He draws on this experience to teach us about the all-too-human tendency to judge others harshly. It’s part of the human condition to see more readily what’s wrong with others (the splinter) before addressing issues in our own lives (the plank). Why is this? Is it insecurity, low self-esteem, boredom or even just plain old envy or malice? God knows we all do it frequently, clergy and laity alike.
St Teresa of Calcutta said: ‘If you judge people, you have no time to love them.’ Furthermore, Thomas à Kempis stated, ‘Be not angry that you cannot make others as you would wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.’
Jesus encourages us to first examine our own lives before we judge anyone else. The Christian way is to put God’s spotlight on yourself before you judge someone else. A great mantra to help us with this is: ‘There but for the grace of God go I.’ If we lived like this, we would usher in a spiritual revolution, both in our own lives and in our parishes and wider society. We would gossip less, criticize less and condemn less, and have a better understanding that we are all fallen, wounded and prone to darkness, sin and confusion. Some will protest that we need to judge and discern people and situations – how else can we help? Apart from the self-righteousness of this view, it’s wrong because it presumes, we know how and what God thinks. God’s thinking is as far away for our thinking as the east is from the west. We should practice not judging. The next time you come across a story about someone’s fall (through any human weakness), instead of judging them, pray for them; offer them up to God’s mercy and love. When we think and act like this, we think and act like the Father.
