When Jesus founded the Church, he gave it authority. “Peter you are the rock and on this rock I will build my Church… whatever binds on earth is bound in heaven, and whatever is loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:18-19)

In this world, there is only one authority and that is God as he is the creator of heaven and earth. Yet in the world that he created he also gave the authority to institutions like the Church and to people.

In the Gospel, Jesus shows respect for civil authority by paying taxes.

• We pray for our civil leaders. Their decisions affect the lives of the citizenry. Good decisions are a blessing while bad decisions affect everyone’s lives.
• We support them. This can be done by paying taxes, following rules and supporting the good programs. Remember this is also a way of being a good neighbor.
• We guide them. We do this by being salt of the earth and light of the world. In other words, when policies are not right, when things they are doing are not right, then we speak up for what is right, what is true and what is good.

There is a saying, “We are in the world but not of this world.” Yet, in the years the Lord has given us to live in this world we pray and do our part to make this world a better place to live in. As Jesus always said, “The Kingdom of God is at hand.”