Give to Caesar What is Caesar’s

I was reading my latest copy of Newsweek tonight, and I stumbled across some responses to the editor that caught my attention.

The first response include the quote from Scripture, “Render to Caesar that things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”

I have no problem with that statement at all. After all it is Scripture. However I do take issue with the conclusion the author came to. They go on to say, “I take that to mean separation of church and state.” Woah now, that’s drawing quite the conclusion on that one.

If you look at the context of the Scripture quote, found in Matthew 22:15-22, the religious leaders of the day were again trying to trap Jesus into responding to a situation in a manner they deemed inappropriate. They asked Jesus whether or not he believed it was right to pay taxes to Caesar. Jesus asked whose picture was on the coin (Caesar’s), and then responded telling the leaders that they should give to Caesar what is Caesar’s (the taxes) and give to God what is God’s.

How this has anything to do with the separation of church and state is far beyond me. Never mind the fact that separation of church and state, as it has been come to be known today, has nothing to do with what the 1st Amendment says – “Congress shall make no law regarding the establishment of religion OR (emphasis mine) the prohibition thereof.” In my opinion, that amendment has been abused and misused in all sorts of ways to the point where people are afraid to say the name God or Jesus in any sort of public place, for fear that they are violating this mythical idea of the separation of church and state.

As I understand it, the founding fathers did not want a state run religion or church. I completely agree with them. I DO NOT want the government, as well intentioned as it might be, running my church in any way shape or form.

Many of the founding fathers knew the importance of seeking God’s guidance as they went about their governmental duties. I believe that is extremely important. I believe in a God who is actively involved in our lives. A God who wants us to come to Him and ask Him what He would have us do.

I’ve heard many times from politicians that faith should be kept as a private matter and shouldn’t have an effect on their job. Well, I believe that your faith and beliefs should permeate every area of your life. Every decision we make should be based on what are faith tells us. The way you conduct yourself in your job should be a reflection of your moral character. Like it or not, if you are a liar in your personal life, it seems to me that you would be likely to be a liar in your professional life, and vice versa, no matter how much society wants to tell us that the two are completely separate.

That’s all for tonight.

Leave a Reply