A Taxing Question

Tobit 2:9-14 & Mk. 12:13-17

Yesterday we left Tobit sleeping out in the open under the wall of the courtyard of his house. Because of the heat, his face was uncovered. As he slept, he did not realise that there were sparrows nesting above him. Their fresh droppings fell into his unprotected eyes and eventually blinded him. In spite of all the efforts of doctors, the cataracts got worse and he ended up becoming totally blind. This situation lasted for four years and it is presumed that he must have lost his post at court.

An unspoken question here is why such a tragedy should happen to such a good man. Was it pure accident or was it, as in the case of Job, a time of testing for Tobit? This question underlies the whole book.

His family was deeply sympathetic and his nephew, Ahikar, who was the chancellor of the exchequer and who had been instrumental in getting permission for Tobit to return home to Nineveh (cf. 1:21-22), took care of his uncle for two years until he moved to Elymais. In the meantime his wife supported them by doing weaving work and selling what she made. The humiliation of the once-wealthy public servant is complete. Perhaps there is, especially in such a society, a resentment that he, a man of high station, should be reduced to being supported by his wife. On one particular occasion, in addition to being paid for her work, her customers gave her a bonus of a young goat to be eaten. It was clearly an act of kindness to a woman who was trying to support herself and her husband.

When Tobit heard the bleating of the goat he wanted to know where it had come from. When his wife said it was a gift from a customer, he refused to believe her. He was convinced it must have been stolen and insisted that it should be given back. Understandably, she was not too pleased either. In very satirical language, she asks where his charity is now, where are his righteous deeds when dealing with his own wife. Is his charity really from the heart or is it just for show? Or is she sneeringly asking what good have all his praying and alms-giving done for him. Anna here plays a similar taunting role to the wife of Job. Perhaps his wife had a point. Tobit was undoubtedly a good and very sincere person but he may, in this case, have become a victim of his own high ideals and failed to see that his own nearest and dearest deserved the same charity as the outsider.

How far should one go in upholding the law of the Lord? What are the risks worth taking? The author of Tobit was concerned about these questions as he painted a picture of faithfulness to God in an alien environment. Tobit, portrayed as a model of uprightness in trying times, showed the importance righteous Jews saw in honouring God and caring for His people. Even in exile, Tobit kept all the festivals of his people and repeatedly risked his life to perform works of mercy for his fellow Israelites.

But the inspired author wanted to do more with this story than portray a just man's trials and eventual triumph in a hostile environment. Tobit's concern for righteousness is what actually brought about his greatest affliction. Sleeping outside because his contact with a dead body had made him ritually unclean, Tobit was blinded by sparrow droppings that fell into his eyes.

Helpless, confused and dependent upon his wife's meagre income, Tobit’s belief that God rewards righteous deeds was now being put to the test. He was so concerned with the question of why God seemed to be punishing him that he could not believe that his wife, Anna, had received a gift from one of her employers. She must have stolen it, he contended, or at least obtained it through questionable means.

Anna’s rebuke of her husband reveals one of the underlying themes of the book: Righteous deeds do not, in themselves, produce righteousness. Even Tobit - the ideal Jew showed himself capable of inordinate distrust, wounded pride, false accusations and the like. Despite his record of good deeds, Tobit could not overcome his internal drives towards self-promotion and divisiveness.

As the story of Tobit unfolds, it shows that goodness and justice do not depend upon us but upon a loving, compassionate God who provides for His people. As children of the new covenant in Christ's blood, we have the supreme witness to God's provision. He knows that we lack righteousness; it was for this very reason that He gave His only Son as a sacrifice for our sin. Without this sacrifice we could not have been made whole.

"Master, we know You are an honest man". The Pharisees and Herodians use an old ploy - flattery - to try to trap Jesus. Flattery can cause us to lower our guard. 'You´re a good parent, you already have two children, you don´t really believe the Church on…?' Being Christian in the world often means living among devious people. Hence, Jesus warned us to "be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves" (Mt 10:16). To maintain a balance we have to live only for God. Is it Christ who shapes my day?

"Is it permissible to pay the taxes to Caesar or not?" They pose a false dilemma to Jesus. Either Jesus must accept Caesar totally, or rebel against Rome. Such is how the world saw it. And it is still either/or that we face. Either we embrace Darwinism (no questions asked) or we cling to Creationism. Either we are tolerant of alternate lifestyles or we are insufferable bigots. But things are more complicated than that. Moreover, the Catholic faith is often 'both/and' … we give to Caesar and to God what belongs to each. How do we decide what belongs to whom? That´s where things get tricky. That is precisely why we are called as Christians to develop our gifts, our intelligence, our prayer life - so as to make the right choices. Catholicism is not a religion for robots. It demands that we use our freedom and gifts responsibly to do God´s will. Am I using my gifts well? Do I develop my skills and intellect so as to better serve God?

Jesus' response “Give back to Caesar what belongs to Caesar – and to God what belongs to God” floors His critics. Why? Partly because He throws the question back to them. Now they have to decide what belongs to Caesar - and what belongs to God. Nothing can so frighten us as freedom. It frightened His audience. How are we using our freedom? How are we using the time God gives us?

Help us realize, Lord, that You are calling us in freedom. You respect the freedom You gave us, even if we misuse it. But we don't want to misuse it. We want to render a good account of our life at Judgement Day.