NOTE: Christ in Our Neighborhood is a parish-based program consisting of small Christian communities that gather in the home weekly to discuss and pray through the upcoming Sunday Mass readings. It’s easy to form a community and you can find out more at Christ in Our Neighborhood – The Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix (dphx.org)
This coming Sunday, we celebrate the Fifth Sunday of Lent. The question the Christ in Our Neighborhood reflection asks us is: Have I ever been quick to cast stones at another for the wrongs they have done to me or to others?
Talk about a pointed question! When we feel we’ve been wronged or that the people we love have been wronged, our fallen nature and human frailty can make it more likely for us to cast stones. As we grow in Christian maturity, however, we realize our own great need for forgiveness and remember all the times God (and others) have forgiven us for our sins and misdeeds.
In the abstract, can we judge the morality of an act? Certainly. That’s what moral theology does: guide us in deciding whether an act is moral or not. But we are not to judge individual people. That’s God’s job.
As St. Teresa of Calcutta used to say, “If you judge people, you have no time to love them.”
If you haven’t joined a Christ in Our Neighborhood small group yet, perhaps you are being called to start one yourself. Check out our website today to find out more: dphx.org/Christ-in-our-neighborhood.
Watch the video of the weekly podcast segment featuring Christ in Our Neighborhood with Bishop Dolan by clicking HERE.
To sign up for our weekly Christ in Our Neighborhood newsletter that has everything you need for your next meeting, visit: https://phoenixdiocese.flocknote.com/CION
