Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
“Great is the Lord and highly to be praised, awesome is he, beyond all gods.” These words from today’s responsorial psalm (Ps 96:4) provide a bridge to understanding the meaning of the readings of this Sunday and present a challenge to our spiritual growth. In the opening reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah (45:1, 4-6), we are surprised to hear the LORD speak of Cyrus, the pagan king of Persia as “his anointed.” God says that it is He who subdues nations before Cyrus, making kings run in his service, opening doors before him. “I have called you by your name, giving you a title, though you knew me not…I am the LORD; there is no other.” Cyrus’ successes in battle and his conquering of nations were due to God’s intervention. Cyrus would not be king if it were not that the LORD had given him power to rule!
The gospel passage from St. Matthew recounts the plot of the Pharisees to entrap Jesus in his speech by posing a hot political question: “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?” The Jewish people despised the Romans who occupied their country and were resentful that taxes were demanded by a ruler and a nation that worshipped pagan gods. Jesus gave an answer that evaded their trap: “Whose image is this [on the coin] and whose inscription? … Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” What is left unsaid, but is implied here is that Caesar, like Cyrus, would not be emperor if God had not allowed it. Even the gold coin on which Caesar’s image was stamped was a work of the Lord’s creation. “I am the LORD; there is no other.”
What does all this have to do with us? It begs the question: Is God at the center of our lives? Is He truly the LORD upon whom we cast our complete hope and trust? Or, are there other “gods” who compete for His rule in our hearts? Does prayer have primacy of place in our daily routine?
St. Paul beautifully encapsulates this concept in his letter to the Galatians: “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Gal 2:20) Christ is so much the center of our lives that he dwells within us, works through us, and gives glory to his Father through us. We, like the Roman coin, have been stamped with his image in Baptism and we are Christ-bearers who disclose that image to the world.
Let us praise the Lord this day who is highly to be praised and let us allow Him to be at the very core of our lives—He who is awesome, beyond all gods.
Reflection by Br. Michael Marcotte, OSB
Posted in Articles for Ordinary Time, Daily Reflections