The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today resonate with our experiences of being quick to rush to judgement as we miss or ignore the prompting of the Spirit to be open to mercy and compassion for those in need.
The reading from the Second Book of Kings outlines the circumstances under which Israel is carried captive to Assyria.
* [17:6–41] This brief section is the Deuteronomistic historian’s theological reflection on the causes and aftermath of Assyria’s conquest of the Northern Kingdom. The text contrasts the Israelites, who were deported (v. 6) because they abandoned the worship of the Lord (vv. 7–23), with the foreigners who were brought into the land (v. 24) and undertook, however imperfectly, to worship the Lord alongside their own traditional deities (vv. 25–34a). The last verses recapitulate the apostasy of the Israelites (vv. 34b–40) and the syncretism of the foreigners (v. 41). This is a deliberately disparaging, and not wholly accurate, account of the origin of the Samaritans; it reflects the hostility the Judahites continued to hold toward the inhabitants of the northern territories. (2 Kings, CHAPTER 17, n.d.)
Psalm 60 is a prayer for national victory after defeat.
* [Psalm 60] The community complains that God has let the enemy win the battle (Ps 60:3–5) and asks for an assurance of victory (Ps 60:6–7). In the oracle God affirms ownership of the land; the invasion of other nations is not permanent and will be reversed ultimately (Ps 60:8–10). With renewed confidence, the community resolves to fight again (Ps 60:11). The opening lament is picked up again (Ps 60:12), but this time with new awareness of God’s power and human limitation. (Psalms, PSALM 60, n.d.)
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus warns about judging others.
* [7:5] Hypocrite: the designation previously given to the scribes and Pharisees is here given to the Christian disciple who is concerned with the faults of another and ignores his own more serious offences. (Matthew, CHAPTER 7, n.d.)
Barbara Dilly comments that Jesus’ message for us today challenges us to not just to ignore the faults of others, but to first engage in self-reflection of our own sins. That is demanding work. But if we do that honestly, and try to resolve them, she thinks we might even be able to lovingly help others to resolve their own sins as well. It seems to her that a healthy Christian community is a place where we can all learn to engage in deep self-reflection of our own sins as we lovingly stand in solidarity with and learn to forgive each other.
Unfortunately, our larger society is not ready for this right now. There is too much self-righteousness on the part of people who pass judgment on others without any compassion for them. Jesus clearly warns us against that sort of behavior. I pray today that Christians can model self-examination and forgiveness for others in solidarity with them as we work together to create hope for our nation and the world. (Creighton U. Daily Reflection, n.d.)
Don Schwager quotes “Judge from justice, forgive from grace,” by Ephrem the Syrian, 306-373 A.D.
"Do not judge, that is, unjustly, so that you may not be judged, with regard to injustice. With the judgment that you judge shall you be judged (Matthew 7:2). This is like the phrase 'Forgive, and it will be forgiven you.' For once someone has judged in accordance with justice, he should forgive in accordance with grace, so that when he himself is judged in accordance with justice, he may be worthy of forgiveness through grace. Alternatively, it was on account of the judges, those who seek vengeance for themselves, that he said, 'Do not condemn.' That is, do not seek vengeance for yourselves. Or, do not judge, from appearances and opinion and then condemn, but admonish and advise." (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON TATIAN'S DIATESSARON 6.18B) (Schwager, 2020)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Matthew 7:1-5 comments that Jesus is giving us a choice. When we are tempted to judge someone, we can decide to step closer to them. Instead of choosing separation, we can ask the Spirit to help us find connection. We might just find that connection by recognizing the “beam” in our own eye (Matthew 7:5). Do they have a bad habit? We probably have some too. Did they offend us? Surely, we’ve offended people! Did they make bad choices? Who knows? We might have acted the same way in their shoes.
This is not just about redirecting the judgment to focus on ourselves; it’s about recognizing our common humanity. When we realize that we all fall short in one way or another, we discover that we can relate and even empathize with the person we are tempted to judge. Instead of cutting off the relationship, we can open the door to compassion and love. We need one another. Let’s not let judgments separate us. “Holy Spirit, help me not to judge anyone today.” (Meditation on Matthew 7:1-5, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler notes that the deportation to the northern kingdom did not include the poor people and the deportees were replaced with a pagan population. Is it possible that the initial deportees from the northern kingdom were able to unite with the exiles from Judah in a later deportation? Friar Jude reminds us to consider our own conscience to convert our own hearts prior to assisting in the conversion of others.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that emotional sobriety is found when we experience life from our True Self. There is something in us that is not touched by coming and going, by up and down, by for or against, by totally right or totally wrong. This part of us is patient with both goodness and evil, exactly as God is; it does not rush to judgement or demand closure now. Rather, it stands vigilant and patient in the tragic gap that almost every moment offers. Enneagram teacher Russ Hudson, writes of the importance of presence.
Most of my spiritual journey has been about learning how to be present and, from that grounding in presence, learning how to allow love to be what moves me. . . . Presence seems to be something received, that comes to us through a kind of willingness more than through some forceful effort. We come to understand that our will does not operate quite as we might imagine. There is an element of grace, of something miraculous arising in us which gives us the capacity to be awake to our experience. This is hard enough when conditions are favorable—when we are relaxed and not particularly stressed about anything. However, when powerful emotions arise, it is generally much more difficult to find a ground in us that can be compassionately awake with what we are feeling. . . . (Rohr, 2020)
Contemplation and self reflection are practices which open us to the Spirit that directs us to see the log in our own eye as we encounter situations that involve understanding the actions of others.
References
Creighton U. Daily Reflection. (n.d.). Online Ministries. Retrieved June 20, 2022, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/062022.html
Matthew, CHAPTER 7. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved June 20, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/matthew/7?1
Meditation on Matthew 7:1-5. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved June 20, 2022, from https://wau.org/meditations/2022/06/20/414731/
Psalms, PSALM 60. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved June 20, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/60?3
Rohr, R. (2020, April 17). A Riverbed of Mercy. Daily Meditations Archive: 2022. Retrieved June 20, 2022, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/a-riverbed-of-mercy-2022-06-20/
Schwager, D. (2020, April 17). First Take the Log out of Your Own Eye. Daily Scripture net. Retrieved June 20, 2022, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2022&date=jun20
2 Kings, CHAPTER 17. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved June 20, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/2kings/17?5
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