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readoldthingsThe Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 7, Verses 1-2 reads
OK.
I have no idea why this passage is creating such a block in my mind.
Jesus tells us to "judge not, lest we be judged."
On the surface, the meaning is simple enough. He's telling us not to judge-- well, no, he isn't telling us that. He's telling us that if we're going to spend our time judging people, we need to prepare to have the exact same standard applied to ourselves.
Why is that? Is it because God, or one of his angels, is always looking over our shoulder, taking note of everything we do wrong and preparing a fitting punishment.
No, of course not. At its best, that's a helpful metaphor; at its worst, an idiotic fairy tale.
As with everything else, when we engage in judgment, we find ourselves judged automatically.
Just as when we forgave, we were forgiven.
To my mind, this is one of the core components of Jesus's teachings. Whatever we give, we also receive. Not by a special intervention of God, and not necessarily in the future. We receive as we give, at the moment we give-- Forgiveness, justice, meekness, mercy, hatred, anger, judgment, lust--
They're all energies, and whichever energy we choose to participate in will be the energy that manifests in our own lives.
Automatically.
There are many applications of this principle, besides the obvious.
Among them: Is there something that keeps manifesting itself in your life, for good or for ill? Is there some unpleasant thing you keep encountering, despite no effort on your part? I know a woman who reliably gets terrible service nearly every time she goes out to a restaurant. I know a man who keeps finding that people treat him with unprovoked condescension. I know a woman who seems to get everything that she wants, without needing to worry about it.
Each of them is doing something to bring these things into their lives.
What keeps appearing in your life? What would you like to appear, that isn't?
There is more to this verse than that; you could spend a week on it. But I've already done that, and I'd rather post this now, and carry the discussion forward into the rest of the chapter tomorrow. See you then!
1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.
2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
OK.
I have no idea why this passage is creating such a block in my mind.
But it is, which is why you haven't heard form me in a week. I meant to do Matthew 7:1-12. But we're not doing that today. We're going to do Matthew 7:1-2.
And here is what I want to say about it.
Jesus tells us to "judge not, lest we be judged."
On the surface, the meaning is simple enough. He's telling us not to judge-- well, no, he isn't telling us that. He's telling us that if we're going to spend our time judging people, we need to prepare to have the exact same standard applied to ourselves.
Why is that? Is it because God, or one of his angels, is always looking over our shoulder, taking note of everything we do wrong and preparing a fitting punishment.
No, of course not. At its best, that's a helpful metaphor; at its worst, an idiotic fairy tale.
As with everything else, when we engage in judgment, we find ourselves judged automatically.
Just as when we forgave, we were forgiven.
To my mind, this is one of the core components of Jesus's teachings. Whatever we give, we also receive. Not by a special intervention of God, and not necessarily in the future. We receive as we give, at the moment we give-- Forgiveness, justice, meekness, mercy, hatred, anger, judgment, lust--
They're all energies, and whichever energy we choose to participate in will be the energy that manifests in our own lives.
Automatically.
There are many applications of this principle, besides the obvious.
Among them: Is there something that keeps manifesting itself in your life, for good or for ill? Is there some unpleasant thing you keep encountering, despite no effort on your part? I know a woman who reliably gets terrible service nearly every time she goes out to a restaurant. I know a man who keeps finding that people treat him with unprovoked condescension. I know a woman who seems to get everything that she wants, without needing to worry about it.
Each of them is doing something to bring these things into their lives.
What keeps appearing in your life? What would you like to appear, that isn't?
There is more to this verse than that; you could spend a week on it. But I've already done that, and I'd rather post this now, and carry the discussion forward into the rest of the chapter tomorrow. See you then!
no subject
Date: 2021-09-28 02:11 am (UTC)https://www.orthodoxroad.com/judge-not-part-5-stories-from-the-desert/
"There is another story of a monk who lacked discipline. He was not a bad person, but quite lazy and not at all reliable. The other monks were frequently annoyed with him. While this lazy monk was on his death bed, the other brothers came to visit him. They were surprised to see him in such good spirits. “Are you not concerned,” they asked him, “that God’s judgment will come upon you harshly for living such a lax life as a monk?”
He smiled and did not deny that he was far from exemplary, but he had one key defense, “Our Lord said, ‘Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned.’ I have never judged a man for anything he has done. Rather I have looked upon all with simplicity and love.” The brothers were speechless at his response and realized that though they had good works, they had neglected this crucial aspect of the spiritual life. The simple monk died in peace and went to Paradise, and all of the brothers were edified. "
It is more concise than the one I heard a priest tell (it's funnier if you add in various examples of our lazy monk's non-judging antics), but the outline is the same ;)
no subject
Date: 2021-09-30 02:17 am (UTC)I've had some mussing regarding this topic this past year and I found it to apply in the exact ay that you've sketched out. It is the immediate action of judging that turns you into judged. It is a beautiful application of karma because by judging something you are denying yourself of something and one of the points of salvation and enlightenment seem to be to be all inclusive. Of course this doesn't mean hugging the ones you disagree with but I think there is quite a bit of difference between that and holding judgement in your consciousness.
In a way also judgement, which in this case I will differentiate from criticism, is a way of denying yourself of something. Perhaps it is because if we deny ourselves of something then we don't have to see something. I am reminded of the person that judges all the happy people, which does so because if he sees their happiness for what it is then he will see his misery and by not doing so he is denying himself of happiness! One of the basic things that I was taught is to do something you hate as joyfully as you can because if you do, then you will see how silly your visceral likes and dislikes are and thus shed some karma in the process. That doesn't mean we have to be blind and not have preferences, but there is a subtle yet important difference in having a keen conscious sense and an unconscious compulsion, which is more often than not based on carrying the weight of something.
At least that is what this passage means to me.
no subject
Date: 2021-10-05 06:46 pm (UTC)...is very helpful for me, particularly as I'm in the middle of a pile of government-required paperwork, which I (utterly, viscerally) hate!