Discovering the Plank in My Eye

In 1910, The London Times asked a number of prominent authors to write essays on the theme “What’s Wrong With The World?”  G.K. Chesterton, English writer and famous convert to Catholicism, was one of those authors.  In his characteristic style, Chesterton, the “prince of paradox”, responded wryly . . .

Dear Sirs,

I am.

Sincerely yours,

G. K. Chesterton

What Chesterton could articulate in two words, many of us take a lifetime to acknowledge.  If we want to know what is wrong with the world we should look no further than ourselves.  It is not them but me.  My selfishness and my sin.  My possessiveness and my pride.  My arrogance and my apathy.  

In a recent argument with my wife I exclaimed in frustration, “I have hundreds of perfectly good relationships with other people but with you I turn into this person I don’t even recognize.  It’s not me, you make me this way!”  Not only was she responsible for her own wrongs (which in this case I was most insistent to point out), but my wrongs were her fault too!  Wow.  

It is amazing how “good” we are at seeing how bad everybody else is.  It’s like a sixth sense or something.  “He’s so self-absorbed.”  “Her hair looks terrible today.”  “Everybody says he’s so smart, but guess what he said the other day!”  “He’s too fat.”  “She’s too skinny.”  “If only he would loosen up, he’s so rigid.”  “She’s so touchy-feely.”   And on and on and on . . .

And we do the same thing when it comes to religious traditions.  "They are so caught up in ritual."  "All they talk about is 'me and Jesus'."  "That church teaches total depravity, can you believe that?."  "Those Christians think they can work their way into heaven."  The only thing that we can think about is how "the other" is wrong.  To us all, God reminds us, "Dear children, let us stop just saying we love each other, let us really show it by our actions" (1 John 3:18).  Or as Mother Teresa liked to say, "If you judge people, you have no time to love them."

Take a moment to analyze your own life.  What log in your eye is preventing you from seeing the speck in your neighbor’s eye?  Take the day to practice compassion and not condemnation, forgiveness and not faultfinding.  For “the measure you give will be the measure you get back”(Lk 6:38).

“Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye,

but do not notice the log in your own eye?”

Luke 6:41