The Bible tells us not that we are what we eat, but that we are what we worship. We are like the idols that we construct (Psalm 115:8). One step removed from the idols, I think we might also be like the demons that we worship. We not only accuse others of all manner of evil intent, and then interpret their actions in light of the intent we have assigned, but we use our own evil intent as fodder. To put it even more succinctly, we accuse others of doing what we would do, were we in their position.
I see this particular phenomena most frequently in the netherworld of social media. There our worst behavior finds the light of day, particularly when our real name is shielded from the watching world. Hiding behind the idle idol of anonymity, we spew our venom on others. One of the most frequent applications of this diabolical principle I call the Hail Caesar assault. Here is how it works. Internet assassin A sees that public figure D had his salary rise by X percent in the previous year. He not only points out the objective reality of the increase in pay (with no context to speak of) but then argues, “Public figure D gave himself an X percent raise.” And the crowd boos the nefarious Public figure D. Nice, huh?
Here are some things A either does not know, or chooses to conceal. Perhaps public figure D, the previous year, took a pay cut to help balance the budget. Perhaps public figure D came up with a brilliant strategy that saved the organization, and sent income through the roof while increasing ministry effectiveness. Perhaps public figure D had been grossly underpaid for years.
And here is where the evil motive comes in. The president of any not-for-profit institution, for all the power he has been given, does not have the power to set his own salary. The only people on the planet with that kind of power are those who own their own businesses, and if they want to give themselves a raise, who are we to quibble? Internet Assassin A, however, would like us to believe that decisions are made by powerful people all on their own, that Public Figure D must run his organization the way Internet Assassin A would run it, were he in charge.
Having received the internet treatment myself from time to time, I’m familiar with all this. What troubles me far more, however, than the work of the assassins, is the accomplices they bring along, their readers. If I had a dime for every time I have been asked, “Why did you do Y?” when in fact I did no such thing, well, Internet Assassin A would be commenting on how high I live on the hog, speculating no doubt that I got all those dimes by selling indulgences.
Friends, I’m not suggesting no wrongs have been done by public figures, nor that we should all remain silent in the face of them. I am saying we should be on the lookout for this kind of dirty trick. Better yet, pay no attention to anonymous internet assassins. Why don’t we all try practicing a little love, which thinks no evil? And why don’t we get busy minding our own sanctification? Sit not in the seat of scoffers.