A few weeks ago, much of the world gathered around their televisions to watch the international soccer tournament known as the World Cup.  Anyone that has ever watched a soccer match knows that a few things are guaranteed to happen: very little scoring, boisterous fans cheering and singing, and at least one player falling to the ground in a Shakespearean display of agony if they get bumped, tripped or even touched.  This thespian display is called “flopping” and its whole purpose is to convince the referee and others that the actor/soccer player is a victim of some villainous ploy.  If you watch some of these flops, you would think a prerequisite of being a soccer player is attending the Shatner School of Acting.

Unfortunately, flopping has crept into other sports such as basketball and American football (thankfully, baseball is a non-contact sport and is immune).  Much worse, flopping has woven itself into the fabric of society, not in the form of any physical display, but in the behavior known as being offended.

Nowadays it seems everyone is offended easily by everything.  We are oversensitive and easily offended by words, actions, and the simplest things.  Just like a sports flop, our being offended usually involves some sort of public overreaction to draw attention to ourselves.  We quickly let everyone else know that we have been offended in an attempt to garner support and sympathy.

The problem with our being offended is that it is a subjective emotional response by us.  What offends me, may not offend you.  What does not offend me now, may offend me in the future.  Our being offended is subject to our circumstances and feelings; both may change as often as we breath.  We also can be manipulated and persuaded over time to to accept something that once was considered offensive in the past.

There is only one being who can be truly offended, and that is God, for He is Truth and all Truth originates from Him.  From Him comes the objective TRUTH which must be our guide.  When we sin, we offend God.  The Truth that emanates from God does not change, and is the measure by which we should respond to the world around us.  It doesn’t matter if I am offended by something or you are offended by something.  What matters is if it is an offense to God.  In the Catholic Sacrament of Reconciliation we are encouraged to say an Act of Contrition which reminds us that our sins offend God:

“O my God,
I am heartily sorry
for having offended you,
and I detest all my sins
because of your  just punishments,
but most of all because they offend you, my God,
who are all-good and deserving of all my love.
I firmly resolve, with the help of your grace,
to sin no more
and to avoid the near occasions of sin.“

Unfortunately, society now embraces the exact opposite.  God and His unchanging Truth have been cast aside and replaced by the moral relativism of being offended.  Today’s society teaches that if something offends you then it is wrong, and if it doesn’t offend you, then it is right.  We have become a society which spends its time being careful not to offend each other, giving little thought to if we are offending God who loves us completely, perfectly and unceasingly.

With all this in mind, let us all strive to be less offended, and resolve to avoid offending God!