Fr. Michael Williams

In St. Johns gospel, when Jesus is being tried by the Roman Governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate; Jesus tells Pilate, “You would have no power over me at all if it had not been given you from above”. In other words God gave Pilate authority to govern. (Often Pilate governed very badly and very brutally).

In all societies God gives some people the vocation to govern. Whatever society we look at, we can see people exercising authority in that society.

So when Jesus says to the Pharisees, “give back to Caesar what belongs to Caesar”, He is telling them that there are certain obligations that people have to the civil authorities. This is because the civil authorities derive their authority from God. However, these ruling authorities are called to serve the people they govern. The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us, “Those who exercise authority should do so as a service”. People whom God has given authority to should serve those entrusted to their care. However, we the citizens of a nation have an obligation to support their ruling authorities.

If we look at the Roman Empire at the time of Jesus we can see that it provided many benefits to the people such as roads and aqueducts and theatres, etc. All of these things needed financing by taxes. It is the same for us. We have an obligation to pay for the benefits that the civil authorities provide. If people didn’t pay their taxes in this country there wouldn’t be a National Health Service or a police force or schools. Jesus is saying that we have certain obligations to the civil authorities who provide services for our needs.

Unfortunately, history reveals to us that power can corrupt those with authority. Many of those entrusted with governing people have abused their position. Many of the Caesars who ruled the Roman Empire were ruthless and bloodthirsty. These abused their authority.

This is why Jesus tells us that we not only have obligations to the civil authorities, who are called to serve the common good of a nation, but more significantly we have obligations to God: “give to God what belongs to God”. God is the Sovereign of all, and all are called to give an account to God, including Caesar and those entrusted with authority by God. As God is the Sovereign and ruler of all, we are called to serve Him and His commandments, because God is the first of all authorities.

When the civil authorities or the state deviate from God’s law and commands the citizens are called to speak up for what is true and noble and right. The Pope’s preacher has recently said, ‘The Christian is free to obey the state, but also to resist it when the state is against God and His law’. So when our nation does not promote God’s laws and God’s truth, we are called to campaign peaceably in ensuring God’s commands are followed by the ruling authorities.

At the moment in Parliament, Lord Joffe, wants to bring in a law legalising Euthanasia. Lord Joffe wants it legal for doctors to administer lethal drugs to vulnerable patients. However, this would be wrong in God’s sight because it breaks God’s Fifth Commandment, ‘Thou shall not kill’.

When authorities abuse their power we are called to stand up and be counted. The sixteenth century Chancellor of England, Thomas More, stood up to Henry VIII’s abuse of power and told him, ‘I am the King’s servant, but God’s first’. Let us pray that the authorities of our nation will put in place laws that reflect God’s laws, so that we will “give to God what belongs to God”.