“I Didn’t Do It On Purpose,” The Excuse That Rightly Annoys

“I Didn’t Do It On Purpose,” The Excuse That Rightly Annoys

“It was not on purpose. ” Children often hide behind this little phrase to justify their clumsiness or negligence. However, the “not done on purpose” should not be an absolute excuse.
Causing damage is not at all the same as causing it intentionally. A fortiori if the damage in question is the unfortunate consequence of an action dictated by the will to do well. It’s the plate broken while putting on the table, the broom that dies a little trinket to which we are attached, or the car’s body scratched by a young inexperienced washer. If we get angry with the author of these minor domestic catastrophes, he sees our reproaches as deeply unjust: “I did not do it on purpose! I wanted to help you! ”

A good excuse?

Indeed, we must silence our regrets in front of what is damaged or destroyed, reassure the child and congratulate him for the service rendered, rather than emphasizing his clumsiness. While helping him to repair as much as possible: “You didn’t do it on purpose, but you did it anyway.” However, “not doing it on purpose” is not always a good excuse: harm caused unintentionally can come from neglect or disobedience, which in turn is entirely deliberate. If our car washer refuses to follow his Father’s instructions and does what he wants, we can legitimately blame him for having damaged the body; the same is true if the dishes are broken due to the sudden gestures of a child furious at having to set the table I had to do it on purpose, not to do it. “On the DIf, we get angry with the author of these minor domestic catastrophes, he sees our reproaches as deeply unjust: “I did not do it on purpose! I wanted to help you! “ay of Judgment, will we be able to say.

Consequences of carelessness and indiscipline

Especially since by simple negligence, one can do very poorly. Carelessness and indiscipline sometimes have dramatic consequences. One of the most tragically banal examples is road accidents: drivers don’t want to kill, yet they kill!”On the DIf, we get angry with the author of these minor domestic catastrophes, he sees our reproaches as deeply unjust: “I did not do it on purpose! I wanted to help you! “ay of Judgment, will we be able to say

: I did not do it on purpose?

? “Lord, we love you! They didn’t mean to let these men die of despair on purpose. He didn’t see them. We didn’t have time. Who didn’t think about them? Let us reread the parable of the wise virgins and the foolish virgins ( Mt 25: 1-13 ). The foolhardy maidens did not purposely let their lamps go out. Their lack of vigilance was fatal to them. Yet that is what happened because he had not bothered to find her on the rock.

Vocabulary for kids

Let us entrust our fragility to his Mercy.

Jesus asks us to “do it on purpose” to accomplish the Father’s will ( Mt 7: 21-22 ).  They may not intentionally seek sin, but the Lord is very severe with them.