As a Christian, I struggle with judgment. I try really hard to not judge people based on appearance and have pretty much gotten over my biases about that. Still, occasionally, I catch myself looking at someone and making a snap judgment about who I think they are. We are all works in progress, aren’t we? Judging behavior is a little clearer but can still be wrong. For example, someone driving like a maniac could be drunk or a jerk or trying desperately to get someone to the hospital. Behavior isn’t always easy to judge because we almost never know the circumstances that led up to it.
Words are easier to judge since we all use them in mostly the same ways. That, however, can also be a slippery slope. For example, at choir practice in a church I pastored long, long ago, I made a joke about goosing one of the sopranos so she could get a high note. For me, that word meant to poke someone in the side, but to people in that area, it had a sexual connotation. To say you are losing your religion in the South means something different from most other parts of the country. Still, most words can be judged at face value; they can also be easily misconstrued.
What about someone who does really bad things? Is it safe to say that Ted Bundy was evil? That is a judgment we could all agree on, regardless of whether his childhood was good or bad. Can we say that someone is objectively bad without incurring judgment from God? Jesus never told His disciples they weren’t allowed to judge; Jesus told them that they would be judged in the same way they judged others. John the Baptist called some of the people coming for baptism a “brood of vipers”, yet he, Jesus said, was still a part of the Kingdom of God. Was Richard Nixon objectively bad for ordering the Watergate break-in? Were the insurrectionists looking to hang VP Pence objectively bad? Are we cowards when we don’t point out evil behavior?
Lucky for all of us that I am not in charge of judgment; none of us, including me, would probably make the cut (okay – my wife would). Still, if I see someone lurking around (talk about a judgment word!) a school for no apparent reason, I will call the police. The same will happen if I see someone who is not law enforcement walking around with a gun. We all make judgment calls every day, so we all need to be careful in that process. Once we do believe someone is objectively bad, it is up to us to balance that person with goodness. Because someone’s well-being might literally depend on it. We need to take the chance if it saves someone’s life.
Prayer – Holy God, You have given us brains to think and reason with; may our thoughts and actions be in line with Your, and our neighbor’s needs. Amen.
Today’s art is “Last Judgment” by Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni.