Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Everything

We were struck once again by Jesus' reply to  smarmy Pharisees trying to trip him up in this morning's Gospel:

Bring me a denarius to look at.”
They brought one to him and he said to them,
“Whose image and inscription is this?”
They replied to him, “Caesar’s.”
So Jesus said to them,
“Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar
and to God what belongs to God.”
They were utterly amazed at him.


We too are amazed. For the response of Jesus the Lord reminds us that everything, everything; all that we are, all that we have comes from God and belongs to God. And we recall the prayer of Saint Ignatius Loyola:

Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty,
my memory, my understanding,
and my entire will,
All I have and call my own.
You have given all to me.
To you, Lord, I return it.
Everything is yours; do with it what you will.
Give me only your love and your grace,
that is enough for me.