Fr. Albert
St. Peter Catholic Church, New Iberia
This past week marked the one-year anniversary of Mother Teresa being canonized, when she was declared to be St. Teresa of Caclutta. One of her celebrated quotes about the faith comes to mind now. She once said, “If you judge people, you have no time to love them.” It’s clear, to the point, and challenging. It is also true. So, what do we make of Ezekiel? Ezekiel is told that, if he does not correct or speak against a “wicked” person, then he will pay the penalty.
For that matter, what do we do with what Jesus says? Not only does he say to challenge people for their sins, but he tells us to keep pushing to a point that we would consider obnoxious. Correct them individually, then in a group, and then publicly in the Church. Perhaps most surprising of all, Jesus commands that we kick people out of the Church, out of our community if they do not repent. He’s talking about excommunication. How is that not judging people? How is that love?
Because there are different kinds of judgment: judgment that comes from pride and hatred versus judgment that comes from love. There is a judgment of a person’s soul and there is judgment of that person’s action. What Ezekiel is saying and what Jesus himself teaches is that you must be willing to judge a person’s actions if you love them. Still, the trick remains: how do you love a person and “correct” them at the same time? Here are a few guidelines.
First of all, is the person we’re talking about a fellow Christian? We are called to correct our brothers in the Lord. When it’s a non-believer, we practice evangelization, which is different. The second thing is this: are you sure what they did is wrong? Is it a sin? Every Catholic has the responsibility to form their conscience – to train your mind to recognize good and evil. This is a life-long task for your own benefit. It also enables you to quickly recognize right and wrong actions in the people you love and to know the difference between a small sin and a serious one. It is pointless to judge a person’s every decision, but we can say that the more serious the sin, the more important it is to challenge them to repent.
Third, what is your own motivation? When calling out somebody on their sinfulness, it is easy to fall into a kind of vengefulness. Do you actually want them to repent or do you just want the satisfaction of being right? Do you love them enough to want them to get to heaven or are you just annoyed enough to take a shot at them? Jesus is clear that our goal is to “win over” our brother. If we can get our own attitude and motivation in line with that, it will be much easier to be gentle and impartial. The practical way to develop our own motivation is to pray for them. To really spend time seeking God’s grace on their behalf. It is wise even to offer some kind of fasting on their behalf. If you’re willing to spend time and even suffer a little for their benefit, you are more likely to be “on their side” when you correct them rather than becoming an angry accuser.
Fourth, is it your place to say something? If they offended you directly, then yes, you should speak to them as a fellow believer. Are they someone you are responsible for? A child, a student, a godchild? We could even add close friends and relatives – people we have some kind of close relationship to. Refer to the ancient question from Cain and Abel “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
This is why some priests and bishops challenge people so often. We are charged with this responsibility just as Ezekiel, and the same penalty applies to us as applied to him. Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel and woe to me if I do not attempt to guide the people of St. Peter’s away from sin and toward the truth. Always in love and with kindness, but that is the task Fr. Blanda and I have – the task that all priests and bishops have. Nonetheless, every Christian bears some responsibility for their fellow Christians and especially for those close to them, those under their care, or, in some cases, when the Holy Spirit specially prompts us to speak up.
The last thing is to actually follow the process that Jesus gives. It is tempting to “vent” our frustrations to friends and to publicize what someone did to you. If we are not careful, that venting can easily turn into gossip. It is one thing to seek advice from a trusted spiritual guide, it is an entirely different thing to tell three people at once how mad you are at so-and-so who did such-and-such to you.
The first step must be to address the issue one-on-one and with a real sense of privacy. Only then can we have recourse to getting other Christians involved. And only after that is it appropriate to “taddle” on them to the Church hierarchy. It is wrong to immediately “go over the head” of a person and get them in trouble with their superior if you have not taken those first two steps. That wisdom applies to the workplace, but especially in the Church. Do you immediately go to the priest when a volunteer or teacher upsets you? Do you immediately call the bishop when a priest upsets you? That is not Christian and it is usually counter-productive.
The goal is simple: repentance. Each of us must never stop repenting of our sins and growing in holiness. To proclaim the Gospel is to call others to repent of their sins. If a Catholic refuses to repent even after all of these steps are followed, then it is simple honesty to say “you are not in communion with us.” Jesus says to treat them as gentiles and tax-collectors. That means we treat them more like people who still need to convert than like brothers in the Lord. It is still love, but closer to love of enemy than to love of friend.
Ezekiel and Jesus are clear: “live and let live” is not how Christians should treat other Christians. We do not need to nitpick or micromanage, but serious sins have to be addressed for their own good and for the good of the whole Church. We do that by following the Lord’s own advice. Is it a serious sin? Do you have the right motive? Do you love the sinner but hate the sin? Are you responsible for or close to this person? Then go to them as a brother or sister in the Lord. Do not rebuke them because you are judging them, but correct them precisely because you have taken the time to love them. And when a fellow Christian comes to you for the same reason, be open to hearing the voice of the Lord in what they say. Try to hear them even if they say it imperfectly or with less-than-pure motives. If today you hear the voice of the Lord, harden not your hearts.