IS IT RIGHT FOR A CHRISTIAN TO PAY TAX TO THE STATE? (HOMILY FOR MONDAY OF THE 19TH WEEK IN THE ORDINARY TIME) (ST. DOMINIC, PRIEST)
Theme: Is it right for a Christian to pay tax? Ezekiel 1:2-5, 24-28; Matthew 17: 22-27 The first reading speaks of the call of the prophet Ezekiel. The encounter between the prophet and God, in which the prophet experienced God's holiness, greatness and mighty power. To Ezekiel was revealed the nearness and holiness of God. Ezekiel came to the understanding that God is everywhere and cannot be confined to a particular place because even in their exile, God was present. This spiritual encounter took place in the 5th year of the exile of King Jehoiachin..in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar (Ezek 1:2-3). The revelation of God in his greatness made a profound impression on Ezekiel, for he said, “when I saw it I fell to the ground”. The prophet before God exuded humility, modesty, and submission. Dearest brothers and sisters in Christ, one of the tactics mostly deployed by the evil one towards the demoralization of our faith, especially at difficult and sorrowful tim...