“Either they’re having an affair or they’re just very shy,” Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin quipped at the reaction caught on the kiss cam at a July 16 concert in Massachusetts. His guess turned out to be correct after Astronomer CEO Andy Byron and his HR chief, Kristin Cabot, went from happy to horrified to hiding when they were caught cuddling on camera.

At first, I chuckled at some of the jokes and re-enactments on other kiss cams, at sporting events and beyond. I was laughing along with the world over two powerful people with no regard for morality — much less for their families, company and co-workers — going from the height of arrogance to global humiliation in a matter of seconds.

But then my Catholic conscience spoke to me. How does God want me to respond? What does my faith teach?

I once wrote for the National Enquirer, a publication that specializes in turning scandal into a spectator sport. I stepped away from it decades ago when my reawakened Catholic faith guided me to see that writing for them was like selling my soul. I had worked previously as a social worker, motivated by a desire to help people — which was contradictory to making money by humiliating and ridiculing them.

Yet I did not feel sorry for the adulterous co-workers having an affair. So how could I muster compassion and Christian love? I considered eight Catholic teachings to stir love and mercy as Jesus taught us — and to draw out a few lessons for myself.

1. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you (the Golden Rule). Sympathy for the offending couple escaped me — but imagine having a son or daughter, sibling or parent publicly caught in sin made into the butt of jokes. What a heavy burden that must be, thus inspiring compassion and prayers for the innocent victims.

2. Along the lines of the Golden Rule: Do I want people to rejoice at my downfall — even if my own personal imperfections contributed to it? 

3. “Whatever you do to the least of my brethren, that you do unto me” (Matthew 25:40). Jesus once suffered — albeit unjustly — being taunted and laughed at. He hurts when we hurt. By offering prayer for repentance and for sinners to turn to Jesus, we ask for their salvation, which is in union with God’s will.

4. “Pride goes before the fall.” That’s the lesson portrayed in those few embarrassing seconds. It’s a reminder that pride is a powerful temptation that nips at the souls of us all.

5. When the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11) was going to be stoned, Jesus said that “he who had never sinned” should be the one to throw the first stone. After silencing her gleeful accusers, he then told the woman to “go and sin no more.”

6. “Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.” That phrase from the funeral service in the Book of Common Prayer reminds us that we begin and end as dust. It means that “having it all” is less than nothing without God at the center. This couple seemed to have it all — and now they have less than nothing. It’s a reminder that Jesus offers the best in life, freely given.

7. Do not take things that are not yours. Sex outside of marriage is not yours to take. But even if you take something as simple as paperclips from work and get found out, there’s a humiliation that comes from thinking moral law does not apply to you. 

8. Never live as if no one is watching. Someone is always watching — God.

Humiliation is better than hell. Given the eternal consequences of unrepented adultery, getting found out in this life — if it leads to repentance — will be worth it. It’s a hard lesson this couple is learning, but imagine years from now the influence either of them could have if they confess their former arrogance and sin and come to Jesus in humility, embracing a new way of life of living for him.

These thoughts help me to remember: I too am a sinner. I too desire mercy. And isn’t it prideful to laugh at someone else’s expense, feeling superior to them? If I pray for them and their families instead of laughing, I am following the teachings of Jesus and seeking God’s will to defeat the workings of the evil one. 

The most important thing is the salvation of souls — so how can we not pray for their salvation? It’s what God wants. It should be what we want too.