There is one universal truth we all know and frequently utter “No one is perfect.” This truth puts more sense to a well known proverb “no one is an island.” For indeed if no one is perfect, each one needs another to fill in the gaps. One way of filling in the gap is by giving a brotherly or sisterly correction. This means nicely telling our friends, relatives, co-workers etc some wrong habits or actions done. Why? Because many times they are not aware of these bad habits or are ignorant of the ill effects of action done. In fact one writer capture this inherent ineffeciency of judging ourselves rightly in his book “The Little Prince.” In that book Antoine de Saint-Exupéry has written through his main character the words ” It is much more difficult to judge oneself than to judge others. If you succeed in judging yourself rightly, then you are indeed a man of true wisdom.” Given such inherent deficiency, everyone has the duty then to politely correct others fault and accept the correction of others.
Correcting someone’s fault is as easy as a snap because we are more inclined to be judgemental of others. But take note that the gospel specifies the steps. The first step is between you and him alone. That is how we correct nicely or politely: first is in privacy. Yet, correcting the person in private seems to be very difficult. More often our heart started to pound so strong raising hair follicles to freak out into goose bumps. Then instead of taking courage, we started to gather a cover up for our cowardliness and disguise it in a cloth of a goody-goody statement “I don’t want a fight”. But it is actually chickening out. However, it doesn’t stop there. Our system oftentimes demands a venting out, to release the tension boiling inside. These is felt even more strongly by those who were the ones offended or annoyed. Since we do not have that fortitude to tell the erring person head on, we ended up saying it to someonelse springing forth to back biting and gossiping. Something indeed not apt because if we ask ourself what we prefer: we would definitely want the to be confronted than stabbed at the back. That is why one time while conversing with my staff I told her, “If ever you have a problem with me, tell it to me right away. It is alright to have a confrontation or small verbal fight now but things are resolved right after than talking to other people about me. The later will not solve any problem rather even prolong and enlarge it. Worse still when your issue reached me hearing from second or third party, things has become gigantically exagerated; embarrasing me gravely and consequently making me very very mad that we ended up at war with each other.” Private correction even confrontational ones therefore is far more than being courageous. It is also pro-active, just and truely loyal.
Take note however that this gospel has mentioned the word “LISTEN” four times. Such implies that fraternal correction comes with the other side of the coin: to listen. Listening definitely is far beyong hearing it only. Listening meant to hear, pay attention to what was said, apologize and mend ways. Otherwise, you will end up hearing it from an ever growing number of group until you LEARN to LISTEN. Now-a-days it is even far more imperative to listen. Why? Because if you don’t you will read it in social networking sites: facebook, twitter… worse still watch your erring self in action at youtube (that reminds me of the viral “am a liar” girl in Philippines). That is a far larger scale of negative exposure: global. But there is one leader who demonstrated an excellent listening skills that renders the entire world in awe. Before a world wide live telecast, at the balcony a man came out clothed in white greeting his flock with a speach. In his speach, a sentence that left the whole world astounded. Cardinal Karol Wojtyla having been elected Pope John Paul II to be Christ’s representative here on earth and to whom the entire Roman Catholic Church refer to as “Your Holiness” has spoken: “If I make mistake, you will correct me.” A command for the implementation of these gospel message and a declaration of pro-active openness to listen to correction. As Pope in fact, he officially made public apologies for over 100 of these supposed wrongdoings of Christians in the past: Jews (silence of Christians during the Holocaust ), Galileo, women, people convicted by the Inquisition, Muslims killed by the Crusaders and almost everyone who had allegedly suffered at the hands of the Catholic Church over the years. These public apologies he made are manifestations that he heard the corrections, took the sins as his own and even straighten the crooked ways in a statement ” An excuse is worse and more terrible than a lie, for an excuse is a lie guarded.” It is but just to refer to him as “your holiness” and be canonized saint nine years after his death. Pope John Paul II, listened to correction in “holiness degree.”
Tuklong 