Catholic Classics Day 27: Speaking Virtuously (Introduction to the Devout Life)
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Nov 19, 2022 AI Snips
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Detraction Is Like Murder
- St. Francis de Sales equates detraction with murder, arguing slander kills a person's civic life and harms speaker and listener spiritually.
- He frames three lives—spiritual, bodily, civil—and says detraction robs the civil life like a death.
Never Slander Even Under A Joke
- Avoid slandering others directly or indirectly, and refuse to impute false crimes or aggravate known faults.
- Reject “I mean well” prefaces and jokes that veil malicious insinuations, which deepen damage to hearers and reputation.
Don’t Call One Act A Habit
- Don’t label someone by a single sinful act; a one-time fault doesn’t prove habitual vice.
- Use examples St. Francis gives: Noah drunk once doesn’t make him a drunkard; one act needs habit to name a vice.