Jesus gives us an important warning in today’s Gospel: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing.” It seems the proliferation of podcasts, tweets, and other social media has also brought a proliferation of conspiracy theories and false prophets. What some of these podcasters espouse in the name of Jesus or in the name of the Catholic church is not what Jesus or the church teaches. How are we to judge what is truly Christian and/or Catholic? Jesus tells us in today’s Gospel by their fruit, by what they do more than by what they say. Those who preach and espouse hatred and violence in the name of Christ are false prophets since Jesus teaches to “love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you.” Jesus not only taught love and forgiveness but also forgave those who crucified him.
Jesus is our sure guide to the will of God and the criteria to judge the different theories floating around on the Internet. The Sermon on the Mount gives us Jesus’ clear teaching on the will of God (Matthew 5-7). We should use his clear teaching on love, forgiveness, and mercy as a sure guide to discern if someone is a true or false prophet. A true prophet is one who is poor in spirit, humble, merciful, a peacemaker and who hungers and thirst for justice or righteousness (Matthew 5:3-10). If someone preaches and acts otherwise, they are a false prophet even if they claim to be speaking in the name of the church and even in the name of Jesus. Someone who preaches and seeks revenge, who continually resorts to name calling and who demeans and demonizes other people with whom they disagree is certainly not following the way of Jesus and is not sent from God.
Maybe we all need to take some time off from some of the social media and avoid the rabbit hole of various conspiracy theories and spend that time reading the Gospels and allowing Jesus to teach and guide us. Instead of spending time tweeting, perhaps watch the series “The Chosen” (www.thechosen.tv/en-us). This series is an excellent way not only to learn about the life of Jesus but also to encounter Jesus in a very moving and personal way. The Internet and social media can be a source for good if we are careful what we choose and limit our time on it. Let us take Jesus’ warning to heart as we listen to podcasts and communicate on social media: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing.”
Image: “Frieze of prophets” by Boston Public Library is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.