This is an attempt to explain my position to a question I've heard asked more than once of PU, "Are Christians all Hypocrites?".
I would respond first by saying, that to think all Christians are hypocrites is equal to thinking that everyone in Texas wears a cowboy hat. That view is totally wrong. For the non-believer, it may seem as though what Christians believe sets them up to be hypocrites. This theory would say that since Christians will admit that all humans are sinful, therefore they will always miss the mark and by calling themselves "Christian", they sign up for the title of hypocrite. This is absolutely not true. It proves that one knows nothing of what we believe.
Another view is that many Christians are hypocrites. Depending on what "many" means, this may or may not be true. I will tell you though, that there are many Christians who fear hypocritical judgement from fellow believers, and that for "many" Christians to be viewed as hypocrites is not uncommon.
To me, the answer to this is where my faith experience tells me something very important for all Christians to realize. If you are a Christian who gets angered by the judgement of the outside world, I say this to you, "What do you expect?". Christians often judge each other as such, so why would someone who doesn't know about Christ be held to a higher standard. If it makes you angry, the only way to erase the claim against you, is to pull an Emenim at the end of "Eight Mile" and make a preemptive strike against yourself. Be forthcoming about your faith. Admit that you sin everyday. Tell people your struggles and how we are doomed to continual failure of becoming better people unless we give our sins to God. Admit what the world already knows, that you are a sinner. Let your story of transformation heal you and show others that they too, can be made new.
I have seen some testimonies that required so much courage that I have no clue how they did it. But when they did, they were made new. They saw their courage to share, spark someone else to do the same. They were held accountable by those who loved them, and were not made to keep covering up that which killed them inside.
Our communities of faith need to be places that encourage stories to be told. Not judgemental cathedrals full of people who are holding onto sin, but acting as though it's not there. A person's sin that is placed in God's hands is a powerful tool that God uses to help others overcome their own sinful behavior.
Some well meaning Christians are viewed as hypocrites simply because they never share their sin and act as though everything is ok. Sometimes things are good and we are genuinely living a life filled with God. However, if this is the image you portray every Sunday, it doesn't take long for everyone to know it's just a front. Only by sharing your sins and allowing God to shape lives with your story can you begin to truly be the person that you are pretending to be.
I have obviously spoken mainly to fellow Christians. That is not because I think Christians are hypocrites, I actually have seen that most are well meaning people who are not. But if someone who does not believe in Christ thinks that we are hypocrites, all we can do is prove to them otherwise. To say you are a Christian, yet project an exterior that is perfect, leaves you the one responsible for the way they view you. People outside our faith want to know we are real people. Actually, I should say, they know we are real people, they just need to hear it from us.
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
How about this. Basically everybody is hypocritical on one level or another (I would say everybody, but absolutes tend to fuck up arguments), and Christians are hypocritical in things that particularly bother people. Christians show their hypocrisy in judgment and hate. Some can really pull back and manage that part of the Christian spirit, but there will always be other, less pungent hypocrisies in them.
Anybody who thinks that they truly are not a hypocrite likely has very little self-awareness.
Res ipsa loquitur.
memento mori, mahalo.
"Patriotism is often an arbitrary veneration of real-estate above principles."
Since hypocricy would be defined as, the practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess; falseness. Are you saying that there is not one person alive that professes something to be a conviction and can live it out?
When it comes to sin, I can profess a sin to be wrong and still commit it. So from a perspective that is not familiar with the christian faith, you are 100% correct.
But if you are christian, you believe that Jesus wipes that sin away, not for free, but to those who are self aware and can see it and profess it. This is how God uses our sin to help others see the sin in their life. We are not just called to point at their sin, we are called to reveal our sin and show them that this is how Christ can make us new again.
My faith tells me he works through our transparency.
That is why I said that if the non-Christian views us as hypocrites it is because we are not showing them our true colors or seeking to share our beleif with them. It is the belief in Christ that enables one to not be a hypocrite. I will not attempt to label you as a Christian or not, but I would say that if one believes that every human is a hypocrite that they are right in a literal sense, but if they were a christian then that view is false.
-----------------------------------
"Faith is to believe what you do not yet see; the reward for this faith is to see what you believe"-- St. Augustine
"But if you are christian, you believe that Jesus wipes that sin away, not for free, but to those who are self aware and can see it and profess it. This is how God uses our sin to help others see the sin in their life. We are not just called to point at their sin, we are called to reveal our sin and show them that this is how Christ can make us new again."
No, you get it for free when you ask Jesus to take your life. You really give nothing back, there is no requirement. But you are saying that you are called to point out peoples sins. And by showing that you commit sins makes no point except that humans are not perfect, not that Jesus makes you new.
"That is why I said that if the non-Christian views us as hypocrites it is because we are not showing them our true colors or seeking to share our beleif with them. It is the belief in Christ that enables one to not be a hypocrite. I will not attempt to label you as a Christian or not, but I would say that if one believes that every human is a hypocrite that they are right in a literal sense, but if they were a christian then that view is false."
No, you're not hypocritical *rolls eyes*. Then how do you explain that Christians hate to be prothlysized to by other religions yet we have to let Christins prothylysize to us? That in an of itself is hypocritical. Not all Christians are hypocritical but at least 50% are in their beliefs. I was a Christian and I saw the hypocrisy in myself and others.
Absolutely, giving your life to Christ means you receive his mercy and grace for free. However, when we live transparently we allow God to do his work through us. We don't share how God worked in our life, then turn around and say to the man in the front row "this is what you need to see". If he does he does. I will only confront a fellow believer if their sin is evident. If I begin to show my sin to others within the church it is their job to "point" at me and hold me accountable, that is what I signed up for when accepting Christ. This is rare, because sin is shameful to us, so we do a great job of concealing it, which leads us to fall deeper into sin. Most of the time Christians need to come to a point where they seek help before other christians know anything is wrong.
I get the feeling that we agree on how christians are supposed to act. And what actions are most harmful. I just feel as though the whole process that takes place in the act of transparency is not coming out in my explainations. That is not shocking to me, because I don't have the words for it. All I can say is that anything that is "finger pointing" or anything other than loving, is wrong (on that I know we agree). We should live with the knowledge that all humans are exactly the same in the eyes of God. I would put it like this.
Placing ourselves above another human being (inside or outside of our faith) tells us that we are not living like Christ.
-----------------------------------
"Faith is to believe what you do not yet see; the reward for this faith is to see what you believe"-- St. Augustine
It's coming out clearly like my pastor that I'm forced to listen to ramble about the exact same thing. Hmph, and now comes what the majority of Christians that I see do. They put themselves above other humans and you failed to address the question on religions.
Sorry, I did fail to give my thoughts on religion. I felt that would be a good topic for a later date. I like to separate my "faith" from the "religion". I've been judged for that by the way, so I can understand Dr. Gonzo's main beef. Check back in. I'll indulge your thirst for some religious comment.
-----------------------------------
"Faith is to believe what you do not yet see; the reward for this faith is to see what you believe"-- St. Augustine
Largely, we seem to be dealing with small sin and hypocrisy, i.e. Christians commit the same sins that they preach against, but let's look at some bigger ideas that Christians, generally, claim to believe, but rarely act as if they actually believe.
First, that all sins are created equally. I have an entire blog about this, but basically, while many Christians claim that all sins are equal, they tend to focus on those sins that bother them and call them worse, while minimizing sins that bother them little. This is most apparent with negative attitudes towards gays. Homosexuality is compared to murder, but comparing murders to liars, and punishing and feeling the same way about them, doesn't happen.
Covering up child molestations is another biggie. Christians, and people in general, would agree that children are to remain off limits, sexually. No only have folks high up in the church organization molested children, but that organization and other Christians have worked to conceal it. Priests were not defrocked, and most were barely punished, simply moved. It took the public pointing at the Christian church to have the problem addressed, and it has not been addressed in complete good faith. This shows a clear lack of belief in the actual principles of Christianity. IT shows a frighteningly pragmatic attitude among the organization's leaders, not an attitude of morality, accountability or principles.
Frequently Christian judgment is accepted and applied on a "do as I say, not as I do" basis. Not only is it painfully obvious that the people are sinners, but it is painfully obvious that they believe that judgment is for others and not for them. They have convinced themselves that the rules don't apply to them. In doing so they show that they don't actually hold the beliefs they profess to have. They just use the moral code to decry what they have been taught is "evil."
Now, you seem more focused on the process of making sin transparent in those within the church so that it can be professed and worked on. That's different from Christian judgment of us non-Christians, or those that most Christians consider outside moral bounds like homosexuals. It is difficult for us to swallow judgment or pointing out sin when it seems painfully obvious that the most judgmental embody their professed beliefs the least. Not only do Priests who violently decry homosexuality turn out to be gay in many cases, but they hide it. They show that they only believe homosexuality is really wrong for YOU PEOPLE, not for themselves.
Hmm, I feel like maybe I missed the mark I was aiming for a bit, I will come back and try again later.
Res ipsa loquitur.
memento mori, mahalo.
"Patriotism is often an arbitrary veneration of real-estate above principles."
I like when you write, "IT shows a frighteningly pragmatic attitude among the organization's leaders, not an attitude of morality, accountability or principles.". It points to what I see as the worshiping of the "church" and protecting it at all costs. This is where religion rubs me wrong. I feel as though this has been a problem of the Catholic church, and is now infecting traditional protestant churches as well. The church and what it's leaders have deemed it to be, will begin to take priority over the message that is it's reason for the church's existence.
There is also something to you saying "They just use the moral code to decry what they have been taught is "evil.". Something profound. But I have no clue what it is yet.
-----------------------------------
"Faith is to believe what you do not yet see; the reward for this faith is to see what you believe"-- St. Augustine
A hypocrite is a person who pretends to be what he or she is not. I think that his point was Christians are not trying to pretend to be perfect and non-sinners, because we know that we are. Jesus died for our sins to give us a better chance a life, and eternal life and happiness. Although this is not until we enter the after life, while the earth is still full of evil and no human is prefect.
Liv Life Your Way