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Character Assassination In The Church-Part 2

Feature Article Character Assassination In The Church-Part 2
MAR 9, 2018 LISTEN

‘’The time spent in criticizing the motives and works of Christ’s servants might better be spent in prayer. Often if those who find fault knew the truth in regard to those with whom they find fault, they would have an altogether different opinion of them. How much better it would be if, instead of criticizing and condemning others, everyone would say: “I must work out my own salvation. If I co-operate with Him who desires to save my soul, I must watch myself diligently. I must cut away every evil from my life. I must become a new creature in Christ. I must overcome every fault. Then, instead of weakening those who are striving against evil, I can strengthen them by encouraging words.”—E.G White, Testimonies for the Church volume 8. First let's take a quick look at the kinds of people who engage in character assassination tactics, and what we can learn about them.

The Jealous- ‘’It pains me to say that there are unruly tongues among church members. There are false tongues that feed on mischief. There are sly, whispering tongues. There is tattling, impertinent meddling, and adroit quizzing. Among the lovers of gossip some are actuated by curiosity, others by jealousy, many by hatred against those through whom God has spoken to reprove them. All these discordant elements are at work. Some conceal their real sentiments, while others are eager to publish all they know, or even suspect, of evil against another’’. {Counsel to the Church 176.3}. You used to be their friend, and now it looks like you're moving on socially or professionally. They don't want to be left behind, and so rather than let you go, they try to wreck you. They're dangerous because they have perceived credibility due to their previous association with you. This type of people often engages in character assassination as a by-product of regret -- namely, regret about losing control or 'ownership' of you.

The Angry-These folks are pissed off at you because you remind them of where they are in the world. Or rather, where they aren't. Don't pay much attention to these people; because they’re pretty much angry at everyone equally, and they won't have much ammunition to throw at you because they're too busy being angry all the time, at everyone. ‘’I saw that the very spirit of perjury, that would turn truth into falsehood, good into evil, and innocence into crime, is now active. Satan exults over the condition of God's professed people. While many are neglecting their own souls, they eagerly watch for an opportunity to criticize and condemn others. All have defects of character, and it is not hard to find something that jealousy can interpret to their injury. “Now,” say these self-constituted judges, “we have facts. We will fasten upon them an accusation from which they cannot clear themselves.” They wait for a fitting opportunity and then produce their bundle of gossip and bring forth their tidbits’’-E.G White.

The Devious: These are the most dangerous of the types of people who will try to wreck your character, most of all because they're usually sociopaths. These people don't hate you, these people see the destruction or damage of your character as a means to an end in realizing their own goals. They usually have no conscience or sense of remorse, nor do they care what happens to you after they've destroyed you. They may even commence a clandestine character assassination against you, only to seemingly come to your aide in public to thwart the attempt, for no other reason than to create a perception that they are someone you can trust -- which they'll later use to their advantage. ‘’In their efforts to carry a point, persons who have naturally a strong imagination are in danger of deceiving themselves and deceiving others. They gather up unguarded expressions from another, not considering that words may be uttered hastily and hence may not reflect the real sentiments of the speaker. But those unpremeditated remarks, often so trifling as to be unworthy of notice, are viewed through Satan's magnifying glass, pondered, and repeated until molehills become mountains’’-E.G White.

The Envious- These are at the root of nearly all character assassinations, and they are the one I'll spend the most time on. What happens to the envious is that whatever it is that you've done to piss them off acts like a giant mirror, reflecting back their own perceived inadequacies and lame excuses for not getting on with their lives. See, if you're doing or achieving something they believe inside themselves that they should be doing or achieving -- and they're not -- it forces them to ask themselves WHY? So what do they do? They gird up their loins to bring you down or discredit you. Yeah, that's it... You're not special or talented; you're willing to do things and make compromises that they're not. THAT'S why you're getting what you're getting and they're not.

But that's where the character assassination comes in: if they can convince others to see you the way they now do -- if the common elements surrounding you both see their invented truth rather than your projected truth -- then their logic holds. But the truth is Very few people will simply take whatever crazy slanderous thing someone says at face value, without doing their own version of the double-check. Some will become more observant, some will ask some subtle questions, and some will ask some not-so-subtle questions. How you handle the attempted character assassination at this point is critical. But how do you prevail?

The Solution is: Don't fight back. At least, don't lower yourself to use the tools that character assassins have inarguably lowered themselves by using. The best defence against any character assassination is to maintain your integrity and take pride in what you do, whatever that may be. Fighting back just feeds the fire, and clouds the issue. Carry on with whatever actual business you have in your life. Character assassins are childish and petty people, and you ought to continue on with your business. Because you're above it, you're important and because what they say has no bearing on your life. And here's why: because integrity cannot be bound by any means. Ultimately, character assassination has absolutely nothing to do with YOU; it has everything to do with the person who's engaging in it. And THAT, should make you feel better and allow you to leave it behind you, where it belongs. And always remember; ‘’your reputation is in the hands of others. That’s what reputation is. You can’t control that. The only thing you can control is your character’’.-Wayne W. Dyer.

By MH/Dr Ernest Aggrey, 0543999776/[email protected]

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