If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all according to folk wisdom. It reminds me of Mrs. Magillicudy who commented on her neighbor who was convicted of being a mass murderer: “Well, he was always nice to his mother.” It is easy to find fault, to criticize, to put down. St. James warns us about this practice: “Do not complain, brothers and sisters, about one another, that you may not be judged” (James 5:9). One possible corrective: St. Ignatius advises spiritual directors to always put the most positive interpretation on what people say and do. If we practice that in daily life we might find that things are not as bad as we imagine.
MAY202016
By Church Staff
