You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness… Keep far from a false charge, and do not kill the innocent and righteous, for I will not acquit the wicked.—Ex 23:1, 7.>This is a made up story, but imagine a Catholic woman named Nancy is flanked in her condo to the west by a married woman named Sandy and to the east by a married man named Steve. Imagine she sees Sandy leaving Steve’s condo at 10pm one night.>The next day, Nancy puts on the Next Door app: “Very interesting that a certain Sandy is leaving Steve’s place with big smile on her face at 10pm. Guess marriage vows mean nothing in the Anthem Condo complex!” Because she is a Catholic, she thinks she has technically avoided any sin of calumny if she’s wrong, but somehow gets first dibs on the gossip if she is correct. At least she gets the dopamine hit to make up for her insecurity.

Originally published in Padre Peregrino. Read original article