I used to love the way the late Joan Rivers dealt with the flattery of applause. She would come out on stage and while the crowds applauded her she would look as though it was undeserved yet at the same time she would beg with her arms for even more and louder applause from the audience. It was pure Joan Rivers.

Flattery is usually without malice or harm; it has no evil content to it. We usually flatter someone when we want something from them. We praise an individual?s gifts and talents when we want them to work on a time-consuming project with us. But today?s gospel begins with the Pharisees really laying praise on Jesus pretty thick?and with malice.

We are told at the beginning that the Pharisees and the Herodian's plotted how they might entrap Jesus - their hope was place Him in the light of hypocrisy, to trick Him and make it appear that Jesus was unsure of what He was about to declare. The Pharisees begin with their ill-conceived flattery: "Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. And you are not concerned with anyone's opinion, for you do not regard a person's
status. Tell us, then, what is your opinion: Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?" With full knowledge of their malice, Christ responds: "Why are you testing me, you hypocrites?" Handing them the Roman coin, He asked them whose image and inscription did it bear. They replied, "Caesar's." Christ replied, "Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God."

Jesus sees through the malice and the intent of the Pharisees and Herodian's and so He focuses on His true mission-to align His will and actions with the Will of God our Father. In doing so, Jesus gives us the direct answer to the Pharisee's question about our loyalty and allegiance to the secular kingdom or to God's. When God is truly the center of our lives - the prime mover and motivator of all that we do - then there need be no separation between earthly and heavenly realms. When we fully bear the image and likeness of Christ in all our words and actions, then there is no wedge between everyday actions and eternal desires. Yes, absolutely sometimes there are clashes between the values of the secular world and the religious world. When this happens we need to remember the basic notion of the word "religion," which comes from the Latin meaning to bind ourselves to God and to each other.
Remember, that we come to love and show our love for God in the ways in which we bind ourselves in love, compassion and mercy to our fellow human beings.
Kathleen Harmon, S.N.D. de N., Liturgical Ministry Leaders, notes that ?When God and God?s ways are sovereign in our lives, our choices about responsibilities and concerns in all the various realms in which we live -family, workplace, city, nation and church - are clearer. Even when there is a clash of values, if we remain faithful to the image of Jesus that we bear, then it is clear to others how we make our choices; how we serve; and how we tithe our time, talents, and treasure for the good of all." Like the last two weekends in which the Gospel message was all about our freedom to choose and the impact our choices have on our eternal life and the way in which God interacts with us in this world, this weekend is no different. Here, the choice is ours to make: to bear the image of Jesus at all times and in all places. The only time confusion and dysfunction will occur is when we use different standards or moral codes to make various decisions. When we are clear about who we are and what we stand for, then the choice(s) become much clearer, though not always easier, because the "golden ring" upon which we are focused is the gift of Eternal Life with God.

Choose well!