Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 12, 13-17
Some Pharisees and Herodians were sent
to Jesus to ensnare him in his speech.
They came and said to him,
“Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man
and that you are not concerned with anyone’s opinion.
You do not regard a person’s status
but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.
Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?
Should we pay or should we not pay?”
Knowing their hypocrisy he said to them,
“Why are you testing me?
Bring me a denarius to look at.”
They brought one to him and he said to them,
“Whose image and inscription is this?”
They replied to him, “Caesar’s.”
So Jesus said to them,
“Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar
and to God what belongs to God.”
They were utterly amazed at him.
Repay to Caesar and to God
1. Ensnare. There will always be people around you with wicked intentions, wanting to entrap you. You must be cautious, because betrayal hurts more than a punch in the face when it comes from those close to. But let me make something clear, it’s one thing to do nothing in your life and for your life for fear of criticism and it is quite another thing to be smart to face criticism. Nothing stops Jesus from fulfilling his Father’s will in his life and in his actions. Don’t let what people say about you or the fear of being hurt you stop you from doing everything you can for your life and for the life of others. My spiritual director always says, “when people make malicious comments or when they seek to harm you and keep making up things, all that should put you at ease because it means that you are moving hearts. So go on, God will not let go of your hand as long as you do his will”.
2. Teacher. Look at the two facts that define Jesus: “truthful” and he doesn’t “regard a person’s status”. I think they are two beautiful aspects that can mark you as a person. That is, being sincere with yourself and with those around you, added to the fact that you shouldn’t take into account the other person’s status or condition in order to relate to them. Don’t seek to interact with people for what they have, but for what they are. Because you run the risk of being considered just another of these people’s possessions. If you relate to people for what they are, they learn to value you in the same way.
3. Hypocrisy. Žižek (a contemporary Slovenian thinker) argues that hypocrisy is the only possible strategy to go out every day to face the world. And that it is not a novelty, it has always been so and that’s why we nourish ourselves with rituals and appearances, protective layers in order not to definitively conclude that what surrounds us is horrible. This thought is something that haunts us and we assume that hypocrisy is embedded in society. That’s why as Christians we must be authentic, and we must we aware that everything has its limit, and that society can have illnesses that spiritual life can heal. I sincerely desire that hypocrisy won’t lead you to lose your authenticity and that an unhealthy relationship won’t destroy your identity. The best thing in your life is to have clarity about yourself and about your relationship with others.
Always remember that something good is on the way.
May God bless you and guard you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
