A priest wrote it.
From the Doctor Angelicus:
Whether railing or reviling is always a mortal sin (II-II:72:2)
Words are injurious to other persons, not as sounds, but as signs, and this signification depends on the speaker’s inward intention. Hence, in sins of word, it seems that we ought to consider with what intention the words are uttered. Since then railing or reviling essentially denotes a dishonouring, if the intention of the utterer is to dishonour the other man, this is properly and essentially to give utterance to railing or reviling: and this is a mortal sin no less than theft or robbery, since a man loves his honour no less than his possessions. If, on the other hand, a man says to another a railing or reviling word, yet with the intention, not of dishonouring him, but rather perhaps of correcting him or with some like purpose, he utters a railing or reviling not formally and essentially, but accidentally and materially, in so far to wit as he says that which might be a railing or reviling. Hence this may be sometimes a venial sin, and sometimes without any sin at all. Nevertheless there is need of discretion in such matters, and one should use such words with moderation, because the railing might be so grave that being uttered inconsiderately it might dishonour the person against whom it is uttered. In such a case a man might commit a mortal sin, even though he did not intend to dishonour the other man: just as were a man incautiously to injure grievously another by striking him in fun, he would not be without blame.
I saw it here.
In blogging and on social media there is much sin.
Words are weapons. We have always been taught this. Jesus taught this. He was careful and sparing in his words. Today we are copious in words. Vicious and vengeful. Lies are repeated until they take on the appearance of truth. With social media it can never stop. We need leaders with integrity. When will they come? Who will they be? Lies and sin have fertile ground. Truth and righteousness not so much. The only defense is to turn away from the gossip mongers. A bad tree cannot bear good fruit.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this, Terry. I have stopped blogging for this reason. I don’t want to be part of the hate anymore. And it isn’t just the bloggers but those who comment as well. I have seen horrendous, vicious comments.
ReplyDeleteI use to tell myself that I was blogging to counteract all the hate I was seeing, trying to point out the lies that were being promulgated. But nothing can dissuade those who want to believe the lies. All they do is get even more vicious and hateful. Our Lord told us that when people reject the truth, we should not stay and argue with them, but just wipe the dust off our feet and move on, just as wallacehamilton said in his comment. And that is what I have done.
One last comment - the source you give is ironic, to say the least. The hate there, both by the blogger and the readers, is sometime overwhelming.
ReplyDeleteSorry to be filling up your comment box, but if anyone wishes to read all that St Thomas Aquinas wrote, it is here:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.summatheologica.info/summa/questions/?q=305&a=1597
This is part of it:
“Just as it is lawful to strike a person, or damnify him in his belongings for the purpose of correction, so too, for the purpose of correction, may one say a mocking word to a person whom one has to correct. It is thus that our Lord called the disciples "foolish," and the Apostle called the Galatians "senseless." Yet, as Augustine says 6, "seldom and only when it is very necessary should we have recourse to invectives, and then so as to urge God's service, not our own."
And also
“It belongs to wittiness to utter some slight mockery, not with intent to dishonor or pain the person who is the object of the mockery, but rather with intent to please and amuse: and this may be without sin, if the due circumstances be observed. on the other hand if a man does not shrink from inflicting pain on the object of his witty mockery, so long as he makes others laugh, this is sinful, as stated in the passage quoted.”
I figure if you don't get a few nasty letters and emails as a priest you're probably doing something wrong!
ReplyDelete