Judging Others

There are many stories of the desert fathers and mothers which feature demons. Today’s story includes an angel.

When Isaac of Thebaid visited the community, he saw that one of the brothers was sinful, and passed sentence on him. But when he was returning to his cell in the desert, the angel of the Lord came and stood in front of the door of his cell and said “I will not let you go in.” He asked, “Why not?” The angel of the Lord replied, “God sent me to ask you, “Where do you tell Me to send that sinful brother whom you sentenced?” At once Isaac repented, saying, “I have sinned, forgive me.’ The angel said, “Get up, God has forgiven you. In future take care to Judge no man before God has judged him.”

Resisting the urge to judge others is one of the hardest instructions we are given by Jesus. Judging is not our job, but most of us do it anyway. It’s a great sport, a fun way to pass the time, since we feel like we are always right. The problem is that judging is an impossible task to do well. None of us can see into the minds of others to know their true intentions. None of us knows another’s past so well that we can judge whether their past traumas and history have impelled them to act in this way. Are we so sure we could act differently with their past? How would we know? And what of the future? Perhaps next week this sinning person will start to turn around ( the meaning of repent) and start down a better road. The Apostle Paul persecuted Christians before his conversion. Christianity is full of sinful people whose lives were turned around. 

We poor mortals lack the insight to accurately judge anyone, even ourselves. So, Christ asks that we not bother. Let’s deal with our own stuff - let God worry about other people. This is a gift, a way of simplifying our lives. One less thing to worry about, whether you live in the desert, or in a crowd. Peace.

-Rev. Stephen Milton, Lawrence Park Community Church, Toronto

Quotation Source: The Desert Fathers: Sayings of the Early Christian Monks, (London, 2003),p.84. 

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