No one but God can make the final judgment, but we are all required to make intermediate judgments of others, Elder Dallin H. Oaks said Sunday.
Oaks, a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles of the LDS Church, spoke at a Church Educational System fireside broadcast from Brigham Young University's Marriott Center. The former associate justice of the Utah Supreme Court said the scriptural concept of judging is a topic he has thought about at length."I've been puzzled that some scriptures tell us not to judge and others seemingly command us to do it," he said.
Oaks said he became convinced the two commands were compatible when he realized that mortals are commanded not to make final judgments but are commanded to make intermediate judgments. Mortals lack the wisdom and knowledge that God has and are therefore unqualified to say someone else is definitely going to heaven or hell, Oaks said.
To do so would be like declaring the outcome of an athletic contest before the game is over. Even Jesus Christ refrained from making final judgments while on Earth, Oaks said. Christ told the adulterous woman that he didn't condemn her and that she should go her way and repent.
"The Lord obviously did not condone her sin," Oaks said. "He simply did not condemn her, that is, pass final judgment on her at that time."
On the other hand, he told students they are required to judge others for limited purposes to meet certain scriptural commands. For example, mortals are told to beware of false prophets, so they must judge whether those who say they are prophets are telling the truth.
"We all make judgments in choosing our friends, in choosing how to spend our time and money and in choosing our eternal companion," Oaks said.
Oaks outlined six tips given by the scriptures to help us judge righteously. First, a judgment must be intermediate and refrain from declaring that a person has forfeited all opportunity for exaltation.
Second, righteous judgments must be guided by the Spirit of the Lord. They also must be made within one's stewardship, Oaks said. For example, while the scriptures declare that no one should take the sacrament unworthily, rank-and-file members shouldn't presume to decide who is worthy but should leave that to bishops, he said.
Fourth, individuals should refrain from judging until they have an adequate knowledge of the facts. Oaks related the story of a BYU professor who became upset when one student persistently whispered to another during a class.
The professor became annoyed and nearly asked the students to leave. However, he was glad he didn't when he learned that one of the students was deaf. She could read lips, but the other student had to tell her what the professor was saying when he turned his back to the class to write on the chalkboard.
While individuals should seek to gain an adequate knowledge of facts, that doesn't mean they have to presume innocence in every situation. For example, Oaks asked, if someone is arrested for child sexual abuse and then freed on bail, would it be necessary to let him or her baby-sit one's own children before the case goes to trial? The fifth hint is to refrain from judging people and to instead judge situations. One LDS couple did this correctly when they asked a son who smoked not to do so inside their home or in front of his siblings but continued to show love for the boy, Oaks said.
Sixth, mortals should apply righteous standards when judging others. The standards shouldn't be too harsh, nor should the consequences be too drastic. People must remember that with what judgment they judge, they will also be judged, Oaks said.
Finally, Oaks said, when making judgments mortals must remember two key principles: forgiveness and love.
"Forgiveness is a companion to the commandment that in final judgments, we judge not, and that in intermediate judgments, we judge righteously," he said.
Oaks told students they should echo the sentiment of President James E. Faust of the First Presidency, who said: "The older I get, the less judgmental I become."