This essay continues a sequence. Read the previous one here.
Judge not, that ye be not judged.
For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged:
and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
— KJV, Matt 7:1-2 / Luke 6:37-38
We live in our heads, and not in the real world. But what is the “real”?
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These words were given with reference to our attitude towards our fellow man, and they are clearly a reference to the Law of Sowing and Reaping (ref. “Never Say Never“).
But the choice of words indicates that there is more to it.
What’s Wrong With Being Judged?
If we have good judgment we have nothing to fear, because the reciprocal harvest will be good, right?
But The Word doesn’t say “Be careful about judging: sometimes you may get it wrong“. It says “never judge“.
Is it that our judgement is usually wrong, or is it that the act of making judgements is simply not supposed to be part of our functioning?
A further clue is provided:
Ye judge after the flesh;
I judge no man.
And yet if I judge, my judgment is true
— John 8:15-16
Christ Whose judgement was perfect refused to apply a judgemental mindset. So it is not merely a matter of “judgemental accuracy” but something deeper.
The Nature of “Judging”
Judging in this context is about making firm conclusions about others; about forming fixed opinions about them, and then using these to inform our future actions and attitudes.
This is convenient, which is why it is habitual. It allows us to put further evaluation of their activities on mental “auto-pilot”. We fit observations into pre-existing views.
This mental auto-pilot makes us less spiritually alert when dealing with that individual, and therefore less alive generally.
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Spirit vs Brain
Working from pre-existing conclusions or opinions is a mental function, not a spiritual one.
The spirit does not know such judging, because it lives in the present moment and is able to grasp the complete current reality, both of the person and of the situation, in a flash.
Spiritual intuition does not need, and is not supposed, to rely on a mental opinion (ref. “Does ‘Take No Thought’ Make Any Sense?“).
Christ had no need to judge, because He always worked from within, from his Divine core.
The material brain needs a material thing to “hold on” to – it needs “context”.
This is why when confronted with new revelations, we often find ourselves asking “Who wrote this?“. This is a question from the brain, not from the spirit.
It is an unconscious admission of the fact that our spirits are not sufficiently awake to sense truth or untruth purely by studying the work.
We are enslaved to the earthly brain (ref. “Fall Down And Worship Me“), so we need something “concrete” relating to the writer. We can then “safely” apply our pre-existing opinions about such writers, instead of the content of the work, to inform our reaction.
Flavours of Judging
Negative aspects of stereotypes were explored in “Love Your Enemies. And Your Friends.“.
A large proportion of our opinions are based on third-party sources – media, friends, etc – and not personal experience. But the Law of Sowing and Reaping dictates that we cannot escape responsibility for everything we think and do, regardless of what influenced our decisions.
As demonstrated by history, many a social ill is traceable to this superficial manner of forming opinions (ref. “The Murder Case“): the Inquisition, witch-burnings, etc. In the events leading up to the Crucifixion very few of the hate-filled clamourers had ever interacted with Christ directly, and yet they were “sure” that the Son of God deserved to die.
Culture and social norms also provide many ready-made mental “boxes”.
For example we may have been brought up with certain views about male/female roles, parent/child relationships, career paths, etc. These can obstruct a complete view of the other person (ref. “Love Your Enemies. And Your Friends.“).
Even supposedly “positive” opinions can lead to unhealthy results: whether it is hero worship or a negative stereotype it represents a limitation in present-moment awareness.
So what’s the way forward? We will explore this in the next essay.
Today’s Resolution:
- Awareness is the beginning of knowledge. Let us observe ourselves so as to become aware of how our opinions are formed and how pre-existing opinions are influencing us on a moment-by-moment basis.
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