06/02/2026
Daily Mass Reflection
Tuesday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time (Year II)
Readings: 2 Peter 3:12-15a, 17-18; Mark 12:13-17
In today’s Gospel, the opponents of Jesus try to trap Him with a political question: “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?” If Jesus says yes, some of the people will be upset. If He says no, He could be accused of rebellion against Rome. It seems like a perfect trap.
But Jesus responds with wisdom: “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”
The deeper question is not about taxes. The deeper question is: To whom do we belong?
Jesus asks for a coin and points to the image of Caesar stamped on it. The coin belongs to Caesar because it bears Caesar’s image. But every human person bears a different image—the image of God. From the first pages of Genesis, we learn that we are created in God’s image and likeness.
If the coin belongs to Caesar because it bears his image, then we belong to God because we bear His image.
This means that God is not merely asking for a portion of our lives. He is asking for our whole selves—our minds, our hearts, our decisions, our relationships, our work, and our future. We can easily give God an hour on Sunday while keeping the rest for ourselves. Yet Jesus reminds us that everything we are ultimately belongs to Him.
The first reading from Saint Peter complements this message. Peter urges us to “grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” As Christians, we are not simply waiting for heaven. We are called to grow daily in holiness, becoming more and more the image of Christ that God created us to be.
The world constantly tries to claim our attention, our loyalty, and our identity. Success, money, politics, status, and comfort all have their place, but none of them can define who we are. Our deepest identity is that we are sons and daughters of God.
Today, perhaps we can ask ourselves:
* What parts of my life have I not yet fully given to God?
* Do I remember that I bear God’s image in every circumstance?
* Am I growing in grace, or have I become spiritually stagnant?
As we approach the altar today, let us offer not only our gifts of bread and wine but our very selves. May we give to God what truly belongs to God: our hearts.
Amen.
