'Death and Taxes' - transcript of sermon 18th October 2026 @ St Oswald's Rugby

 

Matthew 22:15-22

Bejamin Franklin in a letter to Jean-Baptiste Le Roy, in 1789 wrote, “Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes."

Although Franklin popularised the phrase the earliest known iteration was by Christopher Bullock in1716.

And death and taxes are a perfect summary of our Gospel story set for today.

What do I mean by that?

Well taxes are obvious.

Throughout its history, Rome was constantly at war. This led to the development of a large and expensive professional army, paid for through extensive taxation.

And Judea was one such place that fell to the mighty Roman war machine.

In 63 BCE, Pompey marched into Jerusalem, sacked the city, and reduced the Jewish kingdom to a Roman client state. Rome then restructured Judea into five autonomous districts, each with its own religious council, weakening central authority.

During the Roman civil wars, control weakened, and in 40 BCE the Parthians briefly seized Palestine, installing Antigonus, the last Hasmonean king. But Herod, son of Antipater, fled to Rome, where the Senate named him 'King of the Jews.' With Roman military backing, he reclaimed Judea by 37 BCE, ending Hasmonean independence.

Herod, son of Antipater becomes Herod the Great, established as a vassal King of Rome, creating a dynasty and giving rise to the Herodians.  

That bit of information is going to be important later, so tuck it away and remember it.

And the Jews had to pay for the privilege of being under Roman occupation with their puppet king.

This had led to a Jewish tribute tax revolt led by Judas in 6/7AD. It was brutally put down by the Romans and thousands of young Jewish men were crucified.

It’s worth thinking about that for a moment.

Imagine if you will, that Russia is victorious in their war against Ukraine and occupy the country. And then they demand taxes off Ukrainians to pay for the war and the Russian military based in Ukraine.

That’s what’s going on here with the Judeans paying taxes to the occupying Roman forces.

And was Jesus setting up to lead another tribute tax revolt. That must have a been a question hanging in the air.

Over the last few weeks, we have been tracking Jesus since his triumphal entrance in Jerusalem.

Jesus has his authority questioned, he has debated and told parables, all barbed. For example, Matthew 21:43 “For I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce fruit.”    

And so - the Pharisee’s went out and laid plans to trap him in his words.’ 

They devised a killer question, a question by committee. And it doesn’t take a lot of imagination to envisage them sitting around having a heated debate about this upstart Northern rabbi whom the populace seemed to love. But who challenged them, and their authority. And as far as they could see, was in danger of delaying the coming of the Messiah by leading people astray and possibly bring the wrath of Rome down on their heads. 

The killer question!

Much like a good journalist today, who challenges a politician with a question that will put them in a very difficult situation.

A double bind.

Death and taxes – well we have the taxes and have considered the bitter and understandable resentment of having to pay this tax.

What about the death?

Well, we can see that whichever way Jesus answers this question, if he answers with a simple binary choice, pay the tax to Caesar or don’t pay the tax, either way he answers they have him.

Now look carefully who is sent to put the killer question before Jesus.

^‘They, that is the Pharisees, sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians.’

The story of Jesus brings together some very odd bedfellows, even Pilate and Herod we are told became friends!

So, we have the Herodians. Remember those? The ones who accepted the Roman rule and authority. Probably doing quite well out of it as well financially.

And we have students of the Pharisees.

The trap is set.

Pay the taxes to Rome, and that’s going to be the death of Jesus reputation as a devout Jewish Rabbi. What kind of Rabbi would tell students to simple accept the Roman occupation when all the writings and the prophets declared this was God’s land and the Judeans were God’s chosen people. Jesus is corrupting the mind of these Pharisaic disciples by saying we should simply accept and pay for the Roman tax.

And then the Herodians are waiting to pounce if he says, no, don’t pay the tax. They are in kowtow with their Roman overlords. They would very quickly pass on any message that suggest opposition to the Roman authority.

They present Jesus with a double bind.

And they preface their poisonous question with honeyed words.

“Teacher,” they said, “we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are.

The first response from Jesus – you hypocrites.

And a hypocrite is a person who pretends to have beliefs, virtues, or moral standards that they do not actually possess, originating from the Greek word for "actor."

Jesus immediately begins to answer their question by asking for a coin in which the taxes are to be paid.

Remember, we are still in the Temple where Jesus has been teaching and debating.

You can feel the tension and drama as Jesus takes the coin, turns it over a few times, then holds it up and asks

 “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”

This very important, because Jesus asked them to show him the coin used for paying the tax. Someone was carrying this coin in the Temple precincts.

And the image and inscription?

 On the obverse: A portrait of Emperor Tiberius facing right. The inscription around the portrait translated into English reads “Tiberius Caesar, son of the Divine Augustus, Augustus.”

And on the reverse: Shows the Roman goddess Livia. She is seated, holding a branch and a sceptre. The inscription encircling her says “PONTIF MAXIM”, a position of a chief priest in Ancient Rome.

If there’s one thing we know about the Pharisees is the meticulous concern for keeping the law as zealous Jews.

“You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.”

The Pharisees refused to handle this Roman coinage and yet here is someone in in the Temple carrying this blasphemous image.

And then did Jesus flip the coin back to the person who had given to him, pause just for a moment, and then say,

“Give to back Caesar what belongs to Caesar and give back to God what belongs to God.”

And we are told that they were amazed – what we might say in modern parlance, they were gobsmacked!

Notice Jesus doesn’t answer the question directly but pushes it back to them to ponder over.

Okay you Pharisee’s, you don’t put any value on this tribute coin, then give it back to its owner, no problems.

You Herodians, well you may not like the image and inscription, but you have already bought into the whole Roman rule, so what’s the problem in paying this tribute tax.  

And this is not a simple binary that creates two domains, the state and the church.

That’s too simple a reading.

The work we have to do with this story is figuring out what belongs to God.

At one level that is not that difficult because everything belongs to God, everything is gift.

As Paul reminded the Athenians when speaking at the Areopagus, ‘for in him we live and move and exist; as also some of your own poets have put it, ‘For we are his offspring.’

Eventually we will give back everything, even our breath and our heartbeat.

And it is good if we can begin to live with this as a reality now.

That is our journey as apprentices to Jesus.

And cautiously let me say a word about paying back to Caesar.

We may well be familiar with Romans 13, beginning with these words, “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.”

However, this needs to be put into a broader context, subject to scrutiny and soaked in prayer.

Take for example Edith Cavel. The Church commemorated her life and sacrifice on Monday last, the 12^th October.

Edith Cavel was a British nurse, working in German-occupied Belgium during the First World War. She helped hundreds of British, French and Belgian soldiers escape the Germans. Eventually she was arrested, tried and executed on the 12^th October 1915.

She did not accept the authority imposed by the Germans.

There are times when it is right and proper and our Christian duty to question ruling authorities and sometimes even stand in opposition.

And here’s the thing, the more we lean into God, the more we offer our lives, the more we give to God the things that belong to God, the better we will be able to make that call about paying tribute to those in authority. Paul in his letter to the Romans writes,

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” – Romans 12:1

Yesterday (17th October) we celebrated the life of St Ignatious of Loyola and I end by using one of his prayers as we offer up our lives to God.

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. Amen.

https://youtu.be/QZW4_8_zCBE?si=aDafAVCYeGro2Mpy

To see the sermon in context follow this link....

Sunday 18th October 10.30 am service

 

'All Are Invited' - Weekly Reflection 11th October 2026

 Today, 11^th October is Prisons Sunday leading into Prisons Week. 

I had the Prayer Guides for the week out sitting on the stairs ready to take to Church. My wife noticed them and said jokingly, “now that could be misunderstood, prisons week and all are invited.!”

‘All are invited’ is the strap line being used for this year’s Prisons Week and is taken from the parable Jesus tells in Mathew 22:1-14, the RCL Gospel set for today.

However, this parable is easy to misunderstand and is complex, at least as Matthew has chosen to tell the story. Luke’s version (chapter 14:15-24) is easier on the eye and easier on the conscious.

Luke gives us no king, but simply ‘a certain man.’

And a king is our first problem. Some might view this king as being representative of God. Okay, but look at what this king does to those who maltreated and abused his messengers. Is that retributive justice, almost revenge, really an image of God Matthew is trying to portray?

Luke has this ‘certain man’ getting angry but no mention of violence and destruction that Matthew brings into the story. 

Matthew’s rendition is a horror film of nightmarish proportions.

And as with several of Jesus’ parables we often have a ‘popular’ version in our minds.

However, I would encourage you to go and dig deep, to seek to discern and discover why Matthew might have told this story in this way.  

Let me lay a few foundations to get you started.

Most important, this is a parable, it is a story, a story that will offer multiple meanings. Some obvious, other cryptic and hidden.

The consider the contexts.

The original context, that is, Jesus’ context. Who is he addressing here?  Where is he? What is happening, noting that we are drawing closer to the Passion, nearer to Jesus’ death.

Then what is happening with Matthew’s community, which most scholars agree was a Jewish context. And we can be certain that the Temple has been destroyed by the time of Matthew writing his Gospel. For Matthew and his community, a king in the form of the Roman Emperor’s servants had come and destroyed and killed. Just who is the ‘king’ in Matthew’s telling?

And then finally, what of our own context. What can we learn about God’s will and ways, his purposes and plans in our day and age.

Also excluded from Luke version is the poor unfortunate soul who turned up inappropriately dressed and finds himself cast into outter darkness.

What are we to make of this man inappropriately dressed.

Remember, this a parable and so we are allowed to play with the images it offers. There are multiple ways we can discern the wisdom from this story. There is not one correct interpretation.

So, this man, not wearing wedding clothes.

Some comment that a host would have often provided a wedding garment for guests who might not have one or couldn’t afford one.  And although there is no firm evidence of such a practise, it does help to make some sense in this context. 

Have you ever found yourself in this situation, inappropriately dressed?

There are those who have made a long trip to visit someone in prison only to be told they are unable to enter the prison because they, or their children are inappropriately dressed.

Checking the dress code is important.

And this pushes me back to something I have been reflecting upon a lot since reading Stephen Cherry’s book, ‘Unforgivable?: Exploring the Limits of Forgiveness.’  In certain cases, repentance must proceed forgiveness, otherwise it might be unwise or even dangerous to offer forgiveness.

This also pushes my mind back to our Gospel readings over the past couple of weeks.

The story of where Jesus’ authority is questioned and then the story of the two sons, one saying yes, but not doing what he said he would, the other saying no, but then repenting and going to work in his father’s vineyard.

John the Baptizer, whom Jesus references when questioned about his authority, railed against the Pharisees, who came to see what John was doing but refused the baptism he was offering, “But when John saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.”

Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.

The talk must be followed by the walk.

We might say, I believe in Jesus, that’s great, but so does the devil!

A question then as we reflect on this man dressed inappropriately.

What is the dress code to enter the Kingdom of Heaven?

Well, thankfully Colossians 3.12 begins to answer that question for us.

^“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.”

Therefore, my challenge to us this week is to think about what’s in your wardrobe?

And the good news is that all we have to do is ask and receive the robes of righteousness that Jesus offers.

‘Everyone is invited to the banquet’ – and…

I am overwhelmed with joy in the Lord my God! For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in a robe of righteousness. I am like a bridegroom dressed for his wedding or a bride with her jewels. Isaiah 61.10

 

All Are Invited

 https://youtu.be/O3Cv-cH3a9s?si=qzS0312JsmAYP4AA

 

'Beyond Redemption' - weekly reflection 4th October 2026

 We have had our grandchildren over for the weekend, picking them up from school on Friday after school and dropping them back home Sunday afternoon. These are our twin boys, aged seven and very full on. On my last birthday they bought me a Journal where we could write things about us and about me. Over breakfast I was filling it in with one of the boys. Now like all children they pick up words and phrases from all sorts of places and can sometime use them inappropriately. One of those phrases is, ‘I hate that.’  We came upon a section in the Journal which was headed, ‘Likes and Dislikes,’ asking question about clothes, food and other activities.

The first section was sub-titled, ‘Grandad likes to… The next section had the sub-title of, ‘Grandad hates.’  And so, I wrote underneath ‘Grandad does not hate anything or anyone.’  Then changed the questions about things I dislike.

The word ‘hate’ has several derivations in the Bible which occurs over 150 times. Hate is seen as a negative emotion that goes against the teachings of love, forgiveness, and reconciliation. Jesus Christ taught his followers in Matthew 5:44 to love their enemies and bless those persecuting them. Furthermore, Paul also urged believers to put away hate and bitterness Ephesians 4:31. He emphasizes the need to let go of negative emotions and instead cultivate a spirit of love and forgiveness. I John 2:9 also highlights that hate is incompatible with a life of faith and is contrary to the teachings of Christianity. However, as you would expect from a large corpus of material like the Bible, the story is more complex and nuanced.  

For example, Psalm 11.15, ‘The Lord examines the righteous,
    but the wicked, those who love violence,
    he hates with a passion.’

Then from Isaiah, 1.14-15,

Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals
    I hate with all my being.
They have become a burden to me;
    I am weary of bearing them. When you spread out your hands in prayer,
    I hide my eyes from you;
even when you offer many prayers,
    I am not listening.

It is well worth checking out verses 16-20 to find out why as it offers a damning indictment on so much that has happened and continues to happen amongst the People of God!

And unless you have been on a silent retreat on a deserted island you can't be unaware that the hate and the bile being spewed out across the world is palpable.

I have been reading some of the Facebook threads concerning Christa Pike. I am pleased that most of the comments say how outdated and utterly abhorrent the death sentence is. However, one comment I read which I found disturbing simply said, after a rehearsal of the horrific crime Christa did, ‘she doesn’t deserve to be alive.’ That statement chills me to the bone.

Added to this we have had the early release of prisoners in the UK raising the temperature on our judicial system. There are obvious and legitimate concerns for people’s safety, especially if the harmer could gain access to the harmed.

And all of this just before we have Prison’s Sunday (11^th October) leading into Prisons Week, 11^th – 17^th October.

Campaign Page - Prisons Week

Can we try and be as informed as we can be about our prions. And can we have sensible conversations about the role and purpose of prisons.

The death penalty is obviously about retribution and possible revenge. The statistics demonstrate that it has never acted as deterrent. And it most certainly isn’t about restorative justice.

Some make appeal to the dictum, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, see Exodus 24.1 & Matthew 5.8. Somewhat erroneously attributed to Mahatma Gandhi, is the development on this code, “An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.”. (It is very much in the style of others sayings by Gandhi but there’s no evidence that he ever said it.) Whether Gandhi said it or not, there is a truth in this idea of an eye for an eye and a tooth for tooth would mean a world of full of the blind and toothless. 

I remember as a child going on holiday to a large house in St Anne’s, just down the road from Blackpool. A large group of children from around Lancashire were taken there because they were orphans or because of family situation’s being difficult. (I was there with my two older brothers following the death of our father in a road traffic accident) One day one of the other boys bit me on the arm. I was taken into a room and received treatment. Then the ‘culprit’ was brought in and made to stand in front of me and his shirt sleeve was rolled up. I was then told to bite him back on the arm. I refused.

Brutal logic, like for like, injury for injury. That is what some are saying about Christi Pike. She killed another young girl in the most horrific of ways and therefore should pay the ultimate penalty.  

Interestingly it is the pharmaceutical companies in America that have said that they will not produce the drugs used to execute people. Therefore, there is a question over their effectiveness and where they are getting them from. Now, some people are making ‘alternative’ suggestions.  

Now I appreciate that I have not had to endure the awfulness of having my own child brutally murdered. Although the 9^th October will be fourth anniversary of a 22-year-old family member being murdered by someone weaponizing their car and driving into a group of young people outside an all-night eatery. So, I have stood close enough to know something of the pain and trauma of parents losing a child in this way.

Clearly our own prison system in the UK is under enormous strain. The UK holds the highest per-capita incarceration rate in Western Europe — at 136.2 prisoners per 100,000 people in England and Wales, compared to an EU average of 117, just 107 in France, and a mere 67 in Germany.

Source: Incarceration Statistics in UK 2026 | Numbers, Demographics & Key Facts – The Global Statistics

This is why we need to have better conversations and find a better way forward. The answer cannot simply be to build more prisons.

Not wishing to be flippant but there is scene in the comedy ‘Thin Blue Line’ that is focussing on so called 'juvenile delinquents.' The answer is simple, says DC Kray, build juvenile detention centres next to the maternity wing, straight out of mum and into prison.

I do wonder sometimes if some people think this might be a good idea. 

And amongst all the back and forth on social media over the past few weeks has been this heartwarming story; Rugby foodbank

Rugby Foodbank receives 90kg food donation from HMP Rye Hill inmates

Last week, we received one of the most incredible donations we've ever seen - over 90kg of food donated by the inmates at HMP Rye Hill.

The men there receive only a small amount of money each week to spend in the prison canteen. Yet they chose to use some of that money to help us. Take a moment to think about that - people behind prison walls helping others.

This donation is a powerful reminder that kindness can come from the most unexpected places. This demonstrates that people are far more than the mistakes they may have made in the past. From everyone at Rugby Foodbank, thank you.

This is community. This is hope. This is what kindness looks like.

And a question for us to ponder on this week. Is there anyone who is beyond hope of any kind of redeption and restoration back into society? If so, how should we keep them and ourselves safe from any further harm? 

https://youtu.be/uY46Bea7w74?si=ATx-hbSmHI1mD7Xj