“Without Judgement, There is No Mercy”
Father Peter Fitzgibbons
February 19 – 20, 2022
Gospel: Luke 6:27-38
I was tidying up some stuff as I’m prone to do from time to time, and I found some military/Army papers. Oh, this could be important, but not likely since it’s going on nine years since I retired. I don’t think they miss me, and I don’t miss them either. They tried to kill me. It wasn’t personal…just business. So, I looked at the document and it was orders for REFRAD or Release From Active Duty. I read through the document, and it was a stroll down memory lane. For my education, “high school or the equivalent” was listed. Well, that’s pretty close. I told you I was the village idiot, and the military knew. Except that I could not have been an officer without a college education, and I could not have been a chaplain without a master’s degree. Welcome to the Army. Anyway, I thought it was hilarious. I’m not the brightest bulb in the circuit, but I did study and pass tests because I have initials after my name.
Some days I went to class, and I remember a discussion about sin. By the way, the Church is still against sin. A lot of people use as an excuse for having no morality that we cannot be judgmental. I have heard people in Confession say, “Bless me Father for I have sinned.” Okay. “I have judgmentalism.” So, I have a degree in Philosophy. I have a degree in Divinity. I have a minor in Military Science and one in Western Civilization. But I have no idea what you are talking about. I have absolutely no clue. There is no such thing. If you look in the two books on Moral Theology, it’s not there. There is the sin of rash judgement but not judgmentalism. We are called to judge. In my house I have to judge a lot. I open the refrigerator and if I see bushy green stuff, I have to make a judgement. Is that stuff supposed to be green? It’s always a question in my mind. So, we make judgements all the time because we are supposed to. Physicians and healthcare workers make judgements. Our Lord said you will know them by their fruits. You are supposed to judge actions. Actions are objectively evil or good. Very few actions by a moral agent are neutral. We are all moral agents. So, all of our actions are good or evil. They can be objectively wrong. This one bozo passed a State Trooper going 55 mph in a 35 mph zone. Hey dude, you are about to meet a new friend! He was wrong, and he was stupid. But we are not to judge beyond God’s mercy.
We are all called to make judgements. Sometimes in my former line of work, before I was here with you folks, I had to make instantaneous judgements. Otherwise, I would have lost my breathing privileges. In some fields, it’s the same. We are called to make judgements. We cannot judge anyone beyond God’s mercy. We don’t know the crosses they carry. We judge and treat them according to their actions. That’s the moral law.
I’m trying to get away from here for a little while because my cousin has cancer. We are hoping for a miracle although it doesn’t look promising. But, what the heck. Never asked, never granted. My cousin is a very gifted woman. She’s an artist. She can sing. She’s a nurse. She’s a beautiful woman. All women are beautiful, and my cousin is exceptionally so. My family has good looks and no money. Damn. Her father – my godfather – had his problems. He was a gambling addict and an alcoholic. He was a great engineer and absolutely brilliant. Some of that is genetic. Although 30+ missions as a waist gunner in a B-17 over Nazi Germany during WW II probably didn’t help much. My cousin grew up in a home like that. Her father tried. I can tell you that he struggled with his crosses because when he was near death, he asked me to hear his confession. That was faith. People who judged him would say that he was a worthless drunk and everything else. No. God did not forget him, and he did not forget God. It’s just that his crosses were so heavy that he fell a lot. Other so-called Christian religions believe they know who is in Heaven and who isn’t. That’s not true. We don’t know. We just work like heck and hope we get there.
We have to practice judgementalism on ourselves. We judge ourselves guilty of sin. Why don’t people go to confession? Some say, “Well, I don’t really have any sins.” Then you shouldn’t come to Communion. Huh? Communion is not a door prize for just showing up. Who do you receive in Holy Communion? You receive the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Who is Jesus Christ? He is our Savior. Okay. Two for two. What does He save us from? Sin. So, if you have no sin, you do not need Jesus. Let me know if you do. We judge ourselves guilty in order to receive Him. We cannot judge who is in Heaven. Remember, the good thief stole Heaven at the last minute. A man who thought he was smarter than the average bear was playing games with Bishop Sheen. He wanted to know if Jonah was really swallowed by the whale. Bishop Sheen said “I don’t know. When I get to Heaven, I’ll ask him.” The man said, “What if he’s not in Heaven?” Bishop Sheen said, “Then you ask him.” Do you know what the three biggest surprises in Heaven will be? Who is in Heaven. Who is not in Heaven. And, that we are there.
How will you apply this message to your life?
You can read all of Father Fitzgibbons’ sermons by going to http://AnnunciationCatholicAlbemarle.com/ and clicking on “Blog” then “Categories” and then “Sermon Notes.” Sermon notes can also be found on the church Facebook page by searching for “Facebook Our Lady of the Annunciation Albemarle”