WALSH: What People Really Mean When They Call You ‘Judgmental’

There may have been a time when the words “judgmental” and “self-righteous” were commonly used in a way that coincided with their dictionary definitions. We are not living in that time anymore. Nowadays, in practice, these words (along with the phrase “holier-than-thou”) mean simply: “a moral stance or criticism that makes me feel uncomfortable about myself.”

It is now impossible to talk about moral righteousness without being called self-righteous. It is impossible to judge anything without being judgemental. It is impossible to discuss holiness without being holier-than-thou. It is impossible to make a moral argument without being a moralizer.