Tuesday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time (September 4, 2018): The difference between judging and judgmentalism

What’s the difference between scrutinizing everything (as in today’s first reading) and being judgmental, which, as we know, Jesus firmly described as a sin? St. Paul says here that “the one who is spiritual can judge everything.”

The difference is between a what and a who. In observing a what — a situation, an idea, a behavior — the Holy Spirit scrutinizes it, and if we’re listening to God, we hear his opinion about it. But how do we know we’re not listening to our own opinions, which can be biased because of our limited perceptions and which have been trained by the limited perspectives of others and the foolishness of the world?

A good relationship with the Holy Spirit is essential for good listening. The more we rely on Jesus, trusting him more than we trust ourselves, the more open our spirits are to the promptings of his Spirit.

In observing a who, we err by making conclusions, because we do not fully know the other’s heart and motive and level of accountability — only God does; only God can serve as The Judge. We can correctly identify when people are sinning, but we can only make assumptions about why, how much they understand, and how much they can be held accountable. Assumptions can never be trusted.

Even when our assumptions are correct, we’re not free to judge the sinner, because a judge is one who has the authority to impose sentence. Only God has that authority, for only God is free of sin. Remember what Jesus told the guys who wanted to stone the adulterous woman: Who can cast the first stone?

Today’s responsorial Psalm tells us how God serves as Judge (are we like this?): gracious and merciful, slow to anger, great in kindness, good to the sinner, etc. We’re quick to condemn. We get frustrated when people don’t get the punishment they deserve. And yet, how grateful we are that God does not condemn us so quickly! Ahhh, the sin of hypocrisy rears its ugly face. Judgmentalism leads to one sin after another.

As Christians who are devoted to uniting ourselves to Christ, we have the mind of Christ, but let’s remember what is uppermost in Christ’s mind: “I did not come to the world to condemn it, but to save it.” We become obstacles in his way when we judge people. Redemption and justice only occur when we let Jesus decide how to make good come from every evil.

And by the way, you are a “who” too, so quit condemning yourself! Turn instead to God’s mercy and let Jesus redeem you from whatever you’ve done wrong.

Today’s Prayer:

May the authority of Your liberating love, which You gave to humanity, fill my being and the hearts of those who are seeking You, beloved Lord! Amen.

© 2018 by Terry A. Modica