We are God’s Coins

Reflections on the Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time: Is 45:1, 4-6; 1 Thes 1:1-5b; Mt 22:15-21

“All is fair in love and war”, wrote John Lyly in his Euphues, meaning that the usual rules of fair play and reason don’t apply to matters of love and war. A similar sentiment seems to motivate the two warring rival groups approaching Jesus today. The Pharisees and the Herodians, two normally opposed sections separated by irreconcilable ideological and social differences join hands today for a common goal: to trap Jesus on a controversial subject. The Herodians were Jews who supported the Roman puppet King Herod, specifically, Herod Antipas and thus in favour of the Roman occupation and control over Judea. Logically, therefore, they must have been supporters of Herod’s right to tax the Jewish people. The Pharisees, on the other hand, were the ‘ultra-religious’ of the day who vehemently opposed Roman interference in the affairs of the Jews, God’s chosen people. Understandably, therefore, they were opposed to the Roman tax. The Gospel today brings together these two conflicting sections to deal with their common enemy. Hatchets are buried so arch-rivals could become allies. After all, isn’t all fair in love and war?

They approach Jesus with a well-thought-out trap. They ask, “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?". If he said yes, the Pharisees would accuse Jesus of sympathizing with the Romans and thus alienate him from his audience. If he answered no, then he would be accused of opposing Roman taxation and possibly charged with treason against Herod Antipas and his Empire. Either way, Jesus would alienate part of his following and incriminate himself under Roman law. The trap is set and the risk of entrapment is a serious one. However, the response of Jesus is both incredibly intelligent and revelatory of a profound spiritual truth. Jesus asks them for the coin that pays the census tax and they hand him the Roman coin. The coin, popularly known as the tribute penny” had the image of the infamous Tiberius Caesar with the inscription, “Ti[berivs] Caesar Divi Avg[vsti] F[ilivs] Avgvstvs" (Caesar Augustus Tiberius, son of the Divine Augustus). On the reverse side was the image of a seated Liva (wife of emperor Augustus) and the description “Pontifex Maximus” (Supreme pontiff).

To the Jews, a coin proclaiming a Roman King as God’s son and Supreme Pontiff is a grave violation of the First Commandment. What makes matters worse is that such a blasphemous coin should find its way into the Temple (the entire episode happens in the Temple area: Matthew 21:23). To the Pharisees, therefore, the statement "Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God" was a reminder of God’s sovereignty over and above our compelled allegiances to “the powers that be”. To the Herodians, the seemingly diplomatic affirmation of Rome’s taxation authority should have sounded like a reminder that Caesar is not God. The genius of Jesus is how his response does not support the Pharisees by opposing Caesar’s tax nor support the Herodians by affirming total loyalty to Rome. What does it mean for us today? Three possible misinterpretations of Jesus’ response still linger:

1. The dictum, ‘Render Caesar what is Caesar’s and render God what is God’s’ is not an invitation to a dual allegiance. Jesus is not placing Caesar and God on the same pedestal for “no one can serve two masters” (Matthew 6:24) and discipleship is not about compromising with idolatry powers that are contrary to God’s sovereignty.

2. Neither is Jesus proposing a strict separation of religion and politics into separate compartments that have no relevance to each other. Christians are called to “play their full role as citizens” (Letter to Diognetus, 5,5) and contribute actively to social justice while rooted in the values of the Gospel. The Kingdom of God, though a spiritual reality, has political dimensions too.

3. In drawing a contrast between Caesar and God, Jesus is not dismissing the importance of politics and power in the temporal order. As Pope Francis reminds us, “Catholics must get involved in politics even if it may be ‘dirty’, frustrating, and fraught with failure! Given today’s ‘throwaway’ culture and so many problems unfolding in the world, do I as a catholic watch from my balcony? No, you can’t watch from the balcony. Get right in there!” (April 2015).

Jesus reminds us today that being a good ‘catholic’ is not limited to our conduct within the Church campus but must extend to our responsibilities in workplaces, institutions, and markets. What is Ceasar’s and what is God’s? Is there anything or anyone that does not belong to God or is exempt from God’s providence and purview? (Case in point: Cyrus, a Persian King is termed God’s anointed in the first reading today). If the tribute penny had the inscription of Tiberius, each human person (regardless of our political, religious, and other allegiances) bears God’s own image and likeness (Genesis 1:27). We are all God’s coins and therefore rightly belong to Him in our inter-related lives as Christians and citizens.