June 08, 2025 Martha's Musings

Recently, as I was pondering the behavior of someone else, I had a God-inspired thought: “You, Martha Nell Arizpe, are not responsible for someone else’s behavior. You have your own behavior to worry about.” PTL! What a HUGE gift! Not only was I not held responsible for another person’s choices, I was also freed from the sin of “gossip”. Yes folks, gossip is indeed a sin, closely tied to the Scriptural verse “Judge not lest ye be judged.” (Matthew 7:1) Now, do not become confused about what is gossip and what is merely sharing relevant information. As an example, if your Aunt Pearl took a trip to Spain, sharing that information with friends and family is fine. However, if you add a snippet stating that “Poor Aunt Pearl is an Old Maid, and now that she’s old, she has no prospects” is not only tacky, but also clearly unnecessary. (Plus, the validity of the statement is in question, for sure.) Speaking for myself, I have a very well-developed conscience. The Holy Spirit keeps busy in his efforts to keep me out of trouble. I always get a little “nudge” when I participate in gossip. I feel that is because I absolutely know better than to gossip. Alas, my humanity comes out, and try as I may, there are occasions when I slip up. I not only disappoint God, I disappoint myself. Please don’t become confused about proper topics of conversation among friends. As Christian adults, we should all be able to realize when a discussion about someone’s welfare turns into a gossip session. Talking amongst friends about solutions to help another friend in need is doing God’s work, if the focus stays on things that God would be happy to see us do. If it drifts over into judging this person’s behavior or choices, we have drifted over into another lane. Do your best to stay out of that lane.

Blessings,
Martha Arizpe, St. John’s Prayer Team