Fr Kevin Kilgore

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Gospel: Matthew 22: 15-21

The Pharisees went off
and plotted how they might entrap Jesus in speech. 
They sent their disciples to him, with the Herodians, saying,
“Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man
and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.
And you are not concerned with anyone’s opinion,
for you do not regard a person’s status.
Tell us, then, what is your opinion:
Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?” 
Knowing their malice, Jesus said,
“Why are you testing me, you hypocrites? 
Show me the coin that pays the census tax.” 
Then they handed him the Roman coin. 
He said to them, “Whose image is this and whose inscription?” 
They replied, “Caesar’s.”
At that he said to them,
“Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar
and to God what belongs to God.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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A teenager approached me recently looking terribly sad. I asked him, “What’s wrong?”

He said, “Well, I just came back from practice and one of the kids kept calling me an NPC.”

Not being up-to-date with today’s teenage lingo, I asked him, “What’s an NPC?”

“A non-player character,” he said. 

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I’ll admit, I went home to Google the term. I even watched someone explain it on YouTube!

“Non-player character” is a term frequently used in video games. 

Before you start playing a game, such as Super Smash Brothers or Fortnite, you must choose a character. That’s your persona throughout the game.

Non-player characters are like shadows; they only exist in the background. They move around, but have no purpose. 

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The reason why this term – NPC – was so hurtful to that kid was because his peer was telling him that his life had no real value or meaning; he was like a shadow wondering aimlessly in a video game without purpose or function, making him feel worthless.

That’s something anyone can feel.

Maybe you’re a college student searching for direction; perhaps you’re going through a mid-life crisis; or you’re an empty nester feeling alone. 

That sense of existing without purpose is particularly common among my peers. We millennials are often referred to as the new, “Lost Generation.”

Some find themselves going through the motions, working the 9-5, but lacking a sense of urgency. There’s nothing keeping them up at night, no serious reason to rise in the morning.

It’s a type of existential crisis that begs questions like: Who am I? Whose am I? Where do I belong? 

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In today’s Gospel, Jesus leads us to an answer. 

It begins with him being thrown into a red-hot debate.

The Jews hated paying their taxes to Caesar because the Romans were an occupying force that stole their land and sovereignty. The Jews were supposed to serve one king – God – not Caesar.

If Jesus tells the Jews to pay their taxes, then he’d be seen as an enemy to the Jewish cause. But if he tells them not to pay their taxes, then he’d be reported as an enemy of the state and would’ve been crucified for insurrection. 

So, Jesus throws the question back at them. “Why are you testing me, you hypocrites?” he says. “Show me the coin that pays the census tax.”

Notice, the Lord does not have the coin on himself. So, where do the Pharisees draw the coin from but their very own pockets! 

Looking at the coin, he says, “Whose image is this?”

“Caesar’s.”

So, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”

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These are two separate commands.

Give to Caesar, meaning pay your taxes.

The government is responsible for building our roads and bridges, safeguarding our health and safety, forming a military, and so on. It’s fair to pay for these services.

But give to God what belongs to God. So, what bears God’s image?

We do. The Book of Genesis reveals that every human being is made in the image and likeness of God. Meaning, everything we have and are belongs to the Lord.

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How do you give yourself to God?

Part of the answer involves being here on Sunday. We worship him together. But what about the rest of the week?

How much time do we spend in prayer; in ministry; in discerning God’s will for our life? 

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“He kept calling me an NPC,” that youngster said to me.

“Perhaps you are,” I said. “Not a ‘non-player character,’ but a ‘new person in Christ.’ Your life and your purpose are drawn from him, not from this world or from what other people think of you.”

It’s true for all of us. Bearing God’s image means everything we have – and are – should be given back to him.

What might that mean for me today?

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Image credits: (1) Redbubble (2) Foundation for Economic Education (3) Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo

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Gospel: Luke 12: 1-7

At that time:
So many people were crowding together 
that they were trampling one another underfoot.
Jesus began to speak, first to his disciples,
“Beware of the leaven–that is, the hypocrisy–of the Pharisees.

“There is nothing concealed that will not be revealed,
nor secret that will not be known.
Therefore whatever you have said in the darkness
will be heard in the light,
and what you have whispered behind closed doors
will be proclaimed on the housetops.
I tell you, my friends,
do not be afraid of those who kill the body
but after that can do no more.
I shall show you whom to fear.
Be afraid of the one who after killing
has the power to cast into Gehenna;
yes, I tell you, be afraid of that one.
Are not five sparrows sold for two small coins?
Yet not one of them has escaped the notice of God.
Even the hairs of your head have all been counted.
Do not be afraid.
You are worth more than many sparrows.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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I started learning how to golf at age 30.

Before I learned how to swing a club, watching golf on television was about as fun as watching paint dry. I couldn’t understand how anyone could be so interested in watching a little white ball fly through the air… or, eventually, roll into a little cup.

I needed to experience the game before I could appreciate it. 

I needed the thrill of a perfect drive; of sinking a long putt; of hitting a skilled shot out of the sand. As well as the frustration of missing a short putt; watching my ball dribble into the water; or losing to a friend by a stroke.

Golf is an amazing, life-long game that I find captivating. But I never would’ve believed it if I were only on the outside looking in – watching from behind a screen.

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In today’s Gospel, Jesus continues his harsh condemnation of the scribes and Pharisees. Although they were the religious leaders of his day, they were like “whitewashed tombs,” ritually clean on the outside, but defiled within. 

Although they praised God in public and attempted to follow hundreds of man-made rules, Jesus tells them they’ve never had a real experience of God. He’s more a figment of their imagination; a man-made creation; a bundle of rules. They’re still on the outside, looking in.

Their eyes have not been opened to the power of scripture; they have not known the fire of the Holy Spirit; their hearts are not possessed by love, but chilled by legalism.

“Beware of the leaven – that is, they hypocrisy – of the Pharisees,” he says. They appear religious, but are defiled within.

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What has my own experience of faith been like? Do I feel that I’m on the outside looking in, or has my heart been set aflame by the Holy Spirit?

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Often, those who struggle to believe in God are the ones unwilling to engage or take a risk, much like the scribes and Pharisees. They keep God at a comfortable distance.

Much like golf, faith only becomes real – and enjoyable – after you dive in. What does that mean for me today?

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Image credits: (1) Pinterest (2) USA Today’s FTW (3) Foresight Sports

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Gospel: Luke 11: 47-54

The Lord said:
“Woe to you who build the memorials of the prophets 
whom your fathers killed.
Consequently, you bear witness and give consent
to the deeds of your ancestors,
for they killed them and you do the building.
Therefore, the wisdom of God said,
‘I will send to them prophets and Apostles;
some of them they will kill and persecute’
in order that this generation might be charged
with the blood of all the prophets
shed since the foundation of the world,
from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah
who died between the altar and the temple building.
Yes, I tell you, this generation will be charged with their blood!
Woe to you, scholars of the law!
You have taken away the key of knowledge.
You yourselves did not enter and you stopped those trying to enter.”
When Jesus left, the scribes and Pharisees
began to act with hostility toward him
and to interrogate him about many things,
for they were plotting to catch him at something he might say.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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“Woe to you hypocrites,” Jesus says.

The word hypocrite originally referred to an “actor,” someone wearing a mask on a stage.

Although the scribes and Pharisees appear to be religious, their hearts are far from the Lord.

They make several mistakes, some of which Christians can still make today.

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We’ve all heard that old saying, “Practice what you preach.” 

That was not only a challenge for the people of Jesus’ day, but for all of us – certainly for me, who is tasked with preaching to God’s people day after day.

It’s one thing to preach fidelity, kindness, and forgiveness. It’s another thing to live it out minute by minute.

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The religious authorities were also cunning.

They imposed heavy burdens on God’s people, but were experts in making loopholes for themselves. In a word, they lacked accountability.

For example, it’s one thing for me to encourage you to fast, tithe, and pray. It’s another thing for me to do it myself when no one is looking.

Remember, God is always watching us – not with a judgmental eye, but with an interest in fairness and accountability. As Jesus says elsewhere, “Do to no one what you yourself dislike.”

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So, what might this Gospel mean to us?

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We can boil it down into two sayings:

Actions speak louder than words.

And practice what you preach.  

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Image credits: (1) Spunky Stitches (2) Seekers Guidance (3) LinkedIn