What
Does Jesus Mean by “In God We Trust”?
(Spiritual
Reflection on Mt 6:24-34)
On the bank note of the United States of America we find
this amazing declaration: “In God We Trust.”
In today’s Gospel, Jesus our Lord strongly urges us to
put our trust in God’s love and care.
The question is whether these are two identical
statements or they may contain certain differences, even they are fundamentally
in sharp contrast.
Let us start from the very thought of the American
society. Fr. Richard Rohr, a well known
American Franciscan theologian, wrote in his book, entitled “Job and The
Mystery of Suffering”:
The church in the West has looked at the
Gospel and history from that superior position for more than sixteen hundred
years. We became, not the church of
the poor; at our best we were the church for the poor from our privileged position of the rich.
We became a middle-class and even upper
middle-class church that largely avoids much that Jesus preached about riches
and wealth. The church saw no problem,
as most Christians see no problem today, with being fabulously wealthy,
amassing huge securities and insurance and properties, and still believing that
we trust in God.[1]
The world in general and the church in the West in
particular have achieved a living standard high enough, secure enough that the
citation of Jesus’ words “In God We Trust” has little to do with what the Good
News Message really wants to convey to Christian listeners who in other parts
of the developing world only find out that they do not stand on the same
social, economic, cultural, and political platform.
“In God We Trust” from mouth of the wealthy and powerful
sounds very close and similar to what was uttered by the Pharisee who was
praising God—or rather he was praising himself—for his privileged life, much
better than and superior to that of the tax-collector and the rest in society:
O God, I thank you that I am not like the
rest of humanity—greedy, dishonest, adulterous—or even like this
tax-collector. I fast twice a week, and
I pay tithes on my own income.”[2]
“In God We Trust” from the mouth of those who trust in
banks millions of dollars with printed declaration “In God We Trust” appears simply
tantamount to a holier than thou
attitude.
“In God We Trust” preached by Jesus means that we, human
beings, aware of our humble and weak nature and life, just like wild flowers
growing in the morning and fading in the evening, put all our hopes and dreams
in God, our heavenly Father, Who loves and cares for each and one of us, His
children, more and better than our parents do us.
“In God We Trust” sounds more profound when it is proudly
proclaimed by Christians in times of extremely hard challenges and
persecutions: when not because of your own fault you are jobless, you are
barred from taking parts in the building and defense of your own society.
“In God We Trust” resounds as shaking as a 9.9 Richter magnitude
scale earthquake when you speak it out without a second thought in the darkness
of suffering and loneliness and when you have a thousand times cried out to God
for help but not even a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ could be heard from above.
“In God We Trust” becomes undeniably as great as a
profession of faith in the faithful God Who always keeps His promises even with
so high a cost, that of the blood of His Only Begotten Son.
“In God We Trust” remains forever the love song loudly
offered to the loving caring God by children with grateful hearts, along the
way of this pilgrimage on earth leading to the heavenly home prepared for them
from eternity.
“In God We Trust”: Saint Paul also encourages us to say
it again and again when he writes in his Letter to the Romans:
I consider that the sufferings of this
present time are as nothing compared with the glory to be revealed to us.[3]
Fr. Francis Nguyen, O.P.
