Abba Dorotheos: On Not Judging One's Neighbor

Brethren, if we kept in mind the words of the holy elders, if we always meditated upon them, we would not so easily give ourselves over to carelessness. For, as they have said, if we did not neglect small matters and those things which seem insignificant to us, we would not fall into great and grievous sins. I always tell you that from these minor transgressions, from saying, “What importance is there in this or that?”, the soul acquires an evil habit, and a man begins to neglect even the great things.

Do you know how grievous a sin it is to judge your neighbor? For what is more weighty than this? What does God hate more? What does He so utterly abhor?

As the fathers have said, there is nothing worse than judgment. And yet, even into such a great evil a man falls from the very same neglect of what appears to be insignificant. For when a man permits himself a slight contempt for his neighbor, when he says, “What harm is there if I listen to what this brother says? What harm is there if I utter just this one word? What harm is there if I watch what this brother or that wanderer is doing?”—from this very thing, the mind begins to disregard its own sins and instead take notice of the sins of others.

From this follows that we judge, slander, and despise our neighbors, and finally, we ourselves fall into the very things we condemn. For when a man does not take heed to his own sins and does not, as the fathers have said, “weep over his own dead,” he cannot advance in any good thing but always turns his attention to the deeds of his neighbor. And nothing so greatly provokes God's wrath, nothing so strips a man of grace and brings him to abandonment by God, as slander, judgment, or the disdain of one’s neighbor.

Yet there is a difference between slander, reproach, judgment, and disdain. To reproach means to say of someone: “This man has lied,” or “He has become angry,” or “He has fallen into fornication,” or “He has done such and such a thing.” This is slandering a brother, that is, speaking with partiality about his sin. But to judge means to say: “This man is a liar, he is wrathful, he is a fornicator.” This is to condemn not only his action but the very disposition of his soul, pronouncing judgment upon his entire life, saying that he is such a man and condemning him as such—a grievous sin. For it is one thing to say, “He became angry,” and another to say, “He is an angry man”—for in this, as I have said, one passes judgment upon his whole life.

And the sin of judgment is so much graver than any other sin that Christ Himself said: “Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to pull out the mote that is in thy brother’s eye” (Luke 6:42). He likened the sin of one’s neighbor to a mote, but judgment He likened to a beam. So grievous is judgment, surpassing every other sin.

Even that Pharisee who, praying and giving thanks to God for his virtues, did not lie but spoke the truth, was not condemned for this; for we ought indeed to thank God when we are granted to do something good, since He has helped and aided us in this. The Pharisee was not condemned, as I said, for giving thanks to God and recounting his virtues, nor was he condemned for saying, “I am not as other men are.” But when he turned to the publican and said, “or even as this publican” (Luke 18:11), then he fell under condemnation, for he judged not only the man but the very disposition of his soul, and, in short, his entire life.

For this reason, the publican departed “justified rather than the other” (Luke 18:14).

There is nothing more grievous, as I have said many times, nothing worse than judging, despising, or belittling one’s neighbor. Why do we not rather judge ourselves and our own sins, which we certainly know and for which we must give an account before God? Why do we seize for ourselves the judgment that belongs to God? What do we desire of His creation? Should we not tremble when we hear what happened to that great elder who, upon learning that a certain brother had fallen into fornication, said, “Oh, he has done evil!” Or do you not know the dreadful event recorded about him in the Book of Elders? A holy angel brought to him the soul of the man who had sinned and said to him, “Behold, the one whom you have judged has died; where now do you command that he be placed, in the kingdom or in torment?”

Is there anything more terrifying than this burden? For what else do the words of the angel to the elder mean, if not this: Since you are the judge of the righteous and the sinners, tell me, what do you decree for this humble soul? Will you show her mercy, or will you cast her into torment? The holy elder, struck with fear, spent the remainder of his life in lamentation, tears, and ceaseless labors, praying to God that He might forgive him this sin—even though he had already received forgiveness when he fell on his face before the feet of the holy angel. For the words of the angel, “Behold, God has shown you how grievous a sin judgment is, so that you may never again fall into it,” already signified his forgiveness. Yet the soul of the elder, until his very death, refused to be consoled and never ceased from his mourning.

So then, what do we seek from our neighbor? Why do we concern ourselves with the burden of another? Brethren, we have enough to care for in ourselves! Let each one attend to himself and his own sins. To God alone belongs the authority to justify and to condemn, for He alone knows the inner disposition of each soul, its strength, its upbringing, its gifts, its constitution, and its abilities; and He judges each accordingly, as He alone knows. For God judges differently the deeds of a bishop and those of a worldly ruler, differently the deeds of an abbot and those of a disciple, differently those of an old man and those of a youth, differently those of the sick and those of the healthy.

And who can comprehend all these judgments? Only the One who created all, who has made all things and knows all things.

I remember having once heard of an event that took place. A ship carrying slaves arrived in a certain city, and there lived in that city a holy virgin who was very watchful over herself. When she heard that the ship had arrived, she rejoiced greatly, for she desired to buy a little girl. She thought, I will take her and raise her as I wish, so that she will know nothing of the vices of this world. She sent for the ship’s owner and, summoning him to herself, learned that he had two little girls, just as she had desired. Immediately, with great joy, she paid the price for one of them and took her into her care. But as soon as the ship’s owner departed from that place where the holy virgin lived, and had barely gone some distance, he encountered a certain harlot, utterly depraved. Seeing the other little girl with him, she desired to take her. Striking a bargain with him, she paid the price, took the girl, and departed with her.

Do you see the mystery of God?

Do you see the judgment of God? Who can explain it? Thus, the holy virgin took the little girl and raised her in the fear of God, instructing her in every good work, teaching her the monastic life, and, in short, nurturing her in the fragrant beauty of the holy commandments of God. But the harlot, having taken the unfortunate other, made her an instrument of the devil. For what else could such a corrupter teach her but the ruin of her soul?

So what can we say of this terrible fate? Both were small children, both were sold, knowing not where they were going. One was found in the hands of God, and the other fell into the hands of the devil. Can we say that God will require the same from both? How could that be? If both should fall into fornication or into some other sin, can it be said that both will be judged with the same judgment, even though they have fallen into the same transgression? Is such a thing possible? The one knew of judgment and of the kingdom of God, day and night meditating on the words of God; but the other, poor and wretched, never saw or heard anything good, but always and only that which was vile, that which was of the devil. How then can it be that both should be judged alike?

Thus, no man can comprehend the judgments of God; He alone knows all things and is able to judge each person’s sin according to His divine wisdom. It often happens that a brother stumbles out of simplicity, yet he has performed a single good deed that is more pleasing to God than his entire life’s failings. But you judge and condemn him, burdening your own soul. Even if he has indeed fallen, how do you know how much he struggled and how much he suffered before his fall? Perhaps before he sinned, he shed his very blood in his struggle, and now, in the sight of God, his transgression appears as righteousness. For God sees his labor and grief, which, as I have said, he endured before falling, and He shows him mercy. But you see only his sin, and while God shows him compassion, you condemn him and ruin your own soul. How do you know how many tears he has shed before God in repentance?

You have seen his sin, but you have not seen his repentance.

Sometimes we do not merely judge but even despise our neighbor, for, as I have said, to judge and to despise are not the same.

To despise means not only to judge another but to scorn him—to loathe one’s neighbor and to turn away from him as from something vile. This is worse than judgment and far more destructive. Those who desire salvation do not focus on the shortcomings of others but instead always examine themselves and thereby make progress. Such was the man who, upon seeing his brother sin, sighed and said: “Woe is me! As he has fallen today, so may I fall tomorrow.”

Do you see his steadfastness? Do you see the disposition of his soul? How swiftly he found a way to avoid judging his brother! By saying, “so may I fall tomorrow,” he instilled in himself fear and concern, realizing that he too could soon sin, and thus he avoided condemning his brother.

Yet he did not stop there, but he also humbled himself beneath his brother’s feet, saying: “At least he will repent of his sin, but I will not repent as I ought, I will not attain repentance, and I may not even have the strength to repent.” Do you see the enlightenment of his God-loving soul? Not only did he succeed in avoiding judgment, but he humbled himself even lower than his brother. But we, wretched as we are, judge recklessly, despise others, and look down on them if we see, hear, or even merely suspect something about them. Worse still, we do not stop at harming ourselves alone, but when we meet another brother, we immediately say: “Such and such happened,” and we do harm to him as well by planting sin in his heart.

And we do not fear the One who has said: “Woe unto him that giveth his neighbor drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also” (Hab. 2:15). Instead, we do the devil’s work and are careless about it. For what else does the devil do but disturb and corrupt souls? And we, by our actions, become his helpers to our own destruction and that of our neighbor. For whoever harms the soul of another cooperates with demons, while whoever benefits the soul of another assists the holy angels. And why do we fall into this sin? None other than because we lack love. If we truly possessed love, we would look upon our neighbor’s faults with compassion and sympathy, for it is written: “Love shall cover the multitude of sins” (1 Pet. 4:8). “Love thinketh no evil, beareth all things,” and so forth (1 Cor. 13:5–7).

Thus, if we had love, as I have said, that love would cover every transgression, just as the saints do when they behold the failings of others. For are the saints blind, that they do not see sin? And who hates sin more than the saints? Yet they do not hate the sinner, nor do they judge him, nor do they turn away from him, but they have compassion on him, grieve for him, admonish him, console him, and heal him as a suffering member, doing everything in their power to save him.

Just as fishermen, when they cast their hook into the sea and catch a great fish, do not immediately pull it in with all their strength—lest the line snap and they lose the fish entirely—but rather give it slack, allowing it to move as it wishes, only to draw it in gradually once it is exhausted, so too do the saints, with patience and love, draw back their brother. They do not reject him or scorn him. Just as a mother with a deformed child does not despise or turn away from him but rather clothes him with love and does everything to comfort him, so too do the saints always cover, nurture, and support the sinner, so that he may be corrected in time, that no one else may be harmed by him, and that they themselves may grow even more in the love of Christ.

What did Saint Ammon do when the brethren once came to him in distress, saying: “Come and see, Father, there is a woman in that brother’s cell”? What great mercy and love that holy soul showed! Understanding that the brother had hidden the woman under a large jar, he went and sat upon it, then commanded the others to search the cell. When they found nothing, he said: “May God forgive you.” Thus, he put them to shame, strengthened them, and greatly benefited them by teaching them not to be quick to believe accusations against their neighbor. And as for the brother, he not only covered his sin before God but also corrected him when the proper time came. For after sending the others away, he took the brother’s hand and said to him: “Consider your soul, brother.”

At once, the brother was ashamed, filled with compunction, and moved to repentance by the elder’s kindness and compassion.

Let us then acquire love, let us acquire forbearance toward our neighbor, that we may guard ourselves against the destructive sins of slander, judgment, and contempt. Let us help one another as though we were our own members. If a man has a wound on his hand, or foot, or any other part of his body, does he despise himself or cut off that limb, even if it is festering? Does he not rather cleanse it, wash it, apply ointment, bind it up, sprinkle it with holy water, pray, and ask the saints to intercede for him, as Abba Zosimas has said? In short, no one neglects his own limb or turns away from it, not even from its stench, but does everything possible to heal it. So too must we have compassion for one another, we must support one another—both through our own efforts and through those who are stronger—and we must seek out and do everything in our power to aid both ourselves and one another. For we are members of one another, as the Apostle says: “So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another” (Rom. 12:5), and “If one member suffers, all the members suffer with it” (1 Cor. 12:26).

What, then, do you think of communal life?

Is it not a single body, with each person in the community being a member of one another?

Those who guide and instruct are the head; those who oversee and correct are the eyes; those who edify through speech are the mouth; those who listen are the ears; those who act are the hands; and those who go forth and fulfill their service are the feet. Are you the head?—Then instruct. Are you an eye?—Then watch and be vigilant. Are you a mouth?—Then speak and edify. Are you an ear?—Then listen.

Are you a hand?—Then labor. Are you a foot?—Then serve. Let each person serve the body according to his ability, and strive always to help one another—whether through teaching, by implanting the word of God in the heart of a brother; through consolation, by comforting one who is afflicted; or through assistance in acts of service. In short, as I have said, let each one, according to his ability, strive to remain united with his neighbor; for the more one is united with his neighbor, the more he is united with God.

To make this clearer, I will offer you an example handed down by the fathers. Imagine a circle drawn on the ground, with its center called the midpoint, and the straight lines extending from the center to the circumference called radii. Now consider what I will say: Suppose that this circle represents the world, and its very center is God; the radii, that is, the straight lines extending from the circumference to the center, are the paths of human life. As the saints enter further within the circle, striving to draw near to God, they also become closer to one another; and the closer they come to God, the closer they come to one another; and the closer they come to one another, the closer they come to God. Likewise, understand the nature of separation: when people withdraw from God and turn back toward the outer world, it is evident that to the extent that they move away from the center and depart from God, to that same extent they also grow distant from one another; and the further they separate from one another, the further they remove themselves from God.

Such is the nature of love: the more we remain outside and lack love for God, the more each of us is estranged from our neighbor. But if we love God, then the more we draw near to Him through our love, the more we are united in love with our neighbor; and the more we are united with our neighbor, the more we are united with God.

May the Lord God grant us to hear what is beneficial and to fulfill it; for as we strive and labor to fulfill what we have heard, God continually enlightens us and teaches us His will. To Him be glory and dominion unto the ages of ages. Amen.

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