“They sent to JESUS some Pharisees with members of Herod’s party, with the purpose of trapping HIM by HIS own words. They came and said to JESUS, ‘Master, we know that YOU are truthful; YOU are not influenced by anyone, and YOUR answers do not vary according to who is listening to YOU, but YOU truly teach GOD’s way. Tell us, is it against the law to pay taxes to Caesar? Should we pay them or not?’
But JESUS saw through their trick and answered, ‘Why are you testing ME? Bring ME a silver coin and let ME see it.’ They brought HIM one and JESUS asked, ‘Whose image is this, and whose name?’ They answered, “Caesar’s.’ Then JESUS said, ‘Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to GOD, what is GOD’s.’
And they were greatly astonished.” – Mark 12:13-17
(The trap is as follows: they ask about the tax that the Jews are obliged to pay to Caesar, emperor of Rome, for the Jews have been colonized by the Romans and are under their rule.
The Pharisees and partisans of Herod, who are political enemies, join together. The Pharisees oppose Roman domination; the partisans of Herod, on the other hand, accept it. If JESUS says they are to pay, the Pharisees will discredit HIM before the people. If HE says no, the partisans of Herod will have HIM arrested by the Romans.
JESUS does not condemn Roman imperialism, nor does HE justify it. Is it because the problems of justice and peace are not "spiritual things" and do not concern HIM?
These problems, of course, are important and biblical history reveals that GOD wants liberty for every person and for nations the possibility to develop culture and national life: that is enough to justify the political commitment of Christians.
But JESUS also knows that people's true liberation goes beyond partisan quarrels and rivalries. In HIS time the Jewish people were torn apart and divided into irreconcilable factions; these were to be one of the causes of the national disaster during the great revolt of A.D. 66-71. JESUS will invite HIS adversaries to give political life its true place and not to confuse faith and religious fanaticism.
For the Pharisees, to pay taxes to Caesar, a foreign ruler and pagan, was like denying GOD, the true LORD of Israel. They identified the Jewish National Party with the cause of GOD. This carried grave consequences, since they thought that to serve GOD they must crush those of the opposition party. Since faith asks of us total obedience, people who confuse political militancy with faith begin to justify, little by little, everything their party does, even its lies and crimes.
The Caesar of Rome was not GOD, although he pretended to be. He had imposed his authority on them and the use of Roman coins, but could not demand the obedience of conscience that was due only to GOD. Neither was he "the enemy of GOD," as the Pharisees thought, and to serve the kingdom of GOD it was not necessary to refuse him taxes and civil obedience.
What is Caesar's can be understood: "what belongs to Caesar." Rather it means: "the kind of things which fall under his rule." With HIS answer "to Caesar what belongs to him, to GOD..." JESUS separates religion and politics in cultures--Jewish and Roman alike--where politics always looked for religious justification. From now on, religion should not be manipulated for political purposes, nor should religion confuse its political opponents with the enemies of the kingdom.)
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