The Wrong View from the Back Pew

Most of us are familiar with the Native American saying: “Don't judge a man until you've walked a mile in his moccasins.” Well, I have a church version of it: “Don't pass judgment on your fellow Catholic during Mass unless you're sitting on the same pew.”

Last summer while visiting my brother in Florida, the Lord taught me a lesson about how to look at other people's actions from His point of view, instead of mine. During Sunday Mass, I sat in the last pew as I typically do. The church was not very crowded, and I had a clear view –or so I thought – of the backs of everyone in the congregation.

One of the obvious drawbacks of sitting in the back of the church is my tendency sometimes to get distracted watching people, instead of paying attention during Mass. During the Consecration, I noticed a woman in her late 30s sitting two pews directly in front of me. She sat on the edge of her pew, slouching forward with her head down through most of the Eucharistic prayer. For some reason, I started to get annoyed that she wasn't kneeling. The priest’s prayers of “This is my Body” and “This is my Blood” did not register in my mind at that moment, and I only vaguely remember praying the Our Father. But I clearly remember when the same woman slowly turned around at the sign of peace.

She was very pregnant.

As I leaned forward to shake her hand, I was humbled but also relieved that only God can read our minds. I immediately thanked Our Lord for the lesson I’d learned, and I said a quick prayer for the woman and her unborn baby to atone for my self-righteous thoughts.

I still sit in the back pew these days, but now I make an effort to keep my gaze fixed on the altar. Everyone knows we're not supposed to pass judgment on others, but we often fall in that trap because of our human weakness. Sometimes, if we're fortunate, the Lord makes us aware of it and asks us to remove “the plank” from our eyes. Other times, our neighbor reminds us that we're human, too.

Next time we're tempted to question someone else, in church or anywhere else, perhaps we should strive to see things from that person's point of view instead. Better yet, we should ask God for His guidance before we jump to conclusions, because He always has a better view than we do.