Judge Not Lest Ye Be Judged
There's a poor understanding of that phrase. I've never read the Bible, so I can't really say why. I can only tell you that for every person who uses that phrase to shame hateful people, there's another person who will use it to shame them.
From what I understand, the passage meant that you have to examine your own sins so that you can be a bit more objective when you judge. Because let's face it. You have to make judgment calls all the time, and trying to judge without judging is confusing and difficult. We're human beings, and it's part of what we do.
But the Bible also says to pass judgment on the sin, not the sinner. They say that only God (Jesus, but I used God because Jesus is not God; he was just a man who happened to be pretty tits) can judge whether or not a person is saved. That men may only judge sins based on the word of the Bible.
But of course, if we really followed that, then everything that extreme right-wing Christians do would be utterly useless and irrelevant, and if there's one thing is far-right nutjob hates, it's acknowledging that he's irrelevant. Holding up signs that say "GOD HATES FAGS" is irrelevant. Whether he hates fags or not isn't really up to you. Especially if the sin of faggotry get's washed away by being a Christian (as all sins apparently do; which is something that I guess I can accept).
So maybe I just get caught up in semantics. Maybe they're not saying that God hates the person. Maybe they really are just saying God hates that some dudes like a little dick in their diet. Maybe when they kill gay kids, they're just trying to help them wash the lecherous sins away. But is it really any of their business to judge that I'm a sinner? We're all sinners. What difference does you adding a little hate into the mix make besides being a big fat downer on top of it all?
1 comments:
I think the phrase means to Christians that they WILL be judged (harshly) on the day of atonement, therefore they should not take it upon themselves to judge others (because they will have their day of judgement too). Or possibly, be careful about your judgements because you will also be judged accordingly.
It is blasphemous for Christians or Muslims or Jews to judge homosexuality. It is against the tenents of their faith whether they know it or not. I've often wondered why , especially for Christians (since that is the tradition with which I am most familiar) are so harsh specifically about being gay. I wonder if it is because it is the "forbidden fruit" that is just out of reach but that is intriguing to them. Maybe it used to be sex in general that held that position, until our society became more relaxed with sex, thus turning attention directly to homosexuality.
In any case, I do know that there are wonderful folks who have moved beyond the judgement, who choose to be Christian or whatever religion they want, and lead faithful, lovely lives. See "Join the Living" for an example of this. My friend Carol and her partner are Christian ministers. They are two of the most genuine people of faith I know.
Post a Comment