On being good

Today's gospel (Luke 6:36-38) might seem on the one hand to offer us an opportunity to do something nice in the modern sense of that word. Be compassionate. Do not judge. Do not condemn. Who could object to such commands as these?

The challenge is of course somewhat different depending on who we are. As people of faith, we are called to believe in the mysteries of God and in the wisdom of the teachings of Jesus, things the modern world might find not so nice. But this is why judging can be so difficult to avoid. We feel like we owe it to the profession of our faith to cast judgement. We feel that we cannot be true to our principles if we do not condemn.

These instincts are in fact good (owing something to our profession of faith and being true to our principles) but they lead us to the wrong conclusions because they are not sufficient. First, we cannot live them truly without humility, and humility requires us to acknowledge that there may be circumstances we are not aware of, especially in matters that do not fall under our responsibility. Second, we must distinguish between judgement and judgement. The kind of judgement that Jesus is talking about here is the one that weighs up the soul of another person and pronounces sentence as it were, arrogating to itself a function that belongs to God, the keeper of consciences. But that is not the only kind of judgement. Jesus’ command most certainly does not require us to stick our head in the ground, to pretend that evil is good, or that someone cannot have done evil just because they happen to hold a certain role or office. We now know too much about the evil consequences of such "non-judgementalism". Nor does Jesus' command mean we should refrain from lamenting the effects of actions that are wicked in themselves (like gossip), even if their author did them inadvertently. Not judging does not preclude the possibility that we have to speak the truth about things. Prudence may require that we hold back but not love. Love requires us to go on; to contend with the evil done, even while refraining from condemning the evil doer. Ultimately we might recall this piece of wisdom: we are called to be like the saints - tough on principles but easy on people; not like the devil - easy on principles but hard on people. Too often, we are tempted to be easy on principles and on people. But that is a religion for nice people with nice feelings; not for the likes of those who aspire to follow a Saviour who overturns the tables of money lenders and calls Pharisees whitened sepulchres!

In a way this brings us to the second part of the gospel. In the first sentence Jesus had required us to be as compassionate as our Father is. This point of comparison underpins all the more the command that Jesus now delivers: to give and to give freely in full measure like our Father in heaven who is goodness itself. When the medieval scholastic theologians discussed the meaning of goodness, they observed that it is in the nature of goodness to share itself. Goodness does not hold back. Goodness pours itself forth. Goodness aspires to be diffused all around. Perhaps the last element of this goodness is that it must not count the cost:

My candle burns at both ends,

It will not last the night,

But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends,

It gives a lovely light.

Edna Saint Vincent's words were not meant to be a commentary on the gospel, but they very much are. 

How we want our goodness and our giving to be acknowledged, and it will be - but by God! We should not demand our own wages from others. We should not let our right hand know what our left hand is doing. When we do, we turn ourselves into employees who offer their services only in return for something. We should give not to the point of exhaustion (or resentment), but to the measure of joy. For it is in giving that we receive, as St Francis says. The good are simple and open handed. 

The paradox here is that when we aspire to such goodness and practise it, then it is God who judges us benignly, and not only judges us but rewards us. Indeed, He rewards us with himself principally because to share oneself in such away is to be like Him. 

We cannot do any of this without his grace. Yet, as He tells St Paul: my grace is sufficient for you. We only need ask Him for the living waters - for them to flow freely through us and onto others.