TO THE EDITOR:
Regarding, Carol Wilcox’s letter of March 28 (“It’s time to put down our stones”), condemning others is clearly wrong; however, the widespread misuse of the “do not judge” passage is too.
False charges of judgmentalism serve to stifle conscience, which is a judgment of reason; fraternal correction, which is an act of mercy; ethics and moral theology, which delve into the rightness or wrongness of human acts; and the prophetic voice of the church. It is almost predictable today in certain moral or public policy discussions that one will be met with the challenge not to judge even in cases when one has simply made a moral argument with no condemnation or rash judgment of persons involved. The subject of judgmentalism is often raised selectively in cases when a person doesn’t agree with the moral position being taken. I think the false charge of judgmentalism is often a way of getting people one doesn’t agree with to shut up. Christians and others of faith should see through this and not allow this to deter them from speaking out on moral issues and, of course, we should continue to examine our consciences to make sure we are not condemning or rash judging people.
William P. McKenna
Cranston
