Do not bear false testimony against your neighbor

You probably want to be relevant to others. You want, that people respect you and respect you. You feel painfully disrespect or lenient treatment by colleagues or by someone in your family. You do not want, to be ridiculed. Why are you afraid of it and consider it evil ?

Maybe it is even a grave sin

People still talk to each other. The topic of their conversations is often the other person. They should not be in the conduct of a Christian :

Slander

During various types of meetings, mistakes are a frequent topic of conversation, other people's weaknesses or sins. Such matters are brought to light, which ridicule others, they undermine confidence in them, and thus harm them. This behavior is called gossip. Fact, that these are real things, nor does it justify slander, for one must not harm another by revealing even his true mistakes. For everyone has the right to a good name and the eighth commandment of God is upholding it : "Do not bear false witness against your neighbor". It also obliges us to make amends for the harm caused.
However, there are situations, when allowed, and it is even necessary to talk about the real mistakes and sins of people. It allows it, and even makes love of neighbor do so, in order to correct it or save society from evil, or other people. For example,. be warned against dishonest persons, which may harm others or society.

Slander

A serious sin, and often mortal against the eighth commandment of God, there is slander also called slandering one's neighbor. They make it, who make up the mistakes and sins of others and proclaim them as real. As a result, they cause harm, sometimes very serious. Neighbors are often intrigued in this way, colleagues from the same workplace, and even the youth. The evil of slander is not only this, that she takes a good name, that is, it defames a man. It can bring about other bad results, like breaking up the family, job loss, the disease, deprivation of liberty, and even death.
Never and never slander anyone. Who did it, he is obliged to recall this slander and make good the harm done.
He also sins against the truth, who tells others flattery, that is, it attributes advantages to them, which they do not have at all. The wise don't like flattery. Knowledge, that they can only harm them. They don't want to live in a world of delusions and fantasies, which degrade man, and they can also cause harm and injustice.

Motives of slander, slander and flattery

People mock or slander for a variety of reasons. Some spread the errors and sins of others, because they enjoy it. Sometimes they do it to please the audience. And it happens, that they do it out of reluctance, and even out of hatred for the other, to humiliate him in the eyes of others or even to harm him. Sometimes, by speaking ill of others, people want to present themselves in a better light. This mainly concerns slander, which are always about harming someone. Sometimes a neighbor is slandered, to take up his position. Others are flaunting someone again, because they want to get something from him.
It happens anyway, that someone is saying real or imaginary things about others as a joke, for fun, simply for the amusement of the company. However, one should be very careful and prudent in this, lest the naive take things seriously, and those without a sense of humor were not offended, the absent did not suffer any harm.
Since you demand from others, that they respect your human dignity and you want to have a good name among people, start respecting the good name and dignity of the other person first. And you will do this not only by refraining from gossip, especially against slander, but also defending the slandered and slandered.

God stands up for human dignity and good name

On the third Sunday of Lent in the Liturgy of the Word, you will hear the following commandment of God : ,,You will not tell lies against your neighbor as a witness " (Wj 20, 16). And on Monday of the first week of Lent, you can hear the following call from God :
,,God said to Moses : Speak to the whole community of the sons of Israel and tell them : Be saints, because I am holy, Pan, Your God ! […] you will not lie, you will not cheat one another. You will not falsely swear by my name […]. You will not be partial to the poor, nor will you be favored by the rich. You will judge your neighbor justly. You shall not slander your relatives […]. You will not hate your brother in your heart. You will admonish your neighbor, so as not to be guilty because of him " (Lt. 19, 1-2. 11-17).
With words once addressed to the Israelites, the same living God now calls each of us to keep the commandment of love by avoiding falsehood, deception in speech and hypocrisy. He also calls, that everyone would protect others from slander and slander by others. St.. he calls slander a search for the life of one's neighbor, hence it puts it almost on a par with killing a man. God calls us so-, that, that we may have the courage to admonish our neighbor, who sins slander and slander. A Christian defends the good name of every human being, because he remembers the words of Jesus Christ : "All, what you did to one of the least of these my brothers, You did to me " (Mt 25, 40).

How will I answer God ?

You realize better now, how much evil do people do to one another through the sins of reverie, slander and flattery. God is calling you to do so, so that you can be responsible for your words. Do you understand the rite of giving peace during Holy Mass?. ?
How do you behave in such company, where without love one speaks of fellow men ? Can you and do you have the courage to change the topic of the conversation? ? Are you trying to find any advantages in the man, to which you dislike ?

Compose a prayer for those wronged by slander or slander.

■ Think :

1. What wrongs do sins of libel cause, slander or flattery ?

2. How is gossip different from slander? ?

3. Why flattery can hurt someone ?

4. What most people lead to slander, slander and flattery ?

5. What the Scriptures Say About Slander and Slander ?

■ Remember :

45. What evil comes from slander and slander ?

Sin of slander and slander defames man and may have other tragic consequences for his life, and even death.

46. What the slanderer is obligated to do ? The slanderer is obliged to revoke the slander and to make good the resulting harm.

47. What God calls us to do in the eighth commandment ?

In the eighth commandment, God calls us to respect and defend our neighbor's good name.

■ Task :

1. Consider, there is no one in the circle of your colleagues who has been hurt by slander or slander ?

2. Justify the sentence of St.. Jana Kantego : “Beware of slander, because it's hard to cancel ".

3. Why do public opinion rightly condemn anonyms ?