The Rights of God

By Gabriel Finochio

Chesterton once said: “There is now a false idealism of turning Government into God, by a vague notion that it gives everything to everybody.” If that false idealism existed in his day (a century ago) then the problem has only gotten worse. And as Chesterton also said, “A problem can only be solved by a principle.” The principle that needs to be understood is that there is a necessary distinction between God and Government. Jesus was asked by the Pharisees whether it was lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, and, as he was broke, he asked for a coin with an image of Caesar on it. The Scripture says: “Jesus said to them, ‘Whose image is this, and whose inscription?’ 21 They replied, “Caesar’s.” He said to them “Then He answered them and said, “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (Matt. 22:20-21).