Homilies:
Commentaries:
First Reading: Isaiah 45:4-6
- 1st reading as background to Jesus’ riddle = Isaiah 45 is one of the most explicit passages in the Old Testament that affirms what we call monotheism. In other words, the idea that there is only one God, and that the Lord is God. Addressed to King Cyrus too, who many wanted to regard as a king.
Responsorial Psalm: 96 – Give the Lord glory and honor.
- “he is to be revered above all gods” – they are “idols”
Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5B
Gospel: Matthew 22:15-21
- The Jews were used to understanding the future reign of God founded by the Messiah as a theocracy, that is, as a government directed by God ruling over the whole earth through his people. But now the words of Christ reveal a kingdom of God that is in this world but that is not of this world, that travels on a different wavelength and that, for this reason, can coexist with every other political regime, whether it be sacral or secular.
- Here we see two qualitatively different sovereignties of God over the world:
- (1) the spiritual sovereignty that constitutes the Kingdom of God and that is exercised directly in Christ, & (2) the temporal and political sovereignty that God exercises indirectly, entrusting it to man’s free choice and the play of secondary causes.
- The Christian is free to obey the state, but he is also free to resist the state when it goes against God and his law. In such a case it is not legitimate to invoke the principle about the obedience that is owed to superiors, as war criminals often do when they are on trial. Before obeying men, in fact, you must first obey God and your own conscience. You cannot give your soul, which belongs to God, to Caesar.St. Paul was the first to draw practical conclusions from this teaching of Christ. He writes: “Let every person be subordinate to the higher authorities, for there is no authority except from God. … Whoever resists authority opposes the order that God has appointed. … This is why you also pay taxes, for the authorities who are in charge of this are ministers of God” (Romans 13:1 ff.).Paying appropriately levied taxes is for the Christian (but also for every honest person) a duty of justice and therefore an obligation of conscience. Guaranteeing order, commerce and a whole series of other services, the state gives the citizen something to which it has a right for compensation in return, precisely to be able to continue these same services. Christian cooperation in building a just and peaceful society does not stop at paying taxes; it must also extend itself to the promotion of common values such as the family, the defense of life, solidarity with the poor, peace. There is also another sphere in which Christians must make a contribution to politics. It does not have to do with the content of politics so much as its methods, its style. Christians must help to remove the poison from the climate of contentiousness in politics, bring back greater respect, composure and dignity to relationships between parties. Respect for one’s neighbor, clemency, capacity for self-criticism: These are the traits that a disciple of Christ must have in all things, even in politics. It is undignified for a Christian to give himself over to insults, sarcasm, brawling with his adversaries. If, as Jesus says, those who call their brother “stupid” are in danger of Gehenna, what then must we say about a lot of politicians?
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