Some of the quotes of Jesus are so unusual and compelling in their style of expression, and so unique in the literature, that to me they have the ring of truth, both as far as the content and the attribution; even though they have been translated and edited and so on, to me they have the kernel of authenticity.
One of those expressions is " Give unto Caesar, that which is Caesar's; but give unto God, that which is God's."
The meaning of this expression is that the civil and temporal world is one thing, but the world of religion and values another area altogether, with different methods of tribute, obligation, and duty. The payment is not in money.
I also suggest that this expression is an acceptance and acknowledgement of the separation of Church and State.
Jesus did not say "We have to free ourselves of the unjust Roman occupation ! Rise and fight !"
He persistently avoided anything that would have been incited violence of the populace against the civil authority.
The later viewpoint of radical Jews later caused much internal bloodshed, when the radical right killed anyone who advocated accommodation with the Romans. In a sense the hard liners were in the right, insofar as the Romans had no real moral basis to occupy their country. In the end, the war with Rome was a disaster for the Jews, on a level with the Nazi holocaust in terms of the
destruction of the country.
But Jesus was a non-violent, enlightened individual and teacher, who accepted the separation of Church and State, was careful not to infringe on civil law, and advised the faithful on the proper delineation of the two.
In my opinion, that is an exceedingly wise teaching, expressed concisely and in a way that people have remembered it for over 2000 years.
