Rationalizing: Hiding From The Light
Memorial of Saint Stanislaus, Bishop and Martyr
My dear encountered couples:
Do you ever rationalize? I’m not talking about being a person who thinks and reasons. We should all do that, and probably much more often then we do. Humans are supposed to think and reason.
When I talk about rationalizing I’m talking about coming up with self-satisfying but incorrect reasons for doing something we deep down know we shouldn’t do. Is there ever anything you want to do so badly, but which you know you shouldn’t do, that you reason in your case it is all right to do. In other words, you reason that in your case there is an exception permitting you to do what is forbidden. There is a sin you want to commit and you reason that in your case and circumstance it is not a sin. And so you do it. Ever do that?
Now, it is true there are exceptions to many things, but we must understand there are not exceptions to every thing. Some things like love of God and neighbor, don’t judge and condemn, forgive and forgive and forgive are carved in marble and God wants us to live up to them. We are not to manufacture reasons for not loving and forgiving this person, for judging and condemning that one. When we do we are merely hiding from the truth. Jesus in speaking about himself as the light which makes visible all truth says this in our gospel today:
In today’s gospel reading Jesus says, “The light came into the world, but men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were wicked. Everyone who practices evil hates the light; he does not come near it for fear his deeds will be exposed.”
That is what can happen when we rationalize. We hide from Christ and his light. Do you ever rationalize?
