Catholic Answers Live #12612 How to Avoid Gossip – Fr. Gregory Pine - Fr. Gregory Pine
Mar 3, 2026
Fr. Gregory Pine, a Dominican priest and theologian who teaches theology and wrote Training the Tongue, discusses sins and virtues of speech. He talks about overcoming cussing and cultivating richer language. He considers blasphemy in acting and viewers’ responsibility. He explores little lies, equivocation, and how to correct disrespectful speech with charity.
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Cultivate Virtuous Speech Not Just Root Out Sins
- Do cultivate virtues of speech to crowd out sins rather than simply policing faults.
- Fr. Gregory Pine compares tending a garden of beautiful plants to filling speech with charity so weeds (gossip) are easier to manage.
Speech Exists To Build Communion
- Insight: The primary purpose of speech is to create communion by making spiritual life shareable through embodied words and gestures.
- Fr. Gregory Pine explains speech bridges bodily distance by allowing one person to take up another's thoughts and affections.
Replace Cussing To Protect Your Moral Vocabulary
- Do avoid habitual cussing to protect moral creativity, prudence, and avoid scandal.
- Fr. Gregory Pine warns swearing can debase vocabulary, open doors to other sins, and scandalize observers of faith.
