Whose Image We Bear

Reflection for October 18, 2026 – 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus answers a trick question posed by the Pharisees about the temple tax, affirming that we owe our ultimate allegiance to God. Find today’s readings here.

In writing this column, I spent a lot of time mulling over a strange question: if I had a coin with Caesar’s face on it, could I use it to pay for my morning coffee?

Ancient Roman artifacts are worth a lot of money, but I have no idea how to appraise the artifacts and convert that worth to cash. I doubt my local barista does, either.

Out of curiosity, I Googled it. Apparently, the value depends a lot on the emperor. If we’re talking about a marquee name like Julius Caesar, a coin will go for thousands of dollars. But let’s say it’s a shekel from Emperor Geta, some third-century failure who got murdered by his brother. You can get his coin for less than $200.

It matters, apparently, whose face you’re stamped with. We are all only as good as the image we bear.

When Christ said, “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God,” he was talking about faithful citizenship and faithful discipleship. He was talking about the omnipotence of God over any political movement or historical era.

But he was also talking about our worth. Where it comes from, what it means, how long it will last. He was talking about whose image we bear.

©LPi