Trash and Taxes

Suffering with death and taxes because of our sins

08/13/2018

Matthew 17:22-27 As Jesus and his disciples were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, "The Son of Man is to be handed over to men, and they will kill him, and he will be raised on the third day." And they were overwhelmed with grief. When they came to Capernaum, the collectors of the temple tax approached Peter and said, "Does not your teacher pay the temple tax?" "Yes," he said. When he came into the house, before he had time to speak, Jesus asked him, "What is your opinion, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth take tolls or census tax? From their subjects or from foreigners?" When he said, "From foreigners," Jesus said to him, "Then the subjects are exempt. But that we may not offend them, go to the sea, drop in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up.  Open its mouth and you will find a coin worth twice the temple tax. Give that to them for me and for you."

Benjamin Franklin famously made a remark about death and taxes in a letter to a friend dated 1789. Poor Richard wrote: “Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency, but in this world nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes.” Franklin was suggesting that death and taxes were not only “certain” but also in a sense necessary evils, that is, if possible it would be wonderful if we could avoid them but we can’t. But death became necessary due to the original sin of our first parents. If they hadn’t sinned, we would not have had to die. In Romans 5:12 St. Paul makes this connection between sin and death explicit, saying: “Therefore, just as through one person (Adam) sin entered the world and through sin, death, and thus death came to all.” We sinners cannot avoid death.

But taxes are also necessary evils because taxes provide for the good of the community. Sadly, human beings tend to take care of themselves rather than think of their neighbors, so we have to be coerced into caring for the community by paying taxes. It would be so nice if people didn’t throw trash out their car windows on the highway, but they do. People don’t naturally do what we are supposed to do – we are weak and sinful – so we have necessary evils like death and taxes to make us do what we should. Death and taxes are certain because sin and selfishness is certain.

If there was one person in the history of humanity who could contradict Benjamin Franklin’s statement, it would be Jesus Christ. Why? Well because Jesus is the only sinless One, and therefore, he is not subject to death or taxes. Jesus did not need to die, and Jesus did not need to pay taxes because of the simple fact that he committed no sins. He was not subject to the original death penalty imposed on Adam and Eve, and Jesus would not throw trash out his car window onto the highway. But because he made himself a human being, he willingly, voluntarily, without coercion or compulsion, made himself subject to both death and taxes: not because he had to because he wanted to out of love. So when asked about paying taxes in the gospel today, Jesus instructs Peter: “That we may not offend…go to the sea, drop in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up.  Open its mouth and you will find a coin worth twice the temple tax. Give that to them for me and for you.” In other words, even though Jesus could claim an exemption from paying the tax, he does not insist on his divine prerogatives. Moved by humility and love, the two things (death and taxes) that were not certain for him, because he had not sinned, became certain for him because of his love.

Let me invite you to be careful about claiming a Christian exemption to the necessary evils of the world, like death and taxes. What do I mean? Well, avoid treating death too lightly because we know that for a believer a brighter and better future lies in store. But death is devastating and we should mourn with those who mourn and weep with those who weep. Remember how Jesus wept when Lazarus died? We can’t say: “I am a Christian and I am exempt from the devastation and depression of death.” Rather, humility and love move me to sympathize with those who suffer such a loss. You may know churches in the United States enjoy a non-profit status that exempts us from paying income taxes. But I sometimes wonder if trying to preserve that exemption ties our hands and zips our lips when we should speak out on issues affecting our community and our country. Maybe it would be wiser to pay the tax and proclaim the gospel “in season and out of season,” when convenient and inconvenient. Did you know we pay a sort of tax to operate the offices of the diocese called a cathedraticum? That comes from the word “cathedra,” or chair of the bishop. The bishop’s chair or cathedra is the seat of his authority to teach but also to tax. And we should pay that cathedraticum not because of coercion or compulsion but out of love and humility.

Old Benjamin Franklin was right that nothing is as certain as death and taxes. But they are only certain because we sin and do not behave as we should. Since Christians live in this world and we are still sinners, we too are subject to both death and taxes. Only in heaven will we finally be free of these two necessary evils when we will not need their help to be holy.

Praised be Jesus Christ!