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Elder Nazarius of Valaam: Why It Is Better to Fall Than to Judge Your Neighbor
8:48
What the video says
Elder Nazarius of Valaam teaches on not judging one's neighbor. He says it is sometimes better to fall and rise oneself than to judge, because the sinner is led to repentance while the judge becomes hardened in pride. Everyone must examine his own conscience, since all are sinful and no one can be justified before God by his deeds.
God alone is the judge of all, and He judges each person according to his strength, station and circumstances. Two stories from the Prologue show the terrible consequences of judging: a holy man who judged a fallen brother was asked by an angel to decide that soul's fate, and John the Sabayete was cast out from Christ's presence in a vision for judging his brother.
The elder urges readers to accuse themselves rather than others, to weep and pray for those who fall, and to leave judgment to the Son of God.
Key moments
- It is sometimes better to fall oneself and rise than to judge one's neighbor, since the sinner is incited to repentance while the judge becomes hardened in pride.
- Everyone has participated in sin, even a person who lived a single day, for we are conceived in iniquity and born in sins; test yourself whether you are guilty in great or small sins, in deed, word or thought.
- No one can be justified before the Lord by his deeds; all are sinful and in need of God's aid and mercy, so how can a sinner presume to take the Creator's judgment on himself?
- You cannot know your brother's thoughts or contrition, and you cannot forgive or punish eternally, so you cannot judge; Christ said, 'Judge not that ye not be judged' (Matthew 7:1-2), and the Apostle warns that God's judgment is according to truth (Romans 2:2-3).
- In the Prologue under September 27th, a holy man who said 'this brother has done an evil thing' was shown by an angel the soul of the one he judged and asked to command whether it be placed in the kingdom or in torment; scarcely forgiven, he spent his whole life in lamentation.
- John the Sabayete, in the Prologue under October 22nd, saw in a vision Christ command that he be cast out as an antichrist because he judged his brother before Christ's judgment; he wandered seven years in the desert until the Lord returned his mantle to him.
- God alone justifies and judges His creation, judging kings, hierarchs, monks, ordinary people, the old, the young, the healthy and the infirm each in a different way according to their strength.
- Restrain yourself from judging even if you saw the sin with your own eyes; do not rejoice over a neighbor's fall, for only demons rejoice at this, but pray, weep and lament over him who falls, and accuse yourself, 'do thou first confess thy transgressions that thou mayest be justified' (Isaiah 43:26).
An audio reading from Anthony's Cell presents 'On Not Judging One's Neighbor' by Elder Nazarius of Valaam, an instruction on the spiritual danger of condemning others. The elder teaches that it is sometimes better to fall and rise oneself than to judge, because the sinner is led to repentance while the judge becomes hardened in pride.
He calls every person to examine his own conscience, since all are conceived in iniquity and born in sins, and no one can be justified before God by his deeds. God alone is the judge of all creation, and He judges each person according to his strength, station and circumstances. The reading recounts two stories from the Prologue. A holy man who judged a fallen brother was shown by an angel the soul of the one he judged and asked to decide whether it should be placed in the kingdom or in torment; scarcely forgiven, he spent his life in lamentation.
John the Sabayete, in a vision, heard Christ command that he be cast out as an antichrist because he judged his brother before Christ's judgment, and he wandered seven years in the desert until the Lord returned his mantle to him. The elder closes by urging readers to restrain themselves from judging even when they see a sin with their own eyes, to weep and pray for those who fall rather than rejoice over their fall, and to accuse themselves instead of others.
The recording runs just over eight minutes and is divided into chapters covering self-examination, the two Prologue accounts, and the call to prayer and weeping over one's own sins.
Main points
- Elder Nazarius teaches it is sometimes better to fall and rise than to judge, since the sinner is led to repentance while the judge hardens in pride.
- No one can be justified before God by deeds, so a sinner cannot presume to take the Creator's judgment on himself.
- In the Prologue under September 27, a holy man who judged a brother was asked by an angel to decide that soul's fate and spent his life in lamentation.
- John the Sabayete was cast out from Christ's presence in a vision for judging his brother and wandered seven years in the desert.
- The elder urges readers to accuse themselves, pray and weep for those who fall, and leave judgment to the Son of God.