Apparently tax collectors, back in the day, were pretty unscrupulous characters, who had no qualms with taking a nice chunk of pie for themselves as they collected for the government. In the Bible they’re even relegated to their own category of wickedness when the religious elite, the Pharisees, criticized Jesus for eating with tax collectors and sinners. The really cool thing is, Jesus never shied away from tax collectors. “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s,” he told his disciples (Mark 12:17), and on at least two occasions he invited himself to dine with a tax collector, in their home, with all their friends (Matthew 9:10, Luke 19:5-7). He…