Judge Not

 

By G. E. Shuman

 

Several days ago, I happened to notice that out behind our neighbor’s home someone had discarded a last-year’s Christmas tree. It was real, and was still green, but, come on. It was almost March. What kind of person waits to get rid of their Christmas tree until March? I couldn’t believe it. Later that same day I happened to notice that in front of our home, on our porch, someone (I) had discarded a last-year’s Christmas tree. It was also real and was still green, but, come on. It was almost March. (I had also not yet removed the wreath from the front door.)

My wife used to be a ‘saver’ but has lately decided that less may often be more, which is a sentiment I have always claimed as my own. So, a few years ago she and I went through our home and discarded many things that were serving no purpose and only collecting dust. I loved the way the old house looked after that and vowed to never let it get cluttered again. As I said, that was a few years ago, and some new clutter has somehow crept back into the rooms. This fact is bothering me, especially since realizing that much if not most of those new things are mine.

There is a familiar old Native American saying, (or, at least, old white people like me ‘think’ that it was said by a Native American because we’ve heard it that way so many times,) admonishing us to not judge someone “until you have walked a mile in his moccasins.” Of course, the idea was that we should not judge someone until we have ‘been in his shoes’ (a version of the saying that doesn’t blame it on Native Americans.) Another man’s moccasins or shoes might be extremely uncomfortable and hard to walk a mile in; another person’s life and burdens may be harder on them than we know.  I remember years ago, hearing some TV comedian reciting the ‘moccasin’ version of the saying, and then making a joke of it by adding: “That way, if he’s mad at you, he’ll be a mile away and barefoot.”

It has taken me a lifetime to come to one realization about that idea of withholding judgement until after you have walked that mile. The realization is that the well-meant saying is simply wrong. The old Native American (or whomever it was) that first thought of it assumed that judgement should ever be done by us. The Bible is one place that is very clear on this, with admonitions to ”Judge not that ye be not judged,” and telling us to take the log from our own eye before we try to remove a spec from someone else’s eye.  That hits hard with me… because I know me.

I believe we would all do well to simply stop judging others. In the intense political year that we are beginning, it would also be wise to truly respect a person’s opinion, as being as valuable to them as our own is to us. What ‘side of the aisle’ some family member or friend may be on should not estrange and divide us. Life is much more than politics.

Wherever that old ‘moccasin’ saying originated, I think we can do better. We should hate sin, but not the sinner. We should despise crime and insist on punishment, but then work on forgiveness.

Forget the footwear and the situation. The old saying should say, simply, “Judge Not.”