Name calling has been around since humans could talk. The Bible, in the Book of Genesis, has Noah cursing his grandson, Canaan, in Chapter 9, Verse 25 when he says: “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves shall be to his brothers.” It had to do with indecent sexual practices in the Canaanite religion.
When Jesus walked on the earth, we read in the Gospel according to Matthew in Chapter 24 at His trial before the Sanhedrin, Verses 66 – 68, that members of these Jewish priests said: “He deserves death!” Then they began to spit in His face and hit Him. Others slapped Him, saying: “Play the prophet for us, Messiah! Who struck you?”
According to Wikipedia, Name Calling is a form of argument in which insulting or demeaning labels are directed at an individual or group. Politicians sometimes resort to name calling during political campaigns or public events with the intention of gaining advantage over, or defending themselves from, an opponent or critic. Often such name calling takes the form of labelling an opponent as an unreliable and untrustworthy source.
From a Christian perspective, Name Calling obfuscates the truth of the matter, whatever that may be. To render things obscure, unclear or unintelligible hides the real meaning of something which now needs to be clarified. It is becoming more difficult to discern what someone means when they say one thing and then explain it in another way to avoid how the receiving party heard it and assigned a belief to it.
In 2024 we have seen political candidates call opponents names to discredit their status as someone who is worthy of running for office. The wars between Russia and Ukraine and Israel with the Palestinians (Hamas and Hezbollah) have not only used name calling to illustrate their strength but have rioted in countries and colleges to ensure that their side gets an upper edge no matter how it affects anyone. This has included using physical means of harming, even killing, their opponents.
The tragedy in all of this is that the vision of the name callers is a way to avoid one’s own faults and to make one look better at another’s expense. Though it may seem like an accurate description of what happened, it is a surface response to diminish the one being called a name and a belief that the person using this tactic is better than that person or others. What is being said obfuscates any negative side to the name calling parties. If you say it often and loud enough, what is said must be true and, therefore, your side is the truth.
What has been forgotten is that all of us make mistakes at times. If we cannot find forgiveness when that happens, how do we get past our own faults when we err? As Catholic Christians, we are called to be mindful of how powerful our words are and empathetic to how they affect people. Jesus throughout His lifetime on earth always illustrated to us how positive we need to be to others. Even in times when He was correcting the Pharisees who followed the ways of the Lord, He reminded them that their words and actions did not help those to follow God’s ways but caused people to sin and fall out of grace.
The next time we are put into a position where we are either a witness to or recipient of name calling, let us think before we respond about how the message being sent and our response can be one of help to bring truth to light for both sides. The truth will allow us to then work towards peace and justice rather than create disharmony and a continuance of ways to hurt others to provide a false sense of superiority. God is about love, not destruction!
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