29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Fr Dominic’s Homily

This is the final few days before Jesus is arrested by the chief priests and the elders. Jerusalem was full with thousands of pilgrims because the feast of the Passover was near and Jesus had just turned over the stalls of the money changers in an effort to stop them turning the temple into a market place.

So, the Pharisees and the Herodian’s go to see Jesus in an attempt to trap him in his own words. Now, the Pharisees and the Herodian’s were normally enemies and despised each other. The Pharisees hated Herod and anything to do with the Romans. The Herodian’s, however, supported the Romans because they had put Herod on the throne.

Now from the age of 12-65 you had to pay tax to the Romans and this was very contentious! The Pharisees hated the tax, because it represented Caesar and his oppression. The Herodian’s loved the tax because it upheld their leader Herod.

So, these two old enemies come together in an attempt to bring down Jesus. They ask him a question that they think will trap him because whatever answer he gives will favour either the Herodian’s or the Pharisees and cause an uprising.

“Is it permissible to pay taxes to Caesar?”

If Jesus says “yes”, he is a friend of the Romans and will become unpopular. If he says “no”, he is a trouble maker and would be arrested. As far as they were concerned it was a win / win situation! Now, the taxes were paid with a silver coin called a denarius and this had a picture of Caesar Tiberius on it with the words:

“Caesar Augustus Tiberius, son of the Divine Augustus”.

Remember that both Julius Caesar and Caesar Augustus had been promoted to the level of Gods by the Roman Empire. On the coin’s other side it described Tiberius as “Pontifex Maximus” meaning supreme High priest. For the Jews, this whole thing was blasphemous idolatry.

In addition, the Jews had a law against graven images. So the Jews were definitely not supposed to bring these coins into the temple. Hence the existence of money changers who would convert them to the safer Jewish currency but at extortionate rates.

One thing you need to remember is that you can never catch Jesus out. Because he is God. So he sets a counter trap for them. His response to their question is simply: “Show me the coin that you pay taxes with.”

One of the Pharisees quickly provides him with a denarius. They definitely shouldn’t have had one in their pocket. Jesus has forced them to show the crowd that they had a blasphemous coin in the temple. They have already discredited themselves in public. He says nothing about this but the crowd watching know that he is winning the argument already.

Jesus takes the coin and asks: “Whose head is this?” He uses the Greek word Ikon which means likeness. They would know that he is alluding to the word used in Genesis which states that we are made in the image and likeness of God. They reply to him “Caesars”.

So, Jesus says: “Very well then – give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God”. This is a blinding answer in both its simplicity and its depth because what belongs to God? Everything! The Jews knew this. So what is left for Caesar? Nothing! So, in other words Jesus is saying that you can give your money to Caesar but you must give your whole life to God.

So, the Pharisees and Herodian’s claiming to come in the name of the One True God of Israel, have in their pockets the name and image of another god, a pagan god. Jesus proves them to be hypocrites.

However Jesus, as always, is making a deeper point. Who made us, and who put his image and likeness onto us? Every human being is made in the image and likeness of God. Even the worst sinners, who have disfigured the image of God in their souls like a scratched and twisted coin, have divinity stamped on their hearts.

Just as the coin came from Caesar we come from God. But coins often return to their maker through extortion, violence and greed whereas our souls return to God through love, purity and goodness.

The denarius belongs to Caesar through oppression and returns to him through violence and greed. Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar.

So, perhaps we should ask ourselves do we give to God what belongs to him? Do we give him Glory, praise and honour? Do we thank God for all that we have received in our lives? Everything belongs to God. So let’s return it to him in love, purity and goodness.