INTRODUCTION TO THE DEVOUT LIFE

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PART III, Chapter 28: Rash Judgments

Do not judge that you will not be judged, says our Saviour, do not condemn and you will not be condemned (Lk. 6:37). No, says the Apostle, do not judge before the time till the Lord who will reveal the secrets of darkness and will manifest the counsels of the hearts comes (1 Cor. 4:5). How displeasing to God are rash judgements!

The judgements of the children of men are rash because they are not judges of one another. In judging they take over the function of our Lord. They are rash because the principal malice of sin depends on the intention and consent of the heart which is a secret hidden in darkness for us. They are rash because each one has enough to do in judging oneself without attempting to judge one’s neighbour. So that we ourselves may not be judged, we should not judge others but judge ourselves. While our Lord forbids the one, the Apostle commands the other saying: If we judge ourselves we will not be judged (1 Cor. 11:31). But, my God, we do exactly the opposite. Indeed, we do not stop doing what is forbidden to us by judging our neighbour at every turn, and never do what is enjoined on us – to judge ourselves.

We must remedy rash judgements starting with the causes of their origin. There are some hearts which are harsh, bitter and hard by their nature. They convey the same harshness and bitterness to everything they receive. Thus they convert judgement into wormwood as the Prophet says (Amos 6:13), by never judging their fellow men except with extreme severity and harshness. They are in great need of being treated by a good spiritual physician. It is difficult to overcome this bitterness of heart since it is natural to them. Although it is not a sin in itself but an imperfection yet it is quite dangerous because it introduces rash judgements and slander into the heart and make them reign there. Some judge rashly not from bitterness but from pride thinking that according to the measure in which they lower the honour of another, they raise their own. Being arrogant and presumptuous persons, they admire themselves and place themselves very high in their own esteem. Hence they look down on all the others as mean and low: I am not like the rest of men, said the foolish Pharisee (Lk. 18:11).

Some do not have this noticeable pride but only a certain self-satisfaction in thinking over the defects of others. By this, they intend to relish and make others appreciate the opposite virtue with which they imagine themselves to be endowed. This self-satisfaction is so secret and unnoticeable that if we do not have good insight we are unable to discover it. Those who are affected by it do not recognize it if it is not pointed out to them.

Some to flatter themselves or to excuse themselves, and to lighten the guilt feelings of their consciences, judge very willingly that others are corrupted by the same vices to which they are attached or some other sin equally great. They believe that the multitude of offenders will make their sins less blameworthy.

Several persons indulge in rash judgements for the sole pleasure they take in philosophising and guessing the morals and moods of persons by way of exercising their intelligence. Unfortunately, if sometimes they find truth in their judgements, their rashness and desire to continue in it increase to such an extent that it is quite difficult to turn them away from it.

Others judge due to their emotions. They always think well of what they love, and always ill of what they hate. An exception is an astonishing yet real case in which excess of love arouses them to judge badly what they love. This is a monstrous effect which comes also from an impure, imperfect, troubled an sick love which is jealousy. As everyone knows it condemns persons loved as guilty of infidelity and adultery for a simple look or for the least smile in the world. Finally, fear, ambition and such weakness of the mind often contribute very much to cause suspicion and rash judgement.

But what are the remedies? Those who drink the juice of the herb called ophiusa of Ethiopia imagine that they see everywhere serpents and terrifying things[1]. Those who have swallowed pride, envy, ambition, hatred see nothing which they do not find evil or discreditable. The former must take the palm wine in order to be cured of it. I suggest the same kind of remedy for the latter. Drink as much as you can of the sacred wine of charity. It will free you from these evil moods which cause you to make distorted judgements. Charity is afraid of meeting evil, so far is it from going in search of it. When charity meets with evil, it turns away its face from it and takes no notice of it. Even it closes its eyes before seeing it at the first rumour of evil it hears. Then it believes by aholy simplicity that it was not the evil but some shade or phantom of evil. If, by force, it recognizes that it is evil itself, it turns away from it immediately and tries to forget its form. Charity is the great remedy for all evils but particularly for rash judgements.

Everything appears yellow to the one who is suffering from jaundice, especially to those who have severe jaundice. It is said that to heal this sickness, they must keep celandine[2] under the soles of their feet. Indeed this sin of rash judgement is a spiritual jaundice which makes all things appear evil to the eyes of those who suffer from it. Those who wish to be cured of it ought to put the remedies not on the eyes, not on the understanding but on the affections which form so to say our feet. If your affections are gentle, your judgements will be gentle. If they are charitable, your judgement will be the same.

I give you three praiseworthy examples. Isaac had said that Rebecca was his sister. Abimelech saw that he was playing with her, that is, he was caressing her tenderly, and immediately he judged that she was his wife (Gen. 26:7-9). A malicious man would rather have judged that she was a prostitute of incestuous if she were his sister. But Abimelech followed the most charitable opinion that he could form about such an action. We must always do the same, Philothea, judging in favour of our neighbour as far as it is possible. If an action were to have a hundred faces we must look at the most beautiful. Our Lady was with child and St. Joseph saw it clearly. Since he saw her entirely holy on the one hand, pure, all angelic, he could not believe that she had conceived in an unlawful manner. While he decided to leave her, he also left the judgement to God. Though the evidence was quite strong for him to form an evil opinion of this Virgin, he never wished to judge her. But why? Because says the Spirit of God, he was a just man (Mt. 1:19).

The just man, when he cannot excuse either the fact or the intention of a person whom he knew earlier to be good, still does not want to judge. Instead, he gets rid of it from his mind and leaves the judgement to God. The crucified Saviour being unable to excuse the sin of those who crucified him at least lessened the malice by pleading their ignorance (Lk. 23:34). When we cannot excuse the sin let us make it at least worthy of compassion, by attributing to it the most valid cause the person may have had for doing it like ignorance or infirmity.

Can we judge our neighbour? No, indeed, never. It is God, Philothea, who judges criminals in courts of justice. It is true that he avails himself of the voice of magistrates to make himself intelligible to us. They are his spokesmen and interpreters. As they are his oracles, they should declare only what they have learned from him. If they do otherwise following their own emotions, then truly it is they who judge and as a consequence, they will be judged. For it is forbidden to men, as men to judge others.

To see or know a thing is not to pass judgement on it. For, the judgement, at least, according to the text of Scripture presupposes some difficulty, little or great, true or apparent which must be settled. Hence Scripture says that those who do not believe are already judged (Jn. 3:18) because there is no doubt whatever about their condemnation. Then is it a sin to doubt about our neighbour? No. for it is not forbidden to doubt but to judge. All the same, we are not allowed either to doubt or to suspect our neighbour except with strict accuracy in so far as reasons and evidence force us to doubt. Otherwise doubts and suspicions are rash. Had a malicious person seen Jacob when he kissed Rachel at the well (Gen. 29:11) or had seen Rebecca accept bracelets and ear-rings from Eliezer, a man unknown in that country (Gen. 24:22), he would certainly have thought evil of these two models of chastity but without reason and basis. When an action is but itself indifferent, it is a rash suspicion to draw a bad conclusion from it unless several circumstances strengthen the evidence. It is also a rash judgement to criticize a person concluding from a single action. Later I will speak about this more clearly.

Finally those who foster a delicate conscience are rarely liable to rash judgement. Bees seeing mist or cloudy weather go back to their hives to prepare honey. So too, the thoughts of good persons do not judge about confused objects or hazy actions of neighbours. Rather, to avoid falling into such occasions, they withdraw themselves into their hearts to prepare there good resolutions for their own improvement. It is the occupation of an idle person to be busy with scrutinizing the life of another.

I make an exception of those who have charge of others whether in the family or in the state. For a great part of their responsibility consists in looking into and watching over the functions of others. Let them accomplish their duty with love. Beyond this, let them abide in themselves for their own improvement.

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[1] Pliny. The name of the herb comes from the Greek word ophis [ofis], meaning serpent.

[2] A small wild plant with yellow flowers.

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