Disgust is a reflex.
It is a visceral reaction that happens in an instant.
It is a sensory response
to a sight
or a smell
or a sound
or a touch
of something that you instantly recognize as a threat.
A specific kind of threat:
a threat to your health.
You recoil.
Ewwww, gross!
Whatever “it” is that triggers the response,
you know instinctively that you should not eat it, or touch it, or get close to it.
Disgust, the reflex, is designed to protect you from a threat.
Disgust is meant to keep you safe.
Contempt? Now that is something different.
Contempt is a CHOICE.
Contempt is an attitude
of hostility,
superiority,
rejection rooted in absolute certainty that:
you are right,
and another is wrong.
Irredeemably wrong?
Contempt is a rejection of curiosity,
of compassion,
of empathy,
of humility,
and of any openness to another
who is also a flawed, forgiven and beloved human being
(like you are).
Contempt is certainty without Grace.
It is a choice; a temptation that can be declined.
It is never the only option.
It is never the option on the path towards relationship or reconciliation.
Never the best option.
Never the best choice.
Never, for you or for another.