7th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. (Luke 6:37)
Jesus couldn’t have been more clear. If you want to avoid condemnation, don’t condemn other people.
Let’s say you see a rumpled, grizzled person sleeping on a park bench. You wonder how he got there. You wonder why he isn’t trying to fix his life. You begin to wish he weren’t there. You feel a kind of aversion to him, and you take a wide berth around him as you walk by. Jesus says, “Don’t condemn him.”
Or you are listening to the news when a story about a politician you don’t like comes on. You feel your shoulders tighten, and you think of all the ways this person is corrupt and misguided. You recall the evil policies he or she has supported, and you feel disgust for this person. Jesus says, “Don’t condemn.”
Or you learn of a teenager who is pregnant out of wedlock. You begin to think of how her parents must have failed in their job. Unkind labels for this young woman pop into your head, and you think of how you would never let yourself fall into such a horrible sin. Jesus says, “Don’t condemn her.”
To the best of your ability, put aside harsh judgments and condemning thoughts. If not for the other person’s sake, then for your own sake. Try to rise above the realm of judgment, where everyone gets what’s coming to them—because everyone in that realm will be judged harshly. Even you.
Instead, step into the realm of God’s mercy. Move into the realm where everyone is invited to forgiveness and treated with love, dignity, and generosity. Even you. Give the gift of forgiveness, and it will be given to you. Give the gift of a second chance—or a third or fourth or hundredth—and it will be given to you. Give the gift of the benefit of the doubt, and it will be given to you.
Even if you don’t want to give, do it anyway. Jesus commands it, and he promises eternal rewards to those who do.
“Lord, help me to be merciful as you are merciful.”
