44- Tongue-control

 

St-Takla.org Image: The tongue, talkative person, opinion. صورة في موقع الأنبا تكلا: لسان، شخص ثرثار، رأي.

The spiritual man does not say all that comes to his mind from words or ideas. He weighs each word before he utters it, as we have discussed this issue before here on st-takla.org in other sections. His scale does not stop at the essence of the word, if it is right or wrong in itself...

But his concern is also about the effect of the word on others, its reactions and the result of that...

The one who knows the result of the faults of the tongue and the fire it kindles and how it defiles the whole body (Jas 3:5,6)..this man is very careful before he talks, and says:

“Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips” (Ps 141:3).

He knows that the word that goes out of his mouth will never come back once more, because it has reached the ears of the listeners and has been counted on him, no matter how he will try to take it back or apologize for it or mend its results...! But it has become a cause for judgement, according to the Lord’s saying that: “...By your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Mt 12:37).

Among his qualities: Self-control

The Spiritual Man Books by H. H. Pope Shenouda III

Thought-control