“Wherefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest. For wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself. For thou dost the same things which thou judgest. For we know that the judgement of God is, according to truth, against them that do such things.”
St. Paul then sternly admonishes against judgement of one’s neighbor: “Judge not, that you may not be judged” (Matthew 7:1). He is writing specifically to the Jews in Rome, that they should not condemn the Gentiles for their former way of life, when Israel came from great depths as well. However, for your sake, it is naturally ingrained on the heart to mind one’s own affairs and improve oneself, why then does the heart so incline to speak against the faults of another? Ah, how sweet the remedy to it though! For the human heart is made for beauty, it is drawn to what is beautiful, and to look at the shortcomings of others fills your mind with ugliness. Thus, in judging another, you expose yourself to ugly spiritual patterns, making your soul ugly in the process, for in both body and soul, you only get out what you have put in. However, to “let each esteem others better than themselves” (Philippians 2:3) is to look with merciful eyes on the spiritual loveliness of another, letting what is bitter be cast aside for the positive qualities of others. There is good in everyone, if you have an eye to see it, and to seek the beautiful in your neighbor’s soul allows you to walk through life as if you were in the greatest of art museums, in awe of the magnificent creations around you, each with their own uniqueness and sublimity. If necessity calls for correction, it is doing this with gentleness and a humble heart, realizing that without God’s grace, you could have fallen into equally if not worse vices than the one being corrected: “Thou hast brought forth, O Lord, my soul from hell: thou hast saved me from them that go down into the pit” (Psalm 29:4). In this your eyes may be loving, compassionate, and merciful. To harbor a cruel heart is to reject God’s love for others, which is contrary to His ways. Jesus was divinely compassionate upon those that forsook their lusts for love: “Many sins are forgiven her, because she hath loved much” (Luke 7:47) and stern on those that judged from a malicious heart: “Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites; because you tithe mint, and anise, and cummin, and have left the weightier things of the law; judgement, and mercy, and faith. These things you ought to have done, and not to leave those undone. Blind guides, who strain out a gnat, and swallow a camel” (Matthew 23:23-24). All are sinners! There is no great height on which to look down on others, but all are on the same footing. You are a sinner that is radically loved, brought out of your ways by mercy alone, and now get to live a life of love. It is the dignity of your Christian calling, then, to fill your eyes with love towards others. Asking Christ for such eyes is a prayer that He will answer: “And Jesus answering, said to him: ‘What wilt thou that I should do to thee?’ And the blind man said to him: Rabboni, that I may see.’ And Jesus saith to him: ‘Go thy way, thy faith hath made thee whole’” (Mark 10:51-52).