Who am I to judge?

Our society is often very judgmental. If you are not wearing the “right” clothes or driving the “right” car, you don’t belong in certain neighborhoods. Homeless people should “just get a job”. Members of the opposite political party are “misguided idiots”. Addictions are “choices not illnesses”. The list goes on and on.

This is not how Jesus wants us to live. In today’s gospel, we hear, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone…” We are all sinners. Before we cast judgments (which can cause just as much pain as casting stones), we need to look inward. We need to ask God’s forgiveness for our own sins. We need to ask God for the grace to forgive others. This is an ongoing, life-long task. And as our God is merciful with us, we need to be merciful with others.

So the next time we feel the need to make a judgment in the court of public opinion, let’s just stop. Take a moment to remember that we have no authority to judge someone else simply because they sin differently than we do. That authority belongs to God alone. Think of the old saying, “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.”