Walking the Tight Rope Between Refusing to Justify Sin and Being Careful Not to Judge Others

By John-boy


“Political figures supporting pro-abortion legislation should be requested from the pulpit and from the Bishop not to present themselves for Communion. That it is an offense not only to God but to the rest of us who are trying to follow the Divine Law.”
Fr. Groeschel, on politicians who advocate abortion receiving Communion..


Personally, I agree with Fr. Groeschel and I have the utmost admiration for his speaking up in the light of truth.. Fr. Groeschel reminds all of us that if we are in a state of mortal sin we should not approach the Altar during Mass to receive Holy Communion. While my sins are something personal between me, my confessor and God in the confessional, a rather sad dilemma here is that the sins of Catholics regularly spotlighted in the media often become known to everyone.. especially, if that Catholic is a politician who is obliged to let the people know where he or she stands on moral issues. On one hand you almost have to have a sense of sympathy in that their lives are no longer personal between them and God as it is for a quiet layperson, yet at the same time recognizing that the politician knew before getting into politics that their morality would be made known to the public. As Christians, we cannot condone sin yet we cannot judge either.. It becomes a real tight rope to walk sometimes..

While listening to Fr. Groeschel speak, I noticed that he put emphasis on the words, “should be requested from the pulpit and from the Bishop...” in referring to political figures receiving Communion. I believe that it is very important as mentioned in the above opening paragraph to be always mindful that while we can never condone sin, we can also never judge. Fr. Groeschel was considering the Catechism, the fundamental teachings of our Catholic faith when he made this statement. He is not merely speaking from personal opinion but actually in obedience to his call as a priest to lead the faithful flock in truth.. I do not believe for a moment that he is casting any judgment on a person but simply calling to mind the need for each of us to be obedient to the teachings of the Majesterium of the Church. Though what he is saying was in response to politicians who support certain legislature that oppose the law of God let us not forget also that what he is saying applies to each and every one of us as Catholics just the same.

It is for this very reason that if I am in mortal sin, I should not be coming forward to receive Communion. And recently, one Sunday morning at Mass I found myself in such a situation as humbling as it is for me to admit.. Perhaps sharing my own testimony here will help others to understand the importance of remaining obedient to Church teachings. And believe me, this was by far not only the most awkward moment I ever experienced during Mass but my most saddest and heart wrenching moment.. I can only hope I never have to go through that again.. That is to have to sit back in the pew and watch everyone else around me go up for Communion knowing that I could not join them because of the state of sin I was in at that present moment. It broke my heart. But then, I must also remember that it is because I pierced Someone's Heart who is very dear and special to me that I was in this predicament in the first place..

Just after the Consecration was complete, as the priest lifted up the Holy Eucharist and announced, “Happy are those who are called to the table…” I shuddered with complete and utter sadness for the state of mortal sin I was in at that moment. There was no denying the awareness of remorse I now felt for the Holy Spirit had made it known to me the state of sin I was in.. yes, at that moment the Holy Spirit had convicted me of my sinfulness.. I would not be among my fellow brothers and sisters who were about to come forward to the Table to receive Jesus in the Most Holy Eucharist. The consequence of my sins tore deep into my very heart.

"Dear children! I invite you to open the door of your heart to Jesus as the flower opens itself to the sun. Jesus desires to fill your hearts with peace and joy. You cannot, little children, realize peace if your are not at peace with Jesus. Therefore, I invite you to confession so Jesus may be your truth and peace. So, little children, pray to have the strength to realize what I am telling you. I am with you and I love you. Thank you for having responded to my call."
Our Lady of Medjugorje, January 25, 1995

The entire congregation, I included, responded with the words, “Lord, I am not worthy to receive You but only say the word and I shall be healed.” Yet, an intricate part of that healing process meant first receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation prior to receiving Holy Communion. The Lord indeed does desires to heal me.. It is His desire to heal each and everyone of us. That is the will of an all merciful God Who we turn to in our deepest state of wretchedness. I am a Roman Catholic… and as a Roman Catholic by faith, by reason, and by submissive obedience to the Majesterium of which in full consciousness and aware of the freewill I do possess, I fully consent to this obedience and authoritative power the Church holds. It is a must that I perceive this way for this is the awareness and understanding in the light of truth that the Holy Spirit gives to us so that we may grow in faith nearer to God rather than further away from Him..

I solemnly and wholeheartedly believe in the true presence of Jesus in the Most Holy Eucharist.. The Eucharist, my brothers and sisters in Christ as you already know, is not merely a symbol of our Catholic faith but Jesus the Bread of Life Himself.. The Eucharist IS Jesus truly present. So, I must be obedient to the Majesterium of the Church whether it is comfortable to perceive this way or not. Yes, it is the will of God that I come to Him.. but it is also His will that I approach Him in obedience according to the Church of which He has entrusted His authority to..

"Therefore, if you bring your gift to the Altar, and there recall that your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the Altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother, and then come and offer your gift."
Matthew 5: 23



I was in a state of mortal sin. No one but God and I alone knew this to be true in that moment. I could have easily rose from the pew and approached the Altar to receive Communion and no one would have known any different.. But I knew.. and God knew.. And I knew in my heart that it would be unjust of me to do so.. a double sin.. For my very soul, stained with the filth of selfishness, a consequence of my recent quest to self-gratify prevented me from joining my brothers and sisters at the Table.. At least for the time being.. It would not have been just in the sights of a God Who is both mercy and justice for me to have come forward at the Banquet Table the state of sin I was in… I was to take the proper steps and confess my sins, then come back and receive my Lord for I knew in my heart that attempting to sneak through the back door was not something pleasing to God..

“The servants went out into the streets and gathered all they found, bad and good alike, and the hall was filled with guests. But when the king came in to meet the guest’s he saw a man there not dressed in a wedding garment. He said to him, ‘My friend, how is it that you came in here without a wedding garment?’ But he was reduced to silence.”
Matthew 22:10-12

In Matthew chapter 22, Jesus tells the Parable of the Wedding Feast of which the kingdom of heaven can be likened to. A king had summoned his servants to round up special guests for a special feast but those guests invited declined. Furious, the king summoned the servants to round up all they could find in the streets, the good and bad alike.. According to the footnotes that accompany this Scriptural quote provided in the New American Bible, the wedding garment refers to the act of repentance…where we become pure again through the Sacrament of Reconciliation..

So, in the case of politicians and other high profile figures whose sins are often made known to the world I must be careful to advocate against the permitting of sins in today's society yet at the same time be attentive to my own that I do not cast stones.. so in this being the case with public people it becomes a concern and a call for each of us to be vigilant of our own keep, because a door is now left open making it far too easy for us to fall into the trap of judging them..

“Stop judging that you may not be judged. For as you judge, so will you be judged, and the measure with which you measure will be measured out to you.”
Matthew 7:1,2

Often, as a Christian who is Pro-Life, the moment I begin to speak about the issue that weighs heavy on my heart I risk being accused by others, sometimes even by my own fellow Christian brother or sister of being judgmental. And sometimes that is the case.. that wrongful judgments have been waged.. So how do I stand up for justice without casting judgment on my brother or sister when I see sin being progressively advocated in the world around me? I do not like what I see as I see injustices such as the passing of laws that allow abortion become acceptable more and more in today’s society.. How do I as a Christian, called by God to advocate for life, stand up for the rights of the innocent and unborn child? How do I keep the balance between refusing to condone sin and refraining from judging this or that politician?

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you.”
Matthew 5: 43,44

The only logical answer seems to be love the sinner but despise the sin.. or vise versa, despise the sin but love the sinner.. How do I do this? I am to love those who oppose me. I must love those who stand up against what I stand for? Yes, I must love the sinner even when I despise that sinners agenda. I must love my persecutors.. I must love those who 'appear to be indifferent to God's Law'.. there is the trap right there that I begin to fall into if I am not vigilant of my own keep..

The sinner is our brother. The sinner is our sister. The sinner is me.. I am the sinner. Do I desire to be loved? Even in all my sinfulness? Of course I do.. In all the years I was away from God and His Church, as well as in all the time I have since returned has it ever pierced my heart when people shunned me or mocked me or ridiculed me for not seeing things their way? Of course it did.. I was still a child of God with feelings.. and it still did not feel very comfortable to have another person cast stones at me..

My conversion is the result of the Holy Spirit Who gently convicted me of my sinfulness.. that word 'gently' is extremely important.. My conversion is not the result of the devil accusing me.. nor is it the result of other people throwing my sins in my face.. It was always in those circumstances that I drifted further away from God.. So standing up and pointing the finger at others accusing them of their sins does no good to help bring them closer to God.. Yet, again, I also cannot condone sin.. I cannot simply turn a blind eye when I see a law that is being passed or the potential is there for a government to pass a law that will permit sin and more sin to occur viewed by many as a false justice in the society of which I am a part of…

My response, when I see the potential for such laws to be passed must first and foremost be one of prayer.. and if I feel called by God to advocate for God’s will in the society I live in, in the instance of abortion- to advocate for life, then I must always maintain that prayerful heart all along the while I advocate for life.. For without prayer as a means to seek guidance from the Holy Spirit Who is all Truth, and without a solid foundation built on Truth I have taken it upon myself without God to conquer an injustice..

I want to be loved. I do not want to be judged or condemned by you. I do not want to stand accused by you. I want you to accept me for who I am even with all my faults and my inadequacies.. I also want to be just in the sights of God.. I cannot judge you.. I also cannot condone your sins if you believe that your sins are just.. do not judge me for it does you no good in your walk of faith to bring you closer to God.. but also, do not condone my sins should I attempt to justify them.. because then, you do me no good either to help me to get to heaven..

It is the Holy Spirit Who convicts us of our sins. Unlike the devil who accuses us, the Holy Spirit convicts us that we may see truth with spiritual eyes.. the devil on the other hand wishes to keep us in guilt and lead us into despair. We must be clear on the very extreme difference between these two occurrences.. The Holy Spirit is our friend, our Advocate, “And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the spirit of truth, which the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows it.” John 14: 16,17 The devil is our accuser, who prosecutes us before God for his own gain in an attempt to obtain our soul and drag us to hell..

So as brothers and sisters in Christ, we are called to be advocates to one another to help one another make it to heaven. No, not in the sense that we should convict others of their sins.. that is for the Holy Spirit to do, because though we are called to follow in Christ's footsteps, we ourselves are not God.. So advocates of Truth, but not judges.. We are not our brother or sisters judge.. we need to understand the difference between the two… I cannot judge you.. I cannot tell you where you stand before God.. even the most hardened sinner I cannot judge.. but condone the sin? No, that I also cannot and should never do..

Praying that all politicians, all those in powerful positions, who see abortion and other sins as acceptable, that they begin to change how they perceive truth.. that they welcome in God's Truth, which is the only real truth.. that they begin to see the dangers in endorsing sins .. that their hearts and minds be transformed and they begin to soften more and more to welcome in the same God who knocks every day on each and everyone of our hearts as well.. may we also be receptive to God when He knocks on our hearts..


Peace to all my dear brothers and sisters in Christ..