E pluribus unum is one of those catchphrases we hear so often that it can sometimes become meaningless—a collection of sounds as familiar as “Just Do It” or “I’m Lovin’ It.” But, at its heart, it encapsulates a wisdom that reminds us just what the United States is.

This fear of Judgment produced no shortage of shame and guilt in me, and I know I wasn’t the only one. The irony is, even though I wanted to let it go entirely, the more seriously I take spirituality, the more I realize you can’t really shake it. Not entirely, anyway. In fact, the language of Judgment—as problematic and weighted as it may be—may actually be poetically pointing us towards a deeper, practical truth.