Posted on 06/04/2024 7:54:05 AM PDT by fidelis
“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.” Mark 12:14–15
These Pharisees and Herodians were sent to trap Jesus in His speech. These men were very politically minded and loved to pick sides and find fault with others. They were self-righteous and cared little about the salvation of souls. So they came to Jesus with what appeared to be an innocent question. They appear to presume that Jesus would voice opposition to paying the census tax to Caesar, and, if He did, they were ready to report Him to the civil authorities. They didn’t care about the truth; they only cared about trapping our divine Lord. When they brought the Roman coin to Jesus with the image of Caesar on it, Jesus spoke that profoundly wise line, “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”
Clearly, if these hypocritical religious leaders would have come to Jesus with humility and sincerity, Jesus would have responded to them much differently. But because they came only to trap, twist and destroy our Lord, Jesus puts them in their place with an act of divine wisdom. He doesn’t show support for paying the census tax, nor does He speak against it.
Therefore, this Gospel passage ends with the line: “They were utterly amazed at him.” “Amazement” is the right response. Therefore, in a sense, we can learn from these hypocritical religious leaders. Whenever we come face-to-face with the profound wisdom of God, we should experience awe and holy amazement.
Of course, the amazement they experienced was on account of Jesus thwarting their evil trap. But even though that is the case, we can learn from this that the wisdom of God can never be outdone. God’s wisdom silences the foolishness of the age and reveals the hidden malice behind that evil.
Have you ever been confronted by the trickery of the secular “know-it-alls” of our age. Have you ever been challenged by another, had your faith directly attacked, or your moral convictions called into question? Most likely, if you have chosen to live your faith openly and with confidence, you may have felt the attack of another. For those who lack a deep faith and a clear gift of divine wisdom, such trickery can cause confusion and anxiety.
You may find you do not know how to respond and feel trapped by the erroneous “wisdom” of the age. In that case, what do you do? The only answer to the false doctrines and deceptions we will all encounter within the growingly secular and atheist world is the answer that comes from divine wisdom. By ourselves, none of us is wise enough to combat these errors. Therefore, our only recourse is to continually turn to the wisdom of God.
We turn to the wisdom of God through prayer and sacred study. Our prayer opens our minds to the clear voice of God Who speaks pure truth. And sacred study, especially of the Scripture, the teachings of the Church and the lives of the saints, will help to clarify God’s voice and dispel the confusion the world tries to throw at us. In the end, if we are not immersing our minds in the true wisdom of God, we will be unprepared for that which we encounter within the world.
Reflect, today, upon your need to be filled with divine wisdom so as to navigate the trickery and foolishness of the world. Acknowledge that you are not wise enough on your own to cut through the confusion of life. Pray for the gift of wisdom and allow our Lord to bestow it upon you.
Lord of all Truth, You are wise beyond all worldly wisdom, and You thwart the trickery of the evil one. Open my mind, dear Lord, to Your holy Truth so that I may be able to navigate through the challenges of life. Bestow Your wisdom upon me, dear Lord, so that I may follow You wherever You lead. Jesus, I trust in You.
Please keep in mind that this is a Catholic Caucus/Devotional thread for the purpose of prayerful reflection on the Sacred Scriptures and is closed to debate of any kind. Per FR policy on Religion Caucus threads, off-topic, argumentative, and abusive comments are not allowed and will be submitted to the Mods for deletion. Thanks, and God bless you.
Let us pray.
O Virgin Mother of God, we fly to your protection and beg your intercession against the darkness and sin which ever more envelop the world and menace the Church. Your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, gave you to us as our mother as He died on the Cross for our salvation. So too, in 1531, when darkness and sin beset us, He sent you, as Our Lady of Guadalupe, on Tepeyac to lead us to Him Who alone is our light and our salvation.
Through your apparitions on Tepeyac and your abiding presence with us on the miraculous mantle of your messenger, Saint Juan Diego, millions of souls converted to faith in your Divine Son. Through this novena and our consecration to you, we humbly implore your intercession for our daily conversion of life to Him and the conversion of millions more who do not yet believe in Him. In our homes and in our nation, lead us to Him Who alone wins the victory over sin and darkness in us and in the world.
Unite our hearts to your Immaculate Heart so that they may find their true and lasting home in the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. Ever guide us along the pilgrimage of life to our eternal home with Him. So may our hearts, one with yours, always trust in God's promise of salvation, in His never-failing mercy toward all who turn to Him with a humble and contrite heart. Through this novena and our consecration to you, O Virgin of Guadalupe, lead all souls in America and throughout the world to your Divine Son in Whose name we pray. Amen.
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