This was written by my friend Catholic pundit Richard Salbato who passed away a few years ago:
One of the Spiritual Works of Mercy is to "Admonish the sinner." How
can we admonish the sinner, if we do not first judge it to be a sin? We
are not judging the person, but we are judging his actions to be sinful
– not his motives, but his actions.
Truth cannot be
compromised—even if it makes enemies of our relatives. Some people will
not accept the truth and will hate those who preach it. Truth demands
judgment. If we see sin or error, we must call it for what it is.
Be Nice
If
all is equal there can be no value distinctions, only different but
equal assertions that have equal validity. Insisting that we all be
nice to each other does this. This "niceness," of course, is a mask for
obfuscating the truth.
The word, "nice", in this context means a
civility that demands "agreeable" demeanor even at the compromise of
truth. It is better to be agreeable than it is to tell the truth. And
with this value of agreeableness, error goes unchallenged and truth
obfuscated.
Jesus is seen as a 60’s flower-child type person
who is a mild mannered milquetoast, gentle as a lamb, always agreeable
and never harsh. This image of Jesus is a demonic lie. It is a
delusion. It is a delusion because the Scriptural evidence does not
support this image as the "exclusive" way in which Jesus conducted
himself, yet despite the clear record of Scripture, people insist upon
the milquetoast image.
Not So Nice Scripture
Jesus never
compromised truth for niceness and cordiality: Matthew 3, 7, 10,12, and
23 use words like division, swine, cast off, brood of vipers, hypocrite,
etc.
In addition, His apostles preaching His teaching
instructs us to not associate with those calling themselves Christian
but living a life of sin (1 Corinthians 5). Scripture also tells us to
avoid certain people who pretend to be religion but who deny its power
(2 Timothy 3), to shun heretics and divisive people (Titus 3), and even
to hand unrepentant sinners over to Satan (1 Corinthians 5).
All
these things require judgments to be made. When confronted with the
situation that warrants it, the teachings of Jesus fly in the face of
niceness. The teachings of Christ step on toes.
Christ calls us to truth, even when it hurts.
To
know that we are to judge and how we are to judge, we must look to
other passages. In Titus 3:9-11 we read: "perverted and sinful; he is
self-condemned." We don’t condemn him, he condemns himself, but we do
judge him to be divisive beyond tolerance because we tried to admonish
him (judge his behavior and warn him of his sin) twice but he would not
repent.
1 Corinthians 5:9-13 Do not associate with people calling
themselves Christians who are "guilty of immorality or greed, or is an
idolater, reviler, drunkard, or robber—not even to eat with such a one."
Then Paul verse 12 "Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside."
St.
Paul also tells us in 2 Timothy 3:1-9 that we are to avoid people who
are "holding to a form of religion but denying the power of it" (e.g.,
liberals who strip our Church of its sacramental power). Others we are
to avoid include those who are "Lovers of self, lovers of money, proud,
arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,
inhuman, implacable, slanderers, profligates, fierce, haters of good,
treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather
than lovers of God…". How do we avoid them if we do not judge their
actions to be sinful.
And finally, St. Paul tells us in 1
Corinthians 5:1-5 that some people must be excommunicated—completely
removed from fellowship and handed over to Satan. Paul specifically
says, "I have already pronounced judgment in the name of the Lord Jesus
on the man who has done such a thing… you are to deliver this man to
Satan for the destruction of the flesh that his spirit may be saved in
the day of the Lord Jesus."
Objective and fundamental truths are
either true or they are not; they cannot be both true and untrue at the
same time. Thus we must rely not upon our own understanding, but upon
God who understands all: “Do not rely on your own insight
[understanding]. Be not wise in your own eye." —Proverbs 3:5-7 “[God];
he does not regard any who are wise in their own conceit.—Job 37:24;
38:1-5a, 17-18; 38:33; 39:26
O Timothy, guard what has been
entrusted to you. Avoid the godless chatter and contradictions of what
is falsely called knowledge, for by professing it some have missed the
mark as regards the faith —1 Timothy 6:20-21
St. Paul declares:
For
though we live in the world we are not carrying on a worldly war, for
the weapons of our warfare are not worldly but have divine power to
destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every proud obstacle to
the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is
complete. … But we will not boast beyond limit, but will keep to the
limits God has apportioned us…" 2 Corinthians 10:3-6, 13a
St. Paul teaches us:
For
there are many insubordinate men, empty talker and deceivers…they must
be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for
base gain what they have no right to teach... therefore rebuke them
sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, instead of giving heed to
Jewish myths or to commands of men who reject the truth.—Titus 1:13
I
charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus who is to judge
the living and the dead,… preach the word, be urgent in season and out
of season, convince, rebuke, and exhort, be unfailing in patience and in
teaching. For a time is coming when people will not endure sound
teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves
teachers to suit their own likings, and will turn away from listening to
the truth and wander into myths.—2 Timothy 4:2-4 “
Pray an Our Father now for the restoration of the Mass and the Church as well as for the Triumph of the Kingdom of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
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