Dear Friends,
A story for this week from a scene in the film Doubt which shows the destructive nature of gossip.
A woman was gossiping with her friend about a man whom they hardly knew. That night, she had a dream: a great hand appeared over her and pointed down on her. She was immediately seized with an overwhelming sense of guilt. The next day she went to confession and told the old parish priest, Father O’Rourke, the whole thing. ‘Is gossiping a sin?’ she asked the old man. ‘Was that God Almighty’s hand pointing down at me? Father. Have I done something wrong?’
‘Yes,’ Father O’Rourke answered. You have blamed false witness on your neighbour. You played fast and loose with his reputation, and you should be heartily ashamed.’
So, the woman said she was sorry, and asked for forgiveness. ‘Not so fast,’ said O’Rourke. ‘I want you to go home, take a pillow up onto your roof, cut it open with knife, and return here to me.’ So, the woman went home; took a pillow off her bed, a knife from the kitchen drawer, went up the fire escape to her roof and stabbed the pillow. Then she went back to the old parish priest as instructed. ‘Did you cut the pillow with a knife?’ he said. ‘Yes, Father.’ ‘And what were the results?’ ‘Feathers,’ she said. ‘Feathers?’ he repeated. ‘Feathers, everywhere, Father.’
‘Now I want you to go back and gather up ever last feather that flew out onto the wind.’ ‘Well,’ she said, ‘it can’t be done. I don’t know where they went. The wind took them all over.’
‘And that,’ said Father O’Rourke, ‘is gossip!’
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The power and effect we wield in our speaking, for good or ill, is mighty, beyond imagining; especially in the age of social media. See James 3: 1 – 12.
Peace
Tim