"That we may not offend..."

 

Mask mandates and vaccinations.  It seems like common sense to me.  And yet it seems that these two issues continue to dominate peoples’ lives a year and a half into the pandemic.  Why wouldn’t anyone want to err on the side of caution when it comes to respecting the health and welfare of our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ?  Even if one considered it an infringement on personal liberties (it’s not!), or (God forbid!) an inconvenience?  The worst thing about the conflict is the hate, fear, and suspicion between the two camps. 

Sometimes Jesus’ teaching revolves around practical common sense.  In my favorite “fish story” of all time, as the plots against Jesus begin to build, the temple tax collectors ask Peter whether or not Jesus paid the temple tax.  Jesus knew they weren’t as interested in whether or not He paid as in “catching” Him at something.

It’s the kind of situation we all hate to be in, filled with fear and conflict.  But if we watch Jesus, we can see that His response teaches a good lesson.  He’s calm and thoughtful and brings up the thorny issue Himself in front of the accusers who haven’t had the courage to face Him directly.

The accusation of the tax collectors isn’t fair, but Jesus doesn’t fight every injustice He sees.  Rather than rail against the people who question Him, Jesus points out that He shouldn’t have to pay – but then pays it anyway.  He says we’ll pay the tax, “that we may not offend…”  (Matthew 17:22-27)

I suspect Jesus doesn’t care if He offends these tax collectors, but He doesn’t want to get sidetracked by tax squabbles.  So He performs a small and delightful miracle—one that makes me smile every time I hear it.  Jesus tells Peter to catch the first fish that comes out of the sea and in its mouth would be a coin to cover temple tax for both Jesus and Peter.  He’s saying, “Trust in God for the things you can’t control in your life.”

I often get un-centered and self-absorbed by conflict.  Jesus wants us to stay on focus and to trust in God rather than get caught up in unimportant conflicts of life.  He wants to get back to His message of justice for the poor, loving our enemies and trusting in God.  This gospel is an invitation for us to accept the powerlessness we have in so many areas of our lives and embrace it as a way to draw closer to God. He doesn’t want us to surrender our peace to people who will draw us away from God by fretting, worrying and forgetting to surrender our lives to God, not humans who pick away at us.