Stumbling Blocks
The Main Idea of the Lecture
The lecture speaks about the concept of stumbling blocks in spiritual life, meaning that a person becomes a cause for the fall of others into sin or their distance from the spiritual path. Pope Shenouda III explains that the Lord Christ strongly warned against stumbling blocks, especially the stumbling of the simple and the little ones, because a person may bear responsibility for the fall of others because of his actions, words, or ideas.
Meaning of the Stumbling Block
A stumbling block means that a person causes another to fall into sin, whether intentionally or unintentionally. It may come from wrong teaching, giving a bad example, or introducing others to sin that they did not know before. Therefore, a person must be careful in his words and actions so that he does not become a cause of the fall of others.
Ways Stumbling Happens
Pope Shenouda III points out that stumbling may happen in several ways, such as:
- Introducing an innocent person to sin or explaining it to him.
- Making a person taste sin for the first time so he becomes accustomed to it.
- Facilitating sin and justifying it or giving it pleasant names that hide its truth.
- Spreading wrong ideas or doubts that weaken faith.
- Presenting a bad example in behavior or morals.
Stumbling Through Example
A bad example is one of the most dangerous types of stumbling, because people often imitate what they see. Parents may cause their children to stumble if they provide a bad example in speech or behavior. Likewise, leaders or officials may become a cause for the spread of many mistakes if their conduct is not sound.
Human Responsibility Toward Others
The spiritual teaching confirms that a person is not judged only for his personal sins, but he may also be judged for the sins he caused in others. Therefore every person should examine himself so that he does not become a cause for the fall or weakness of others.
Discernment in the Concept of Stumbling
Not everything that causes others to stumble is a sin on the part of the person. Some may stumble because of their envy or the weakness of their hearts, not because of a real fault. Therefore there must be discernment between sin that truly causes stumbling and good things that others may misunderstand.
The Right Spiritual Path
The correct path is that a person lives in purity of heart and obedience to the commandment, striving to:
- not fall into stumbling himself,
- and not become a stumbling block for others.
The believer is called to be a light and a good example for others, not a cause of their fall.
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