In the first part Jesus announces his coming suffering and death. There are two parts to this morning’s gospel reading. In doing so we are revealing the Lord’s self-emptying love. The wellbeing of the stranger, the refugee, the asylum seeker, often requires that we renounce some freedom we possess. The first reading speaks of God as one ‘who loves the stranger and gives them food and clothing’. It is the Spirit who frees us to renounce our legitimate freedom when the good of others is at stake. ‘Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom’ (2 Cor 3:17). This kind of radical freedom is what Saint Paul calls the freedom of the Spirit. He had no freedom as he was nailed to the cross, but at that moment he was demonstrating God’s unconditional love for the world. Jesus is the supreme example of someone who gave up his freedom out of love for humanity. Out of consideration for others, it may be necessary to renounce a freedom that we have. It is love of others that is to shape how we exercise our freedom. Rather, love is the ultimate value, loving concern for the wellbeing of others. For Jesus, freedom is not the ultimate value above all others. In this case, consideration for others requires the disciples to renounce a legitimate freedom that they have. However, Jesus goes on to say to Peter that even though they are exempt from paying this Temple tax, they should pay it anyway so as not to give unnecessary offense to those collecting the tax. The King of heaven does not tax members of God’s new family that Jesus is in the process of creating. Jesus suggests that the new family he is forming about himself are free from paying this tax, ‘the sons (and daughters) are exempt’. The half-shekel tax was a tax that devout Jews sent to the Temple every year to support the cost of the Temple activities, especially the various sacrifices that were offered there.
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