Every Friday at 5pm, about a dozen Seekers gather in front of our storefront church with our homemade signs to join the Black Lives Matter movement. Some hold signs that say VOTE NOW! Others hold BLM signs. Others say “Protect the Constitution” and “We Will Not Let This Drop.” Music from the civil rights movement pulsates from a large boombox and many, though not all, drivers honk their support as they drive by. Across the street, our youngest member sits with her sign to register voters. We are “rendering unto Caesar” what we owe as citizens of this country.
In the gospel reading for this week,* Jesus is being baited by his legalistic opponents. They ask, “Is it right to pay taxes?” He answers with a conundrum: “Whose face is on this coin?” And then, in response to their confusion come his famous words: “Render unto Caesar the things that belong to Caesar, and to God the things that are God’s.”
Ah yes. And what belongs to God? Surely it is our very lives, and the lives of all people – of every color and belief. The mystery of life itself, of creation itself, belongs to God. And so each morning I find myself standing on the screened porch of our city apartment, watching for sunrise, breathing my thanks for another day. I can feel the scope of my caring expand beyond the rooftops, beyond the people, to include fresh air and early light, whispering rain and far-off geese. All of creation sings back to me in the early colors of dawn, and I breathe my thanks for another day. It is one small way to render unto God the things that belong to God.
–Marjory Zoet Bankson, Seekers Church
- How do you “render unto Caesar” the things that support our democratic structures?
- How do you “render unto God” what belongs to God?
- Is there something you want to change about your actions?
