Foundation of Church-State relations

Separation of Church and state has always been an issue. In a country like the Philippines which numerically has the biggest Christian presence, the very voice of the local church is something to reckon with.

Some of our government men react strongly against what to them is ‘meddling’. What is church’s business is church and what is state’s business is state. So, why meddle? Even Jesus, they say, could not be entrapped by the question. Did He not say, "Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God, the things that are God’s" (Mt. 22:21)?

Amazing answer. Even to this day, the question still persists with the claim that we do not mix church affairs with state affairs. How draw the parameters?

The scope of ‘things that are Caesar’s is temporary earthly concerns like the elections, etc. What is the scope of ‘things that are God’s’? That covers earth and heaven, time and eternity, the whole universe, everything created including man whom He has made unto His likeness; given a spirit with the faculty to know and a free will which can choose between right and wrong moral act, that is. The Creator has given him a human dignity with inalienable rights.

On what certainties should we live our life and the life of the community to which we belong? Without God, we end up with a society that goes against man. Our government men try to build the city of man without reference to God. Christians know that it is not possible to reject or ignore God without demeaning man. How, then can we completely separate Church and state?

God has every right to be present in all the sectors of human society. The Church, entrusted with full authority by God through Jesus Christ to guard faith and morals of all men in every area of human endeavor including politics and government, fulfills this function for the common good of man and society which is also the reason for which states exist.

Precisely because we must render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, Christians must work just as hard to work for the total development of man and not just for the salvation of his soul. The overcoming of ignorance, mis-development and material and cultural impoverishment is a vital part of the total salvation preached by Christianity.