Comments for Jim Other sermons.                 

You might take a coin out of your purse or pocket and have a look at it with me. I’m looking at a quarter. On one side I see the image of George Washington, our first and many say our greatest president. I see the words "Liberty" and "In God We Trust." And the year 1996. Washington symbolizes for me integrity, wisdom, and courage. Liberty is a national value I advocate. "In God We Trust" seems an admirable, if innocuous phrase. It is also a clear violation of the doctrine of the Separation of Church and State. On the other side of the coin I find the words "The United States of America," and in small letters, "E Pluribus Unum." This is our national motto, derived from the classical Greco-Roman tradition. The image on this side of the coin is, of course, of an eagle perched on a limb, and below it, a laurel branch. The eagle is a bird of prey, which (as described in Tennyson’s famous poem) surveys the scene from high above and then falls like a thunderbolt on its unsuspecting victim. The eagle is also the symbol, incidentally, of Imperial Rome. The laurel branch must mean this is a victorious eagle. These symbols are meant to tell us about what it means to be Americans.

A coin figures prominently in the story about the question put to Jesus by the Pharisees and Herodians in the scripture this morning. When asked by these religious authorities whether it was lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not, Jesus asked them to hand him a coin. (Note that they had the money, not Jesus!) It was, of course, a trick question. Jews believed that everything belonged to God and regarded their Roman occupiers with hatred. Yet they represented various degrees of collaboration with the Romans. If Jesus answered "Pay the tax," he could be in trouble with the religious authorities as a blasphemer and the people as a sell out. If he said not to pay the tax, the Romans would regard him as a threat. The coin that he is handed is a denarius. It was the standard, most common Roman coin. The Jews hated the denarius for two reasons. First, they regarded it as a graven image because on both sides it displayed the image of the Emperor Tiberius with the Latin inscription "Son of the Divine Augustus." Rank blasphemy. Second, the poll tax equaled one denarius. This coin, in other words, symbolized Roman domination and the peoples’ obligation to pay the imperial power.

Jesus’ answer neatly sidestepped their question and exposed it as, in reality, a hypocritical (that is, dishonest) question designed to entrap him. But his answer is much more than this. For before you can render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s, you must first determine what genuinely does belong to Caesar, and what to God. Jesus is saying that if one believes that everything ultimately belongs to God, as every devout Jew would profess, then why are you using this to pay the Romans? Why don’t you refuse? Coercion, of course. But they paid the tax because they had struck a deal with their conquerors. We won’t revolt if you allow us some religious freedom. We’ll pay your tax, hateful as that is for us, if you let us have some liberty. That was the deal that was brokered between the religious leaders and the Romans in Jesus’ time.

Compare the Roman denarius to the American quarter. One could argue that we’ve come a long way. The image is of a good man, Washington, who did not profess to be God. The words "In God We Trust" suggest at least that God is different from the state. Liberty is a universal human value worth defending. It refers to the unique democratic view that we do not belong to the state, the state belongs to us. And then there is the eagle. Not the Roman eagle of empire, but what? If I ask you, as you hold your coin in your hand, to render unto the United States what legitimately belongs to the United States, and unto God what is God’s, how would you answer? Think about that a moment. I might answer this way. I think there are many functions spelled out in the U. S. Constitution that I feel are legitimate. All those activities, great and small, that lead to peace, justice, liberty, opportunity, and the pursuit of happiness. I am glad that there are skilled professional people, paid for by my tax dollars, that are devoting tremendous energy to capturing this ghastly sniper. I am (speaking for myself) glad that there are armed forces available to protect me and my loved ones. And so forth. I see such things are congruent with the will of God. But I must discern for myself the difference between what I have described and the United States if it behaves as Empire. Is it God’s will that we fight, not just wars to end wars, but wars to "preempt" wars? I don’t believe this to be consistent with the will of God. I don’t believe our government at any level should be engaged in activities that permit or encourage racism, injustice, sexism, homophobia and poverty. If pushed, I will be forced to admit that I have struck a deal with the government just like the religious people in Jesus’ day had done. I’ll pay your tax, but then I expect you to leave me alone, or help with some things, even though I don’t agree with everything you do. We say, as Christians, that everything belongs to God. We behave as though we believe that some things belong to God and others to the state, and to us.

Which brings me to our friend who has been sitting here so patiently. Let us call him an elderly peasant from the Peruvian Andes. He could just as easily be an African from Burundi, a Palestinian from the West Bank, or a homeless person from Silver Spring. But let’s say he’s an old Peruvian peasant. I pay my taxes. And much good comes from that. But is it God’s will that there exists between me and this man a vast economic gulf? Why is that the case? Does that have to be? And why is it that he sits there so out of place in this congregation? I have been rendering unto God what is God’s and Caesar’s what is Caesar’s – as I have been taught to do. And I have been taught to trust that I am doing the right thing. But is the right thing only to provide for my own security and that of my loved one’s? The fear and distress we have been experiencing in our area is very real. And the pain and anguish visited upon the innocent is very unjust. But are there not places on earth where people live their lives daily with such fear? In fact there is a gap between this man and me just like the gap between the rich man and Lazarus in Jesus’ story. Where does it come from and does it have to be? I don’t know, but I wonder if it begins with my taking a coin out of my pocket and looking at it. And thinking about what it means. What is God’s? What is Caesar’s? What am I legitimately entitled to? What is this man legitimately entitled to? The prayer that Jesus taught suggests two things: we are entitled to our daily bread, and that we are entitled to forgiveness, insofar as we are able to offer forgiveness. Is Jesus suggesting that we are entitled to our daily bread, insofar we are willing to share that daily bread?

Jesus says, "Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar. Give to God what belongs to God." What if Jesus is assuming that what belongs to God is not just what we have, but us ourselves? Maybe the question Jesus is asking us to struggle with is "Who do you belong to?" Who do you belong to? And to whom does this man belong? I believe our old Peruvian friend is always here even if he is invisible. Reminding us that we both belong to God. AMEN.

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