Brueggemann isn’t right about everything, but he is always worth reading. I especially like the collections of his prayers. This comes from Prayers for a Privileged People:
Income Tax Day
On this day of internal revenue,
some of us are paid up,
some of us owe,
some of us await a refund,
some of us have no income to tax.
But all of us are taxed,
by war,
by violence,
by anxiety,
by deathliness.
And Caesar never gives any deep tax relief.
We render onto Caesar . . .
to some it feels like a grab,
to some it feels like a war tax,
to some–some few—
it is a way to contribute to the common good.
In any case we are haunted
by what we render to Caesar,
by what we may render to you,
by the way we invest our wealth and our lives,
when what you ask is an “easy yoke”:
to do justice
to love mercy
to walk humbly with you.
Give us courage for your easy burden, so to live untaxed lives.
thoughts, prayers & songs: 