to quote

Evildoers: Correcting Them and Fearing to Offend Them

“For all too often we wrongly shy away from our obligation to teach and admonish evildoers, and sometimes even to rebuke and correct them. We shy away either because we are unwilling to make the effort or because we hesitate to offend their dignity or because we want to avoid enmities that might impede and harm us with respect to some temporal things which our desire still longs to acquire or which our weakness still fears to lose. It is true that the life of evildoers is displeasing to the good, and therefore the good do not fall with them into damnation that is prepared for such people after this life. But because they are lenient toward the damnable sins of evildoers so long as — as one of their own sins (although these are light and venial) — they are afraid of them, it is only right that the good are scourged along with evildoers here in time, even though they will by no means be punished in eternity. It is only right that they should know bitterness in this life, when they are afflicted by God along with evildoers, for it was due to love of the sweetness of this life that they were unwilling to be bitter to the wicked in their sinning.

“If anyone refrains from rebuking and correcting evildoers because he is waiting for a more propitious moment or because he is afraid that, by doing so, he might make them even worse or because he fears that, if he does so, they might start obstructing others who are weak and need guidance to a good and godly life, putting pressure on them and turning them away from the faith, this does not appear to be a pretense of desire but rather the counsel of love. What is blameworthy is that people who live quite differently from evildoers, and abhor their deeds, are nonetheless indulgent towards the sins of others when they ought to teach them otherwise and rebuke them. It is blameworthy, that is, when they do this for fear of offending people who might do them harm with regard to things which the good may certainly use, permissibly and innocently, but which they are pursuing more avidly than is proper for people who are only on pilgrimage in this world, bearing with them the hope of a heavenly homeland. It is not only the weaker ones, who live the married life, who have or wish to have children, who have houses and families — these are the people whom the Apostle addresses in the churches, teaching and warning them how they ought to live, wives with husbands and husbands with wives, children with parents and parents with children, slaves with masters and masters with slaves — that are glad to acquire many temporal and earthly things and grieve to lose them, and therefore do not dare to offend people whose deeply contaminated and utterly criminal way of life they detest. Even those who hold to a higher order of life — who are not entangled in the bonds of matrimony and do not make much use of food or clothing — often refrain from reproving evildoers because they are fearful that evildoers will plot against them and attack their reputation and welfare. Although they are not so afraid of evildoers that they would ever agree to act in the same way,  no matter what threats and villanies they faced, they are often unwilling, all the same, to rebuke actions they would never join evildoers in committing. And they are unwilling to do so, even though their rebukes might put some on the right path. They are fearful that, if they do not succeed, their own reputation and welfare might be endangered or ruined; and this is not because they consider their reputation and welfare to be necessary for use in instructing others, but rather because of the weakness that delights in a flattering tongue and human popularity and is terrified of the judgement of the crowd and the torture or death of the flesh. It is due, that is, to a kind of bondage to desire, not to the obligations of love.

“This seems to me, therefore, to be no small reason why the good are scourged along with the evil… they are scourged together not because they both lead an evil life but because they both love this temporal life. They do not love it equally, of course, but they both love it. In truth, however, the good ought to think nothing of temporal life so that the evil, rebuked and corrected, might attain eternal life. But if the evil refuse to join them in attaining it, let the evil at least be endured and loved as enemies, for, as long as they are alive, it always remains uncertain whether their will might not be changed for the better.”

— St. Augustine, City of God


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Quick note from Lance about this post: when you choose to comment (or share this post with your friends) you help other readers just like you.

How?

Well, see, your comments & sharing whisper a few things to those who come after you:

The first is that this site is a safe place to speak up & stay curious. That it's civil. That discussion is encouraged. That there's no such thing as a stupid question (being a student of Socrates, I really and truly believe this). That talking to one another and growing together is more important than anything we could possibly publish. That the point is growing in virtue and growing together and growing wise. That discovery is invention, deference is originality, that we all can rise together. The only folks I'm going to take comments down from are obvious jerks who argue in bad faith, don't stay curious, or actively make personal attacks. And, frankly, I'd rather we talk here than on some social media farm — I will never show ads and the only thing I'm selling anywhere on the site or my mailing list is just the stuff I make.

You're also helping folks realize that anything you & they build together is far more important than anything you come to me to read. I take the things I write about seriously, but I don't take myself seriously: I play the fool, I hate cults of personality, and I also don't really like being the center of attention (believe it or not). I would much rather folks connect because of an introduction I've made or because they commented with one another back and forth and then build something beautiful together. My favorite contributions have been lifelong business and love partnerships from two people who have forgotten I introduced them. Some of my closest friends NOW I literally met on another blog's comment section fifteen years ago. I would love for that to happen here — let two of you meet and let me fade into the background.

Last, you help me revise. I'm wrong. Often. I'm not embarrassed to admit it or worried about being cancelled or publicly shamed. I make a fool out of myself (that's sort of the point). So as I get feedback, I can say, "I was wrong about that" and set a model for curious, consistent learning, and growing in wisdom. I'm blind to what I don't know and as grows the island of my knowledge so grows the shoreline of my ignorance. It's the recovery of innocence on the far end of experience: a child is in a permanent state of wonder. So are the wise: they aren't afraid of saying, "I don't know. That's new: please teach me." That's my goal, comments help. And I read all reviews: my skin's tough, but that's not license to be needlessly cruel. We teach one another our habits and there's a way to civilly demolish an idea without demolishing another person: just because I personally can take the world's meanest 1-star review doesn't mean we should teach one another how to be crueler on the internet.

For three magical reasons — your brave curiosity, your community, & my ignorance:

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