All in the timing
The Very Rev Dr John Chalmers reflects on death, loss and the importance of signs.
In 1789, speaking about the new United States Constitution, Benjamin Franklin said, “our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes”.
In this last year, Franklin’s vision of the permanency of American democracy has been tested to the limits but his understanding of both death and taxes remains a pretty solid truth.
In these days of extraordinary public borrowing and spending, it is tempting to write an article about the moral propriety of paying our taxes and there is a particularly rich theme around the need to understand that taxation, as it applies to humble individuals or major corporations, should be seen as a contribution to the common good rather than some kind of necessary evil. Given that the Bible has much more to say about money than it does about most other topics –a meditation on the relationship we have with our purses and wallets will no doubt feature soon enough. However, with Easter in view this is an opportunity to think about how we understand the first of Franklin’s certainties – death.