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I think you were right to protect your neighbors.After all,they spoke english as well,so you would need to know more about them and why they were seeking out speakers of spanish in order to just assume it was safe to give them that info.
I'm not Catholic. If I were, I'd seek out my priest and discuss the matter with him. (I've edited my OP to remove the question about sin.) I'm not putting my faith in strangers to clear up the guilt in my heart. I recognized that what I said was a lie, but at the time I felt it was justifiable, and thus I didn't feel any sort of heavy burden of guilt - just mild discomfort that maybe I should have better considered how to respond to them instead of telling an outright lie. But as I did say in the OP, I had no idea what their motives were. I'm simply asking for opinions and to inquire as to how someone else would have handled this situation. Would you have wanted your neighbor to potentially put you in danger by giving strangers information about you when they didn't even know if those strangers knew you?
Thanks for your response.
Don't give it any thought...your intent was not out of malice.
On the contrary...you were thinking of your neighbor's welfare when you said it. "I don't know" would be categorized as withholding information, rather than an outright lie...
One time, it was just a Mormon. I immediately told him I had my own beliefs and was not interested. He then asked me if anyone else was home in the neighborhood. Irritated that he would ask about my neighbors, I told him, "I don't believe your theology. Why do you think I would help you spread it?" I didn't think until afterward that he was out alone. Why? Mormons travel in twos.
Again, anyone can outfit themselves to fill a role.
Maybe you can't remember, but if you can, I'd be curious to know how the conversation went. For starters, LDS missionaries ALWAYS travel in twos. A lone Mormon missionary is so against all the rules that it's not even funny. Also, the question he asked (about your neighbors) doesn't seem quite like something Mormon missionaries would ask. I'd tend to be suspicious about it being a Mormon missionary.
Want your input about a situation that happened this morning.
I live in a neighborhood in which there are some Hispanic families...one family lives right behind me, another lives a couple of doors up from me, and there are several others. Obviously, the members of these families speak Spanish. This morning there were two Hispanic men who knocked on my door and asked, in very good English, if I knew if there was anyone in the neighborhood who spoke Spanish.
I said "I don't know". Obviously that was a lie, because I do know.
The men thanked me, then walked across the street and asked my neighbor. He walked outside, proceeded to go out onto the street and pointed out the homes of my Hispanic neighbors.
The reason I lied to the men is simply because I had no idea who in the world they were. (I suppose in hindsight I could have asked them before giving an answer, but I didn't think about that at the time.) The men were nicely dressed and carrying briefcases. They could have been Mormons, but I doubt it because Mormons usually wear white shirts while out proselytizing. Maybe they were Jehovah's Witnesses, I don't know. But the thing is, why would they ask if there was anyone in the neighborhood who spoke Spanish? Do Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses have members who specifically seek out Spanish-speaking people while proselytizing?
So what do you think? Was it a good thing for me to lie to those men? My general thinking at the time was that I didn't want to possibly endanger the lives of my Spanish-speaking neighbors. Who knows what those two men may have been up to. They could have been looking for someone specific in order to carry out some sort of vendetta, for all I know. I wouldn't have felt right leading them to their victim.
What would you have done?
I don't think what you did was all that big of a deal. After all, your heart was evidently in the right place. On the other hand, I really don't see how an honest answer would have endangered anyone's life. At any rate, you are under no obligation to divulge any information about your neighbors to anyone. I surely wouldn't be losing any sleep over this incident.
Oh good grief, what is the big deal? You did the right thing, your other neighbor did not. This world is too wicked to trust ANYONE who comes knocking at your door. The only thing I would have done differently is to not answer the door!
Oh good grief, what is the big deal? You did the right thing, your other neighbor did not. This world is too wicked to trust ANYONE who comes knocking at your door. The only thing I would have done differently is to not answer the door!
That's how I do things.
(I wouldn't mind having a doormat that said "Go Away.")
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