Ben Riley

On this Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time, we hear the famous words of Jesus: “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” Those words have inspired centuries of discussion about law, authority, and the relationship between Church and state.

But before we explore that, I want to begin with an analogy. Jesus loved a good parable, so I think I’m in good company with my love of analogies! You may have heard me use this one before, but it is so pertinent to today’s Gospel that I think it bears repeating.

Imagine a school built on top of a mountain. Every day, the children go outside for recess. There is plenty of room to play, but there is also a steep drop at the mountain’s edge.

The children are frightened. Instead of running around, they stay close to the school, pressing up against its walls. They have all that space, but they are too afraid to enjoy it.

Then the principal builds a sturdy fence around the edge of the mountaintop. He adds a playground and a swing set, safely inside the fence.

And everything changes. The children run, climb, and play. They can enjoy the schoolyard because they know something is protecting them from the drop.

Did the fence restrict them? Yes. It established a boundary. But that very boundary gave them the confidence to play. The fence helped make their freedom possible.

Sometimes we think freedom means having no rules and no one telling us what to do. But God’s commandments protect the life and love he created us to enjoy. And good human laws serve a similar purpose: they protect people and help us live together in freedom and in peace.

Of course, that raises a question: What makes a law good? Who decides where the fence belongs?

That brings us to today’s Gospel.

I’m always a little amused by how this story opens. Matthew tells us that Jesus’ opponents are plotting to entrap him in his speeclm That’s an old game. “Let’s ask him a question so that whatever he says, we can use it against him.”

But first comes the flattery. “Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man. You teach the way of God. You aren’t concerned with anyone’s opinion.”

They are trying to butter him up.

And then comes the trap: “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?”

If Jesus says yes, they can portray him as supporting the Roman power ruling over their people. If he says no, they can accuse him before the Romans of encouraging rebellion. Either answer gives them something to use against him.

But Jesus asks for a coin. “Whose image is on this coin?”

“Caesar’s.” They respond.

“Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”

It is a brilliant answer. But Jesus is doing more than escaping a trap. He is asking us to consider what we owe civil authority—and where that authority ends.

Now, whenever the Church addresses a public issue, someone will say, “The Church should stay out of politics.”

But what do we mean by politics? Politics concerns how we govern our life together. It concerns the laws we make and the way we treat one another. Those decisions affect real human beings. They can protect human dignity or they can violate it.

Surely a Church commanded to love our neighbors must care about whether our laws treat those neighbors justly. An issue does not stop being a moral issue simply because it is also a political issue.

Pope Benedict the 16th wrote in his encyclical Deus Caritas Est, God Is Love, that the Church “cannot and must not remain on the sidelines in the fight for justice.” He explains that the Church contributes by forming consciences and helping people recognize what justice requires.

That does not make every social justice question simple. Faithful Catholics can sometimes disagree about the best means of achieving a good end. We need sound judgment and a willingness to listen. But we must also allow the Gospel to challenge our political loyalties, including the loyalties we hold most strongly. The truth, is that Christianity does not fit neatly into any political party’s platform.

Our own country’s founding offers an effort to find a proper balance. James Madison played a leading role in drafting the Bill of Rights. The First Amendment begins: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”

Notice those two protections go together: no establishment of religion by Congress, no national religion, and no prohibition of free religious expression.

There is wisdom in that pairing. People need freedom to practice their faith and bring its wisdom into public life. And government must protect the rights of people of other faiths and of people who profess no religious faith at all. Their freedom and dignity deserve our protection, too.

The Church serves the common good when she defends human dignity. She offers that teaching for the good of everyone. And government has a responsibility to serve everyone entrusted to its care.

But we can go deeper than a balance between two institutions. God is the Creator who sustains the whole world. He gives human beings real freedom and real responsibilities. Government has real work to do, and its authority must serve the good of the people God has created.

Go back to the coin.

Whose image is on it? Caesar’s.

But whose image is on Caesar?

God’s.

Caesar himself is made in the image and likeness of God. He has received his life from God, and he must answer to God for how he uses his power.

We see this again when Jesus stands before Pontius Pilate. Pilate reminds Jesus that he has the power to release him or have him crucified. Jesus answers, that Pilate would have no power over him unless it had been given from above.

Jesus acknowledges Pilate’s authority. But that authority carries responsibility. Pilate’s condemnation of an innocent man shows how terribly power can be abused.

And here is the heart of the matter: Caesar bears God’s image, and so does every person Caesar governs.

The unborn child, the struggling mother, the immigrant, the prisoner, the sick person who needs constant care—all bear God’s image. So does the person whose politics frustrate us. So does the person who does not believe in God.

Their dignity does not depend on their usefulness, their popularity, or the approval of the government. Their dignity comes from God. Government must recognize that dignity and protect it through just laws.

Think again of those children on the mountaintop. The fence existed for their good. Its purpose was to protect them and give them room to flourish.

Our laws should serve people in that same way, with particular care for those most exposed to harm. And our faith should move us to ask whose dignity needs defending, whose voice is going unheard, and what responsibility God has given us toward them.

This week, let that begin with someone you find difficult to love. Before you see an opponent, remember whose image is on that person’s immortal soul.

Give Caesar his coin. Give God your heart. And honor his image in every person.