Giving To Caesar The Things That Are God's

Much confusion and not a little distress has resulted from we the people giving unto Caesar (our Governments and ruling authorities) the things that are God’s.

The much quoted and timeless words of Jesus from the Gospels to “give unto Cesar the things that are Caesar’s and unto God the things that are God’s” have been variously interpreted as giving unto Caesar many things that belong to God or even willingly allowing Caesar to reach into our lives and take away the things that belong to God!

If there were a rating system for drugs from which our ruling authorities get the most “kick,” undoubtedly the raw exercise of power would get a perfect score and come out on top - and decidedly in front of the pursuit of wealth and sex. Caesar likes nothing better than to usurp the power of the individual, who carries within himself or herself the “things of God” - and replace humanity’s precious heirlooms such as freedom of conscience, with unquestioned allegiance to the State.

During the covid debacle of the last 3 years, there were religious leaders (too many alas!), for example, who refused to look at the science (eg. the Great Barrington Declaration - which was available in the fall of 2020) refused to question the authorities, refused to give succour and comfort in person to their flock, refused to visit the sick and refused to keep open the houses of God. Caesar was allowed to reach deep into the sacred tabernacles of our Churches and scatter the flock. The lack of leadership of our pastors and Church leaders (from all denominations) left them naked and exposed to ever more draconian and nonsensical intrusions by Caesar into the things that are God’s. The false prophets (Church leaders and pastors) who Jesus warned us against, had sold our Churches to the State!

Another leader of a religious group, this time of the Catholic Church, even claimed that Catholics had a moral obligation to embrace the abortion cell line tested covid injection (otherwise called a “vaccine”) and that to submit to the injection would be “an act of love!” Even after it is now abundantly clear that the covid injections do not prevent infection or transmission or hospitalization or death (and can actually kill you), the Pope has not reversed his position -  and has been asking his flock to give to Caesar multiple things that belong to God, including freedom of conscience and common sense!

The traditional, historical Catholic Church has the glorious doctrine of what is referred to as the “Church militant.” The Pope should be reminded that “the Church militant” presupposes and presumes that there are dictates and edicts that issue from the throne of Caesar that the Church must militate against and resist! 

Standing up to Caesar and clinging fast and holding on to the things that are God’s often brings persecution in its wake. The willingness to sacrifice one’s possessions, even one’s own life, is one of the essential ingredients of effective resistance to Government overreach (Caesar) or an effective civil disobedience movement. This has been a stumbling block across the centuries of our Christian civilization and when sacrifice is demanded as a condition of fidelity, the Church has too often faltered - and fallen into the very arms of Caesar.

Across civilizations and religions, there is no substitute for being willing to pay the price of refusing to let Caesar seize the things that are God’s. Mahatma Gandhi’s struggle for freedom from colonial rule had sacrifice built into its very structure and many of the leaders and foot soldiers of the struggle were either killed or imprisoned for long periods. 

Caesar can never succeed in imposing his tyranny when the people refuse to surrender to him the things that are God’s. The mighty Roman Empire thought itself invincible. But the rule of Rome had to yield to the Cross when Christians literally refused to bow to Caesar, refused to offer sacrifices to the gods of Rome and refused the pagan practices that were directly militating against the things of God. The martyrs who went gladly to their deaths knew that the the “Church militant” is also the “Church triumphant” and would triumph over Rome and every other empire that dared to set itself up against the Kingdom of God. The history of Western Civilization in this sense, has been the result of this titanic struggle against Caesar and the glorious triumph of the things that are God’s.

The things that are Caesar’s are temporal things, that pass away. The eternal things of God must never be yielded to Caesar.