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Monday, April 03, 2006
Alipio: Putting things in perspective
By Fr. Jose Alipio
Mk 12:13-17
THE enemies of Jesus did everything they could to embroil him in trouble. They saw a golden opportunity to put him between a rock and a hard place by raising the question of taxes. The Jewish people were subjects of the Roman Empire at the time and, as such, were required to pay taxes to Caesar. Needless to say, the Jews despised the Romans and resented the taxes they paid. So the enemies of Jesus asked him if they should pay taxes to the emperor. If he said no, then Jesus would be in trouble with the Roman authorities. If he said yes, then Jesus would incur the resentment of his fellow countrymen. They thought they had Jesus impaled on the horns of this dilemma. But Jesus dodged their clever scheme by refusing to choose either one of their options. "Give Caesar what is due Caesar's and unto God what is God's."
Jesus always had a way of putting things in proper perspective. He knew that both politics and religion play an important place in life. We belong to a faith community but we also belong to a secular society. Both deserve loyalty and demand support. There need be no conflict between the two if we keep things in perspective. We ought not to impose our religious obligations on all members of the society in which we live. Nor should we insist that our religious obligations exempt us from the laws of the land. We can remain true to our faith and fulfill our duties as citizens at the same time. We may feel the pinch when our religious values clash with our civic duties. But we are honor bound to uphold both, even while we work through legal and political means to bring these two realms of life closer together.
(April 3, 2006 issue)
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