Judgment

Today at church we read about Jesus and the woman found in adultery. The verse which gets the most attention in that short narrative is Jesus' response to the stone wielding group. "Whoever is without sin, let him cast the first stone."

First of all, stones are not metaphorical in this confrontation. It was real flesh and blood men holding real stones. Stones which would bruise and break the human body of the real flesh and blood woman who was their intened victim. This was going to be brutal.

Secondly, the stone carriers were correct. According the the Law they were supposed to stone the woman. Her offense was a serious offense (hard for modern Americans to believe, in our promiscuous culture, but not so hard for a husband or wife who experienced such a betrayal). So the lynch mob was correct, but they were not right. Why do I say this? Because the woman is alone, where is her accomplice? One does not need to be a Feminist to recognize an injustice here. How is it that she is punished with death while he has escaped scrutiny? Therein, perhaps, is part of Jesus' problem. Therein we find the hypocricy. One challenge to all of us 'law and order' types is the reminder that Justice is blind, but we are not. We tend to pick on the weaker folks (or outsiders) when delivering judgment. The rich, powerful and well connected live under 'different rules.'

Thirdly, Jesus makes clear, the woman sinned. That is not what is being debated here. Jesus does not say, "No big deal. Sexual desires are a blessing so she needs to be free to find her passions fulfilled." Jesus does not rail against marriage as a construct of male domination crushing and dehumanizing woman. Jesus does not salute the woman as a courageous explorer, willing to transgress society and its stifling and oppressive rules. In fact, the story closes with His admontion, "do not sin again." Mercy is coupled with the demand for holiness.

What Jesus does do is connect the sinner's desire for mercy with the sinner's responsibility to show mercy. This theme appears in a variety of guises throughout the Gospel. In the Lord's prayer (forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors), in parables (the servant who owed millions), in preaching (it is mercy I desire not sacrifice) Jesus repeats the theme. All of us are sinners. All of us deserve the death penalty. No one is clean. In light of that, He is clear, be slow to torture and kill (especially the ones different from you) in the name of God or justice.

The problem? In a family counseling session last week two parents shared that their college aged daughters have adopted the motto "who am I to judge?" The post-modern perversion of Jesus' words are rampant. Even traditionalists (like me) feel the weight of such sentiments. Clearly, in a diverse world with so many opinions it is tempting to step back and "live and let live" and accept that "to each his own" is a more peaceful way to coexist.

The kicker is, Jesus seems to say, "stop sinning" even as He invites us to forgive. He says, let the sinless one throw the first stone. We are called to awareness of our sin. We are not told there is no sin. We are told to stop sinning because there is sin. So what to do in a world where the next generation seems reluctant to identify sin? If we prayed more and studied Scripture more perhaps we would find ourselved being shaped by God more. I do not think the judgment-free culture is judgment free. I think it is hostile to faith, particularly Christian faith. I think it advocates for sin. I think we who know and love Jesus need to find ways to procalim His message.