Gospel according to Saint Matthew 22,15-21:

The Pharisees went out and took counsel on how they could trap Jesus with his own words. They then sent their disciples with the members of Herod’s party for this purpose. They said to Jesus, «Master, we know that you are an honest man and truly teach God’s way; you are not influenced by others nor are you afraid of anyone. Tell us, then, what you think: is it against the Law to pay taxes to Caesar or not?». But Jesus understood their evil intent, and said to them, «Hypocrites! Why are you testing me? Show me the coin with which you pay the taxes». They showed him a denarius, and Jesus said to them, «Whose head is this, and whose name?». They answered, «Caesar’s». Then Jesus replied, «Therefore, return to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s».

Gossiping, Controversies and Blessings

p. Luis CASASUS President of the Idente Missionaries

Rome, October 22, 2023 | XXIX Sunday in Ordinary Time

Isa 45: 1.4-6; 1Tes 1: 1-5; Mt 22: 15-21

There are people who are called Machiavellian, because they devote all their energy to achieve their own ends, including various types of manipulation; sometimes they will know how to win the friendship of people, sometimes they will use the weaknesses of others to turn them into instruments and all this without necessarily being impulsive. Today the Gospel offers us a good example with the perverse trap of the Pharisees, in which of course Christ does not allow himself to be trapped. Let us note that the Pharisees, who saw the Roman occupation as hateful, found a way to ally themselves with the Herodians, who supported it; all to discredit Jesus.

One of the weapons of these people is controversy (like the Pharisees today) and another is gossip, backbiting. The Pharisees were very conscious of what they were doing; everything was calculated and they did not care what happened to their “rival”, in this case Christ.

There are other times when people simply seek to feel superior, degrading the reputation of others or trying to show that they know more about certain things. Sometimes they are not fully aware of the enormous damage they do. Attention, because this could be you and me. Here is a somewhat comical anecdote… even though it has a lot of truth in it.

Four parish priests met for a friendly lunch. During the conversation, one of them said: People come to us and open their hearts, confess certain sins and needs. Let us do the same. Confession is good for the soul. They all agreed at once. One confessed that he liked to go to movies and that he escaped whenever he was away from his church. The second confessed that he liked to smoke a lot of cigars and the third confessed that he loved to play cards. When it was the turn of the fourth, he did not want to confess. The others pushed him, saying: Come on, we have already confessed what’s ours. What is your secret or vice? Finally, he answered: It’s gossiping… and I’m looking forward to the end of this meeting.

One of the skills of those who gossip or like to deal with controversial topics is, as expected, to create division. As the ancient wisdom says: A dishonest man spreads discord, and a whisperer separates close friends (Proverbs 16:28).

Absalom, one of David’s sons, who longed to be king, is a paradigm of a person who sows division with slander and gossip. Dissatisfied with his father, Absalom stood at the gates of the city where justice was administered. he would get up early and stand by the side of the road leading to the city gate. Whenever anyone came with a complaint to be placed before the king for a decision, Absalom would call out to him, “What town are you from?” He would answer, “Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel. Then Absalom would say to him, “Look, your claims are valid and proper, but there is no representative of the king to hear you.” And Absalom would add, “If only I were appointed judge in the land! Then everyone who has a complaint or case could come to me and I would see that they receive justice.” Also, whenever anyone approached him to bow down before him, Absalom would reach out his hand, take hold of him and kiss him. ⁶ Absalom behaved in this way toward all the Israelites who came to the king asking for justice, and so he stole the hearts of the people of Israel.

—ooOoo—

All the above contrasts with what is narrated in the Second Reading. It is the oldest book of the New Testament, written around the year 51. Paul suffered a harsh persecution in Thessalonica and then, when he went to Athens, he encountered great difficulties before the Greek intellectuals who listened to him in the Areopagus. So later, while in Corinth, unexpected news reached him: Timothy and Silas arrived in Thessalonica and found a persevering community admired by the Gentiles.

This pushed St. Paul to write this Epistle, full of gratitude and surprise, feeling confirmed by the strength of the Spirit, beyond his own discouragement and disappointment. In this way, he begins by blessing the Thessalonians, because, in reality, they have confirmed him in his mission.

This is even more striking in the First Reading, where Yahweh himself speaks of Cyrus as someone who did not know Him, but still guides him and makes him a valuable and efficient instrument to liberate the chosen people from the Babylonians and thus help fulfill Yahweh’s plans, even though Cyrus and his Persian people attributed their victories to the god Marduk.

Why is this important for us? Because we, unlike Cyrus, Isaiah and many contemporary people of good will, have received the gift of faith. This does not mean simply believing and saying that Christ is God, but being able to see in all things God’s plans, for Christ, by his example, has taught us to do so in all circumstances. In reality, this means the “increment of faith” that we call the gift of wisdom: to be able to distinguish what is valuable, what really matters in the midst of our experience, which is complex, always full of unknowns and sometimes very painful.

This is the experience of the saints. As the story of Elijah tells us, who was persecuted, threatened with death and wished to leave this world. He walked 40 days and 40 nights until he reached the cave of Mount Horeb and there… Yahweh ordered him to travel again through the desert to consecrate Hazael, Jehu and Elisha for their respective missions. In the midst of his anguish and fear, Elijah knows that he is doing God’s will and that he will be able to do good, even if he does not understand everything, even if he cannot see God’s plans in all their grandeur.

This is not only a reality of the Bible. We are for each other a real confirmation, a real blessing and let us remember that to bless means to desire or confirm that the person “goes with God“, that God is with him. In fact, there is a moment in the Old Testament when God says to Abraham: Because you have obeyed me, you and your descendants will be a blessing to all the nations of the earth (Gen 22: 18). God cannot refuse a blessing made with love and faith, that is why he will give signs of his presence to the blessed person.

A few days ago, I was concelebrating Mass with 72 priests. In the sacristy, I spoke with one of them, who had been ordained 4 months ago, and with another, an elderly man, who was celebrating his 70th anniversary of priesthood. I asked him to give a blessing to the young man and I had the impression that they both confirmed each other. It was as if the young man said to the old man: May God help me to follow in your footsteps. And the venerable nonagenarian’s look was a thanksgiving to God, to see that someone young and vigorous was willing to continue the service he had given all his long life.

The Beatitudes are a sample (necessarily incomplete!) of the blessings, of the confirmations that God gives us so that we do not doubt that we are on the way, indeed, that we are being instruments for his kingdom, in spite of poverty, tears, many forms of hunger, persecution….

When we simply thank someone, we are confirming that he has done something good, that he has made us happy. Giving thanks is a small blessing, it is the same as saying: May the grace of God be with you, may you have His light on your path. Let us not forget to give sincere thanks for the smallest things, for the attentions and favors of every day. Thank you is a word that means, in many languages, I confirm that you have done something good, something pleasant.

—ooOoo—

But the most important message today, undoubtedly, is Christ’s sentence: Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and give to God what is God’s. Some experts in ancient languages say that the best translation is “give back to God what is God’s“. We have to ask ourselves what is meant by speaking of what is God’s. Of course, there are many things that we have to give back to him, for example, the fruits of the talents he has given us. But surely, the most important of all is the life of our neighbor.

In Exodus (1: 16) we read that Pharaoh ordered the matrons as follows: When you attend the Hebrew women in their childbirth, pay attention to the sex of the newborn; if it is a boy, kill him; if it is a girl, let her live. But the Egyptian matrons disobeyed, because they knew that life comes not only from the parents, but from the gods they worshipped.

In the same way, Pharaoh’s daughter, when she found a child hidden in a basket in the river, adopted him. As we well know, that child was Moses. Thus, going against the tide, in this case obeying God rather than men, thereby unknowingly contributing to the divine plans, as well as giving relief to the child’s family.

When we appropriate someone’s life, making him our servant, dependent on us, using him as an object, or controlling his will by whatever means, we are robbing God of his property. We are in time to give back to Him what is His, through works of mercy.

Yes, we must surrender the lives of others to God, which means that we must act like Pharaoh’s daughter, or better yet, like Our Mother Mary, who gave up her plans, her fame, her whole life, so that her Son could fulfill the mission he had in this world.

Today is a good time to appreciate the distance between blessings on the one hand and gossip and controversy on the other. Something that St. Paul expressed very well:

Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Opponents must be gently instructed, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will (2Tim 2: 23-26).

_______________________________

In the Sacred Hearts of Jesus, Mary and Joseph,

Luis CASASUS

President