The Delicate Balance of Judgment
Every day, in countless moments, we judge. It’s as natural as breathing for most of us. We judge how others dress for Mass, how they raise their children, or even how they worship during praise and worship. But here’s something interesting – the moment someone points out our own faults, we become defensive. We rush to explain ourselves, make excuses, or sometimes even attack the person who dared to judge us.
Jesus speaks clearly about this: “By their fruits you will recognise them.” Yes, we are called to judge – to discern right from wrong, truth from falsehood. But there’s an important difference between judging actions and condemning souls. Only God has the right to condemn.
To judge rightly, we need to look through three different lenses. First, we must look inward at ourselves. This self-judgement is perhaps the hardest but most necessary kind. When we truly examine our own hearts and actions, we often become gentler with others. We start to understand the struggles, the human weaknesses, and the daily battles everyone faces.
Then we need to look at the world around us – our culture, our society, the values being promoted. This isn’t about following the crowd or joining in the latest social media outrage. It’s about understanding our times while staying true to God’s unchanging truth.
Finally, and most importantly, we need to look at everything through God’s eyes – through Scripture, through prayer, through time spent in His presence. The prophet Daniel urged the Israelites to measure themselves against God’s commandments. Not to shame them, but to help them grow in true righteousness. The more we align ourselves with God’s truth, the more we become people of gentleness, understanding and humility.
We often think we’re growing in holiness when we’re actually growing in self-righteousness. It’s a subtle but crucial difference. True holiness enables us to hate sin while deeply empathising with sinners. It helps us see beyond actions to the wounded hearts beneath. It reminds us that we, too, are sinners in need of God’s mercy.
Look at St Paul’s journey. Before his encounter with Christ, he judged others harshly, certain of his own righteousness. But after meeting Jesus, his whole approach to judgment changed. He learned to combine truth with mercy, righteousness with compassion. This same transformation awaits us, especially in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament. The more time we spend with Jesus, the more He shapes our hearts to judge as He judges.
Today, we face three main challenges in judging rightly. First, we often avoid examining our own conscience. We’re quick to spot flaws in others but reluctant to look honestly at ourselves. Second, we tend to confuse people’s actions with their identity. When someone does something wrong, we label them entirely bad, forgetting that each person is more than their worst moments. Third, we sometimes misunderstand God’s final judgment, thinking His mercy means He overlooks everything. But when we stand before God, we’ll encounter both perfect mercy and perfect justice, beautifully united.
The way we judge others today will echo in eternity. When we stand before God, the manner in which we judged others will matter deeply. This isn’t meant to frighten us but to help us grow in wisdom and love. Are we willing to receive correction ourselves? Can we accept constructive criticism as a gift that helps us grow?
Instead of following the crowd or jumping on the latest trend of outrage, we’re called to develop sound judgment – judgment that brings healing rather than harm, that builds up rather than tears down. This kind of judgment doesn’t come naturally. It’s learned in prayer, shaped by mercy, and refined through humility.
True holiness isn’t about feeling superior to others. It’s about standing in God’s presence, aware of both His perfect holiness and His endless mercy. It’s about learning to see others through His eyes – with truth that doesn’t condemn and love that doesn’t compromise.
Let’s judge, then, not to condemn but to help and heal. Let’s judge with hearts that have known failure and experienced forgiveness. Most of all, let’s judge with love, remembering that we too will stand before the God who is both perfectly just and perfectly merciful.