Article January 30, 1954 Issue

WHOSE IMAGE?

R. ASHLEY VINES

Jesus had the answer to every problem and met all requirements with ease and serenity. When asked whether he approved of the usual custom of paying tribute to Caesar, Jesus replied by asking to see a coin. Then he said (Matt. 22:20), "Whose is the image and superscription?" And when the answer came, he declared, "Render therefore unto Cæsar's; and unto God the things that are God's"—words which have been a wonderful inspiration to mankind in understanding their relationship and duty to their earthly rulers and to God.

Jesus did not seek to avoid the necessity paying his tax, nor did he advocate defiance of recognized authority. What he taught and practiced was a proper understanding of and obedience to the spirit of the law. That he advocated proper observance of health regulations is indicated by his instructions to the ten lepers to report immediately to the priests, for the priests acted as health officers in case of leprosy.

When Mary Baker Eddy was questioned about the attitude of Christian Science towards health laws relating to infectious and contagious diseases, her reply included Jesus' reference to Caesar. She then added (The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, p. 220): "I believe in obeying the laws of the land. I practise and teach this obedience, since justice is the moral signification of law."

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