Comments on: Contra Mundum: The Judgmental Jesus

By: Contra Mundum: When Scientists Make Bad Ethicists | | Glen TraegerGlen Traeger

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:02:39 +0000

[...] RELATED POSTS: Contra Mundum: Separating Church and State Contra Mundum: Consenting Adults and Harm Contra Mundum: Pacifism and Just Wars Contra Mundum: Religion and Violence Contra Mundum: Stoning Adulterers Contra Mundum: Why Does God Allow Suffering? Contra Mundum: “Till Death do us Part” Christ’s Teachings on Abuse, Divorce and Remarriage Contra Mundum: Is God a 21st Century Western Liberal? Contra Mundum: In Defence of Santa Contra Mundum: The Number of the Beast Contra Mundum: Pluralism and Being Right Contra Mundum: Abraham and Isaac and the Killing of Innocents Contra Mundum: Selling Atheism Contra Mundum: Did God Command Genocide in the Old Testament? Contra Mundum: Fairies, Leprechauns, Golden Tea Cups & Spaghetti Monsters Contra Mundum: Secularism and Public Life Contra Mundum: Richard Dawkins and Open Mindedness Contra Mundum: Slavery and the Old Testament Contra Mundum: Secular Smoke Screens and Plato’s Euthyphro Contra Mundum: What’s Wrong with Imposing your Beliefs onto Others? Contra Mundum: God, Proof and Faith Contra Mundum: “Bigoted Fundamentalist” as Orwellian Double-Speak Contra Mundum: The Flat-Earth Myth Contra Mundum: Confessions of an Anti-Choice Fanatic Contra Mundum: The Judgmental Jesus [...]

By: Contra Mundum: Pacifism and Just Wars

Contra Mundum: Pacifism and Just Wars — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 13:32:21 +0000

[...] RELATED POSTS: Contra Mundum: Religion and Violence Contra Mundum: Stoning Adulterers Contra Mundum: Why Does God Allow Suffering? Contra Mundum: “Till Death do us Part” Christ’s Teachings on Abuse, Divorce and Remarriage Contra Mundum: Is God a 21st Century Western Liberal? Contra Mundum: In Defence of Santa Contra Mundum: The Number of the Beast Contra Mundum: Pluralism and Being Right Contra Mundum: Abraham and Isaac and the Killing of Innocents Contra Mundum: Selling Atheism Contra Mundum: Did God Command Genocide in the Old Testament? Contra Mundum: Fairies, Leprechauns, Golden Tea Cups & Spaghetti Monsters Contra Mundum: Secularism and Public Life Contra Mundum: Richard Dawkins and Open Mindedness Contra Mundum: Slavery and the Old Testament Contra Mundum: Secular Smoke Screens and Plato’s Euthyphro Contra Mundum: What’s Wrong with Imposing your Beliefs onto Others? Contra Mundum: God, Proof and Faith Contra Mundum: “Bigoted Fundamentalist” as Orwellian Double-Speak Contra Mundum: The Flat-Earth Myth Contra Mundum: Confessions of an Anti-Choice Fanatic Contra Mundum: The Judgmental Jesus [...]

By: The Poached Egg Christian Worldview and Apologetics Journal

The Poached Egg Christian Worldview and Apologetics Journal — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 07:41:26 +0000

The Judgmental Jesus…

“do not judge that you be judged.” In other words, do not judge others in a way that leads one to put oneself under judgement. The surrounding words support this conclusion……

By: Contra Mundum: Slavery and the Old Testament « Theology Geek NZ

Contra Mundum: Slavery and the Old Testament « Theology Geek NZ — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 19:21:33 +0000

[...] RELATED POSTS: Contra Mundum: Secular Smoke Screens and Plato’s Euthyphro Contra Mundum: What’s Wrong with Imposing your Beliefs onto Others? Contra Mundum: God, Proof and Faith Contra Mundum: “Bigoted Fundamentalist” as Orwellian Double-Speak Contra Mundum: The Flat-Earth Myth Contra Mundum: Confessions of an Anti-Choice Fanatic Contra Mundum: The Judgmental Jesus [...]

By: Friday Night Miscellany « Theology Geek NZ

Friday Night Miscellany « Theology Geek NZ — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 02:40:15 +0000

[...] The Judgmental Jesus Matt’s column in the latest Investigate Magazine addresses one of the most quoted (and misunderstood) verses in the Bible: “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” [...]

By: Lightkea_60

Lightkea_60 — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 04:10:04 +0000

Nearly everyone indulges in the practice of judging others at some point or another. One could say that it’s simply human nature or the overt side of the fleshly nature described in Romans.

However, I have observed that when experienced Christians practice ‘judging others,’ it is usually for the express purpose of exerting control over them. Further, when judgementalism is used in this way it is an extremely destructive tool which is brutally effective at turning Christian’s away from the faith.

By: Guru Jeffster

Guru Jeffster — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 22:17:36 +0000

Is it even possible for a human being not to judge? Interesting article and proposition which necessarily requires a belief in the existence and words of Jesus. Curious.
.-= My last blog-post ..Enlightenment Myths Debunked =-.

By: Mike

Mike — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 13:44:17 +0000

Second, I wonder if the distinction between judging people and actions can always be tightly made. After all a bad person is one who intentionally engages in bad actions.

Hi Matt,
I don’t think that’s true, at least not as a sufficient condition of being a bad person. To take one example, someone who consistenyly kills others need not be a bad person, if say he is doing it in self-defense/wartime. So, the point might better be put that you can’t judge a person by his actions, since many actions that appear wrong are either justified (and right) or wrong but blameless. We are rarely in a position to know all that is relevant to the proper judgement of a person. Even further, the idea might be to cultivate an attitude of forgiveness rather than an attitude of judgment, since unexcused moral failure is as much mine as theirs. So even in cases where you are in a position to know, there are at least two morally different attitudes you can take.

By: Sandy

Sandy — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 07:10:25 +0000

I think it boils down to common sense, when it is ok to judge and when it is not. We cannot always follow things so strictly because in life, there must be room for flexibility and rationality, no matter what the teachings may be. .-= My last blog-post ..Rowenta Professional Iron (DX8800) Review: The Question Of Durability =-.

By: Matt

Matt — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 02:52:20 +0000

Mike, thanks for that comment. If I understand you correctly, you’re suggesting that there is a distinction between judging a person and judging a person’s actions, and that Matthew only condemns the former.
I have three things to say in response to this.
First, even if one grants this point, it would still disable the use of “do not judge” as a rhetorical club to silence theological critique of certain practices, such as abortion or adultery or what have you. The person engaging in such critique could simply respond that they were “only judging actions.”
Second, I wonder if the distinction between judging people and actions can always be tightly made. After all a bad person is one who intentionally engages in bad actions. If I point out that a person repeatedly and often engages in heinous actions wouldn’t I, by implication, be suggesting that they are a bad person? For example, judging a person’s actions to be murder implies that that person is a murderer.
Third, I am not sure this response deals with the examples I give of “judgement” made elsewhere in the scriptures or that it is common sense. Jesus seemed to do more than simply judge the Pharisees actions and the same is true of the Prophets. Moreover, when a person says Hitler was evil they are judging the person Hitler. In light of these points, and given the evident use of hyperbole in the Sermon on the Mount, I am not convinced Jesus was giving an unqualified condemnation of judging other people.