Eyiekhrote Vero
Pfutsero
Many of us assume that problems exist simply because people commit wrongdoing. We live in a society that is quick to blame the offender. Yet we often overlook another uncomfortable truth: many of our problems persist not merely because they are committed, but because they are tolerated. In many cases, wrongdoing survives not only through action, but through silence.
On many occasions, we tolerate wrongdoing in our society, even in faithful places like Nagaland. We may not commit these acts ourselves, yet we learn to live with them around us. We see them happening in our communities, hear about them in our institutions, and encounter them in everyday life, yet they often go unchallenged. Over time, what once disturbed our conscience slowly becomes something we accept as normal. In this way, wrongdoing survives not only through those who commit it, but also through those who quietly allow it to continue.
This pattern is not unique to modern society. Even in early Christian communities, the danger of tolerated wrongdoing was recognized. In one of his letters, the apostle Paul rebuked the believers in Corinth because serious misconduct, a man in immorality with his stepmother, was being allowed within the community rather than being confronted (1 Corinthians 5). A similar warning was later directed to the Christians in Thyatira, who were criticized for tolerating "Jezebel" and her harmful teaching among them (Revelation 2:20). In both cases, the concern was not only about the wrongdoing itself, but about the community’s willingness to allow it to continue.
The consequences of tolerated wrongdoing were not taken lightly in these early Christian communities. When misconduct was allowed to continue unchecked, it threatened the moral integrity of the entire community—like leaven through dough. The concern was not only about the individual who committed the act, but about the effect such tolerance could have on the whole community. Allowing wrongdoing to remain unchallenged risked normalizing behaviour that could gradually erode the character and unity of the community.
This principle from ancient communities lives on in modern society. Many problems persist not simply because people commit them, but because they are quietly accepted as part of everyday life. When wrongdoing becomes familiar, resistance weakens and what was once unacceptable slowly becomes normal.
Today, corruption is no longer surprising. People expect it in public offices, organizations, and systems meant to serve society. What once would have caused outrage is now often accepted as “the way things work.” When corruption becomes normal, integrity slowly loses its value.
Oftentimes, unfair treatment is no longer seen as a problem but simply as part of the system. When people believe that nothing can be changed, injustice continues without resistance. Over time, society learns to live with what should have been challenged.
Positions of authority are meant to serve others, yet history repeatedly shows how easily power can be misused. When such misuse is tolerated, it creates an environment where authority operates without accountability, and those affected often feel powerless to speak.
Beyond institutions and politics, moral problems also grow within communities. Behaviours that once troubled society slowly become accepted when they are repeatedly ignored. When communities stop confronting wrongdoing, moral standards gradually weaken.
Moral problems can also arise when communities begin to tolerate ideas and practices that conflict with the moral foundations they once upheld. In the effort to appear open or accommodating, societies sometimes accept influences that slowly reshape their moral outlook. Over time, what was once clearly distinguished becomes blurred, and communities may find themselves uncertain about the very values they once defended. What was once alien to us is now among us simply because we don’t confront it seriously.
This raises important questions: why do societies tolerate wrongdoing in the first place? Where is our tolerance going too far? In many cases, it is not because people approve of it, but because confronting it carries a cost. Speaking against corruption, injustice, or abuse of power can invite criticism or conflict, and many prefer silence to avoid these consequences. Others simply assume that the problem is too deeply rooted to change and therefore choose to live with it rather than challenge it.
When corruption becomes normal, injustice appears unavoidable, power goes unchecked, and moral standards continue to shift, we must ask ourselves an important question: are these problems sustained only by those who commit them, or also by those who quietly tolerate them? At what point does tolerance begin to harm the very society we intend to preserve?
Over time, repeated exposure to wrongdoing also blurs the conscience. What once provoked concern slowly becomes familiar, and familiarity often leads to acceptance. When this happens, tolerance gradually replaces resistance, and problems that should have been confronted are allowed to continue.
Perhaps the deeper question is not only about the wrongdoing that exists in society, but about the wrongdoing we quietly tolerate in our daily lives. Every community must eventually face the same question: what are we tolerating? The answer to that question often shapes the moral direction of a society more than we realize. In our churches and society, let us confront in love, reclaim integrity, and shine Christ's light.
