Giving and Giving Back
Psalm 119:1-24 • Psalm 12, 13, 14
Isa. 2:1-11 • 1 Thess. 2:13-20 • Luke 20:19-26
Back before we had electronic filing, every spring I would go to the post office to send in my federal and state income tax documents, along with payments for any taxes I might owe. When I got to the front of the queue, I would always use the same line with the attendant: “Well, I guess it’s time to render unto Caesar, isn’t it?” The attendant would generally smile at me and give me a quizzical look that I took to mean “what the heck is this guy talking about?” Perhaps my quip would have been clearer had I used the more current language of the New International Version of Luke 20: 25—“Then give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
During the recent election campaign, when the media reported that Mr. Trump had apparently paid only $750 in federal income taxes in a couple of recent years, I got into bit of a harangue with an old college friend. I thought it irresponsible for a VERY rich person to contribute so little to the public good of a country he says he loves. My old classmate maintained that Mr. Trump had only done what every sensible person does: interrogate the tax code to determine what is the lowest possible payment, if any, that you need to make. I’m glad I have a great accountant who makes that decision for me. I’m sure it’s beyond my ken.
While I want my dollars to be spent wisely (perhaps an unattainable wish), I have never objected too strenuously to paying my taxes, either state or federal. We get lots of good things in return: beautiful state and national parks, a good educational system, a decent network of interstate highways, a military that not only protects us from harm but also provides job training and educational benefits, and so on.
So I willingly, if not joyfully, give back to Caesar that which is Caesar’s. But I’m also heartened this time of year when our beloved church asks to commit to give back to God that which is God’s.
Written by David Jolliffe
...who usually pays a bit more than $750 a year in federal income tax.