“No innocence can shield a man from the calumnies of the wicked. It is only at the tree laden with fruit that men throw stones……… If we would live without being slandered we must wait until we get to heaven………..If there are no believers in lies, there will be but a dull market in falsehood, and good men's characters will be safe……..Evil will always have an ill will towards the good; therefore, be sure that they will not speak well of you.”

Gospel Text: (Mt 11:16-19)

Jesus said to the crowds:
“To what shall I compare this generation? 
It is like children who sit in marketplaces and call to one another,
‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance,
we sang a dirge but you did not mourn.’ 
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said,
‘He is possessed by a demon.’ 
The Son of Man came eating and drinking and they said,
‘Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard,
a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ 
But wisdom is vindicated by her works.”

 

What we have here is the ugly sin of calumny.  Calumny is the intentional twisting of facts so as to misrepresent the truth.  Basically, calumny is a lie meant to do harm to another. When someone gives into calumny, they often look at some virtue in another and twist it some way so as to deceive and misrepresent the truth.  And it is often done out of envy or jealousy. 

 

When you see goodness in another are you able to rejoice in that fact?  Are you able to honestly give thanks to God for their goodness?  Or do you immediately start to interpret their virtue in a false way?