Do I challenge my habit of making quick judgments about others?

 
Reading: “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your sisters or brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? Luke 6:41.
 
Good morning, happy Friday, and many blessings my dear family.
 
In today’s Gospel (Luke 6:39-42), Jesus talks about our human tendency to have splinters and wooden beams in our eyes. These objects keep us from seeing the whole picture.  Jesus wants his disciples to be fully aware of their natural tendency to automatically judge others, to notice the splinter in someone else’s eye while totally missing the wooden beams in their own eyes.
 
The difficulty is that for most of us, our tendency to judge is automatic. Often, I judge someone, and I may not be consciously aware that I am making a judgment. If we choose to do so, though, we can work at freeing ourselves of judgment. Most likely we will not become 100% judgment free. However, if we choose to release a judgment, we free ourselves to enter a closer relationship with someone.
 
Also, in this passage, we learn about humility and sincerity. The requirement for humility can be found in accepting our faults and being prepared to learn from others. The importance of sincerity can be seen by not rushing to notice the faults of others, which can lead to judging others. Taken together, the absence of humility and sincerity can lead to being called hypocrites.
We like to guide and correct people. It gives us a bit of status. This means of course that we are quick to see the flaws in others. I wonder how much of our conversation is focused on the failings of public figures and of those close to us.
 
Jesus doesn’t deny that people have failings, but he invites me to look to my own blind spots first. If the just person falls seven times, how often do I fall? Jesus uses humor to make his point. He invites me to imagine how many people I would be hurting if I had a log attached to my eye!
Do I make a practice of thinking the best of other people? Do I challenge my habit of making quick judgments about others? Jesus uses humor to invite us not to take ourselves too seriously.
 
Imagine a log in your eye and then try to take a speck out of another’s eye! God sees each of us from the inside. God sees us with a generous and compassionate gaze. God does not despise or condemn us for our shortcomings and failings. Lord, today make me gaze at annoying people as kindly as you do.
 
Today I invite you to practice not judging others. Throughout the day, be alert and aware. If you realize that you are judging another person, consciously release your judgment. At the end of the day review your progress in letting go of judgment. Be patient with yourself. We have been judging others most likely since we came forth from the womb. It takes practice and more practice to refrain from judgment. However, as you progress in this effort notice: Are you more content? Was your day more peaceful? And who knows, perhaps the other person also may have been more peaceful and content!
 
Blessings,

Luis+