Here's the question:
What's the difference between an opinion and a judgment?
Often times the husband will make a comment and I'll think to myself he's being very judgmental. I'll express what I think he is doing, and he said he is merely expressing his opinion. I think there is a fine line between the two of them.
These are the definitions I found on www.askjeeves.com on the word judgment:
- The act or process of judging; the formation of an opinion after consideration or deliberation.
- The mental ability to perceive and distinguish relationships; discernment: Fatigue may affect a pilot's judgment of distances.
- The capacity to form an opinion by distinguishing and evaluating: His judgment of fine music is impeccable.
- The capacity to assess situations or circumstances and draw sound conclusions; good sense: She showed good judgment in saving her money. See synonyms at reason
- An opinion or estimate formed after consideration or deliberation, especially a formal or authoritative decision: awaited the judgment of the umpire.
- Law
- A determination of a court of law; a judicial decision.
- A court act creating or affirming an obligation, such as a debt.
- A writ in witness of such an act.
- An assertion of something believed.
- A misfortune believed to be sent by God as punishment for sin.
- The Last Judgment.
(noun) Opinion
- A belief or conclusion held with confidence but not substantiated by positive knowledge or proof: “The world is not run by thought, nor by imagination, but by opinion” (Elizabeth Drew)
- A judgment based on special knowledge and given by an expert: a medical opinion.
- A judgment or estimation of the merit of a person or thing: has a low opinion of braggarts.
- The prevailing view: public opinion.
- Law A formal statement by a court or other adjudicative body of the legal reasons and principles for the conclusions of the court
They both sound similar to me.
Am I judging someone if I think they are in the wrong when they marry the same sex? Or is it my right, my opinion to say that is wrong. They have a voice, don't I get one.
I was turning the channels yesterday afternoon and I came across a soap opera that had a Gay couple on it. The men started making out on day time t.v.!! I was disgusted and at the same time, I felt really sad. This isn't acceptable. And now it's mainstreamed on t.v., where little eyes can see this. I don't care if they are actors, they are representing something that is a big no, no to a lot of people. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate gays or lesbians. I have a few friends who are. I just don't like their choice they made. Love the person, hate the choice/ habit.
After saying this, does it make me too judgmental, or am I voicing my opinion?
I also grew up with the motto: Keep your opinions to yourself if they are going to hurt others. In certain situations doesn't the truth need to be told? Shouldn't we stand up for what we believe in? Do you see those stickers: Can we coexist? It has a lot of different religious symbols on it.
I want to live in a world of peace. I think we can all co exist. I think that every religion that follows Heavenly Father and believes that Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sins, has truth to it. Why do we have to rip each other apart, can't we love one another??? Can't we agree to disagree or will we judge and be opinionated?
(All comments are welcome whether you agree or disagree, after all it is your opinion/ judgment :) You are entitled to it just like I am. )
13 comments:
My opinion is... I just do not think this is a lifestyle that is choosen in most cases. Just like people do not choose to be born with birth defects.
Simply my opinion though and not a judgement on anyone. Hopeing not to offend either!
Thank you for the sweet comment you left on my blog. I love the mailbox they are the cutest!
This is pretty deep stuff my stranger/friend.
You and I share the same faith, so you probably know where I stand on topics like the one you mentioned. My thoughts on these matters are docterinally founded based on our church's beliefs and therefore, I do not believe fall under the category of opinion.
I am a firm believer in the fact that the Savior will be the one to pass judgement on others and I am grateful He is willing to do that, because I think it will be a hard task. Luckily He is wise and benevolent and will be just and merciful.
But I also believe that I have to make judgements about certain things/people as they pertain to my life, so yes, there will be times when I have to make judgements. As long as I am judging these things from a righteous and Christlike perspective, I feel pretty good about that.
I am certainly very careful about what I expose my children to and what they are taught about other's lifestyles. It is my right to judge what is appropriate for them.
It seems different though from being "judgemental" which has a negative connotation to it and makes me think that there is superiority and condemnation involved that isn't mine to give.
I've found that there are usually two groups of people - those who are willing to hear my opinions and judgements and even if they are different than their own, accept them as mine and respect that, AND those who condemn me for my opinions and judegements because they are different from their own.
In others words, you've chosen a very tough, touchy subject! Thanks for making me think a little.
Wow, you really have my wheels turning now. This is definitely food for thought. I do agree with everything you said.
I completely agree with Spymommy and believe that we have an obligation as Christians to "not be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the word of God." (Romans 12:2). Our Savior has set a standard and we must strive to meet it, though we know we never will. I believe that by standing up for what we believe and what the Word of God teaches, we glorify Him in some way, which isnt that what its all about? And, excuse me, this is not even an opinion. This is fact straight out of the Bible, spoken by the Creator of all things. HELLO!! You are entitled to your opinion and I don't believe you are being judgmental. I believe the Lord will judge in His time by His standards and I know you do too. Its just a shame that in our society anything that is said that is not totally off the wall super liberal is going to be called "judgmental." Sign of the times girl, what can I say!! And Im trying to figure out what soap opera that is because I mean really...day time tv...are we there yet?? SCARY!!
In my humble opinion, I think the difference between "opinions" and "judgements" are how you present them. A judgement will use emotionally heavy words, where as an opinion tries to get your point across with out dragging your feelins in.
To use your example of the two men kissing on TV and gays. I would say that was a judgement by you since you used words like "hate" and "disgusted". Your opinion would simply be that you do not agree with their lifestyle.
Not that one or the other is better. I think that if we really all want to live peacefully, figuring out how to express our opinions rather than our judgements would go a long way.
Good food for thought today!
I think that sometimes we need to make judgements for our families. Like you give your kids rules or law's to follow. Sometimes it is to keep our families safe or to uphold our standards. This applies to you and your family it is law but if you were to mention it to someone else they are not required to follow it so it becomes your opinion. It is ok to not like someone's actions but love the person. I had a boss tell me one time that "you think that I am going to heck because I drink don't you" I told her no. That is not my place to judge her but it is my place to judge what is wrong or right for me and my family. For everyone else it is their choice and if they want my opinion then I will give it but I won't ever interfere with their free agency.
Thanks Kasey. My husband is over her spouting his OPINION that he is RIGHT about this. I'm passing JUDGEMENT that he's NOT. I formed an opinion and then once it was formed it became a judgement when it solidified in my mind, and I passed it. Rob is arguing with Dictionary.com. WE looked it up and discussed it even further - he is of the OPINION that Dictionary.com is not correct. Whatev. I'm passing judgement that he's a crack addict. Ok, not really but he's nutty as Mr. Peanut.
Here's my breakdown. ROb's gonna zip it now and leave his own darned comment, aren't ya babe? Yeah. That's right. Psh. Owned. ;-)
They are synonymous. AN opinion is a judgement and a judgement is an opinion. You can't have one without the other. You can't pass judgment if you don't first have an opinion of the situation. You can't have an opinion without passing judgement.
We all perceive judgement as a bad thing - 'Don't Judge me." And don't even get me started on peopel that throw out the PARTIAL verse "judge not lest ye be judged..." Judgement is just an opinion. You don't have to LIKE my opinion of you or your lifestyle - nor do you have to CARE if I've passed judgement based on my opinion.
Oy vey. He's still yammering in my ear. I think I'm gonna take this over to my own blog and free up your comment section from my ramblings. C'mon over in a bit and read the reast of my RIVETING opinion. ;-)
In the simplest of terms, I have always felt that an opinion is something you keep and a judgement is something you give.
I think the best way to get your opinion across sometimes is to live your life as an active version of the opinions you hold. Standing firm, and not giving into the whole "P.C." thing. Teaching our children that, No, just because you feel like doing something doesn't mean everyone else should stand back and agree with you. Which I believe is one of the things that is SO wrong with everyone now a days: These groups are like a bunch of bratty kids saying "If you don't let me do what I want, I'm gonna throw a fit (aka law suit) 'til I get it!" And its at the expense of OUR value systems.
I feel like almost everywhere we go, I am throwing up "ear muffs" on my kids ears (and eyes!) Its such a different world out there, and it takes alot of time and energy to keep our morals and values in check. But so worth it.
Good job talking about smart stuff. I tend to agree with Anne here, you keep an opinion and give judgment. There is a place for both, but if you are judging all the time (like Quentin and I end up doing sometimes) you end up being less humble, which is the opposite of being Christ-like. Tell Quentin to keep his (sometimes hilarious) judgments to his blog.
What a great question. I believe that an opinion comes with no strings attached, as an honest and open offering to the recipient, like saying, "I believe that homosexual relationships are wrong and I disagree with them." We can choose to make decisions about our own lives based on our opinions of others.
A judgement, however, seems to me to be an opinion regarding the punishmnent or consequences one should receive for their actions. For example saying, "I believe that all gay people should go to hell." This, in essence, is like making putting your own consequence on someone's actions, and wishes harm on another. The word "judgement" definitely has much more negative connotations.
I think that the difference is that one can accept and respect the opinions of another, even if that person's opinion is different from their own. However, judgements are more something you might fight for- I am of the opinion that homosexual relationships are not in keeping with God's commandments, therefore I make the judgement that they should not be allowed to marry. I will accept and love my homosexual friends and respect their opinion that their relationships are okay. However, I will uphold my judgement that they not be allowed to marry by voting against it.
This is not a perfect argument, but it's how I see it in my mind. It's just my opinion. :-)
OK, here is the real answer. KaseyQ, you got it pretty much right. A judgement is followed by a consequence. EX: if the judges on American Idol think you can't sing (their opinion) the final judgement is that ou don't get to go to Hollywood. ie. consequence. Now, if there is no real consequence to your opinion it stays at that, an opinion.
Only morons use the statement "don't judge me" to their friends, or anyone else that doesn't agree with their actions. They use that cliche phase because they don't want to own up to social consequences. They try to make you the bad guy for having an opinion, you cannot carry out a consequence, therefore you are not actually judging them. Also, when people use the statement "don't judge me" it is another way of saying "you are so far beneathe me that you are not aloud an opinion on the matter, and I don't want to feel guilt or have and emotional, physical, or spiritual consequenses for my actions, so don't remind me that I am ACTUALLY wrong."
I agree with you! I think we need to keep our oppinions to ourselves if we disagree UNLESS it is an appropriate time to stand up (like with your child's teacher, etc.).
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