TWENTY-NINTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
18 OCTOBER 2020
For
the last few Sundays, we have been hearing the parables of Jesus about the
kingdom of heaven. Speaking in the
temple, the house of God built on Mount Zion, Jesus has fulfilled the
prophecies of the ancient prophets.
These parables reveal that his risen body will replace the current
temple, and that he is the successor of the current religious leaders of the
people. He will build up a temple, not
made of stones, but of living stones, the Body of Christ. Wounded by the rebukes of the parables, the
Pharisees want to get even with Jesus.
So, they
team up with the Herodians, with whom they have nothing in common. The Herodians work closely with the occupying
Roman forces. The Pharisees reject any
cooperation with the Romans, whom they regard as unclean. They approach Jesus, not to receive his
honest opinion, but to trap him with a dangerous question. First, they flatter him by telling him that
he is a truthful man, teaching the way of God in accordance with the truth, not
concerned about other people’s opinions, without regard to their status. Then they ask him the loaded question: Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar
or not? If Jesus answers “No,” the
Herodians will report him to the Roman authorities for inciting rebellion. If he answers “Yes,” the Pharisees will
expose him as siding with the hated Roman repression of a people waiting for a
messiah.
Jesus sees
their malice and calls them “hypocrites.”
In a brilliant move, he asks them to show him the Roman coin. “Whose
image is this?” he asks. They have to
admit, “Caesar’s.” They all know the
inscription on that coin: “Tiberius
Caesar, son of the divine Augustus, high priest.” In response, he says: “then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar
and to God what belongs to God.”
In his answer,
Jesus clearly states that everything belongs to God. When he asks for the image on the coin, he
uses the word “Icon.” Icons express the
truth that all people are made in the image of God, even Caesar. He calls those his disciples to be conscientious
citizens on earth, and members of the kingdom of heaven, always mindful that
everything belongs to God.
By the time
Saint Matthew wrote this Gospel, his readers were being persecuted by the
successors of Caesar. Some were put to
death. They struggled with the tensions
between being citizens of the Roman Empire and members of the kingdom of
heaven. This Gospel is addressed to us,
as we find ourselves in a divided society in a very contentious election
season, made more difficult by the pandemic.
That is why our Bishops, the successors of the Apostles, are giving us
guidance in our role as disciples and citizens.
They urge us to participate in the political arena and to vote. Instead of telling us which party or which
candidate for whom we should vote, they give us guidance in their statement, Forming Consciences for faithful Citizenship. If you have not done so, please read the
condensed version in our bulletin. You
can read the entire document on the website of the United States Conference of
Catholic Bishops. It is a good review of
Catholic Social Teaching. There are also
pamphlets available in the Parish Life Center.
The statement challenges us to examine our responsibility to see all
human life, from conception to natural death, as created in the image of God,
demanding respect and protection. It
also challenges us to be attentive
to the ways in which the dignity of human life is not respected between
conception and natural death.
In these
divided times, it is easy to see our disagreements. But, there is much more that unites us as
Catholics than divides us. The
principles in this document enumerate those issues that unite us. As Saint Paul reminds the Thessalonians, we
respond to God’s gifts to us by our work of faith, our labor of love, and our
enduring hope in Jesus Christ.
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