Gone are the days when there were commonly accepted boundaries between right and wrong, moral and immoral. Society, in response to demands of vocal and often well-funded minorities, now asks for -- no, make that demands --that we toss out our old moral compass and develop their most treasured virtue: tolerance.
You know their arguments: "Choosing our own lifestyle is a basic civil right. As long as it doesn't hurt anyone else, what's the big deal?" And then they unload on us the biggest guilt trip of all: "And who are you to set yourself up as a judge?"
Even in church settings -- my church included -- there are those who say we shouldn't judge one another, being quick to quote Jesus: "Judge not, that ye be not judged" (Matthew 7:1). Sorry if this bursts your tolerance bubble, but that's not what He really said. In the LDS edition, if you look at the footnote for that verse you'll see that the Joseph Smith Translation reads as follows: "Judge not unrighteously, that ye be not judged; but judge righteous judgment."
He does not expect us to quietly sit by and endure the dishonorable, immoral, and sometimes downright stupid behavior of others. I think some of our members are like the young woman in this true story told by a professor of religion at BYU:
Several years ago one of my students asked if she could visit with me after class. She had been with me for two semesters of Book of Mormon, and she was, frankly, a delight to have in class. The light of the gospel radiated from her countenance. She came in to tell me good-bye. I said, "Well, I'll see you next year, won't I?" She shook her head and said, "No, I won't be coming back to BYU."
I asked why. She said, "Brother Millet, I'm tired. No, it's more than that -- I'm worn out. I haven't slept for almost a year now." Was she tired of studying? I asked. Wouldn't a summer break do the trick? No, that wasn't it.
She explained that her roommates, all returned missionaries, had their boyfriends over each night until the early morning hours. More specifically, there was never a place for her to sleep, inasmuch as two of her roommates had their male companions in bed with them every night.
I was stunned. Shocked. Sickened. "Well, why didn't you tell someone? Why didn't you mention it to the landlord or the bishop?" Her answer was very revealing, and it also highlights a significant problem that many in this generation face.
She said, "But wouldn't that be judging them?" We then had a long, long discussion about what it means to judge righteous judgment . . . In our day, it seems as though the most serious flaw a person can have is to be intolerant. One would rather be immoral, unclean, degenerate. But whatever you do, don't dare be intolerant. (Robert L. Millet, A Call to Holiness, in Selected Writings of Robert L. Millet).
Yesterday I heard a religious commentator make the following statement on the radio: "God loves us all. And He or She loves us just as we are." I don't disagree about Him loving us, but make no mistake -- saying that God loves us is not the same as saying God tolerates whatever we say, do, listen to, watch, wear, think, or whatever lifestyle we promote. He willingly allows us the use of our agency to choose for ourselves, but that doesn't mean He doesn't have standards of right and wrong that He expects us to live by. It is by those standards that we shall ultimately be judged -- and judged "righteously."
Sadly, even at that day there will be those who will boldly say to His holy face: "Who are you to judge me?"
No comments:
Post a Comment