My heart is heavy this week. I’ve come to realize I am a hypocrite. The definition of hypocrite is someone who “professes beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess.”
You may ask what has sparked such a revelation. The truth is, there wasn’t a revelation. It was something I innately knew for a while; I was just confronted with it recently and couldn’t avoid it. I am a hypocrite because I profess to love Christ, but I don’t always love others. I am a hypocrite because I say I follow Christ, but I choose my own direction. I am a hypocrite because I think of Christ’s well-known maxim “do unto others as you would have others do unto you,” but I have several different standards for different people, including myself. By being a hypocrite, I proved Mahatma Gandhi’s quote, “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”
Many physicians are familiar with the Hippocratic Oath, an oath that is considered a rite of passage for practitioners of medicine, although it is not obligatory and no longer taken up by all physicians. What I love about this oath, written in 4 B.C., is that it provides a clear moral and ethical guide for doctors who practice medicine. Among other things, it says not to prescribe any lethal medicine, not to do things that will result in abortion, and above all, do no harm to anyone and keep the patient’s health and well-being above all things.
We Christians don’t do that last part very well. We get so wrapped up in our own life, our own issues, problems and sometimes even our sin, that we forget about others and how much we impact them in direct and indirect ways. We often (too often, sometimes) forget that there are other people out there. I’ve indirectly hurt my wife by not listening to what she needs while I’m distracted with my own stuff. I know people who’ve been hurt by Christians or seen their hypocrisy and agreed with Gandhi. Time and time again, history has been embarrassing to us Christians by showing us how poorly we follow Christ and chase off those that we need to save. Look at the Spanish Inquisition just for only one example.
Christian hypocrisy is nothing new. It’s been around since day one and will be around until the final day when sin is finally conquered. However, the consequences of it are very real and have a deep, negative, and sometimes everlasting impact on people and the world. People have been broken, hurt, chased away, and discouraged by it. People have sneered, scoffed, rolled their eyes, and said “just shows that religion is full of crazy people” when confronted with it. God and Jesus Christ’s reputations have been tarnished and it’s our fault.
We need to stop. We need to stop being so wrapped up in ourselves that we forget about others. Too many souls are being eternally lost. We need to stop the hurting and begin the healing. For those of you who have been deeply hurt by the Christian/Catholic/Any church in any way, we will be having a time for healing on Sunday, May 31 during all three worship services. Consider coming and bringing someone you know who has been wounded or struggling with hurts done “in the name of Christ or the church.”
May we, this week, live a life where people, Gandhi included, go, “I like your Christ because your Christians are so alike your Christ.”
– Matt
ChristianGandhiHippocratic OathhypocriteSpanish Inquisition
My Hypocritical Oath
May 14, 2009
Calvary
Comments Off on My Hypocritical Oath
Matt
My heart is heavy this week. I’ve come to realize I am a hypocrite. The definition of hypocrite is someone who “professes beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess.”
You may ask what has sparked such a revelation. The truth is, there wasn’t a revelation. It was something I innately knew for a while; I was just confronted with it recently and couldn’t avoid it. I am a hypocrite because I profess to love Christ, but I don’t always love others. I am a hypocrite because I say I follow Christ, but I choose my own direction. I am a hypocrite because I think of Christ’s well-known maxim “do unto others as you would have others do unto you,” but I have several different standards for different people, including myself. By being a hypocrite, I proved Mahatma Gandhi’s quote, “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”
Many physicians are familiar with the Hippocratic Oath, an oath that is considered a rite of passage for practitioners of medicine, although it is not obligatory and no longer taken up by all physicians. What I love about this oath, written in 4 B.C., is that it provides a clear moral and ethical guide for doctors who practice medicine. Among other things, it says not to prescribe any lethal medicine, not to do things that will result in abortion, and above all, do no harm to anyone and keep the patient’s health and well-being above all things.
We Christians don’t do that last part very well. We get so wrapped up in our own life, our own issues, problems and sometimes even our sin, that we forget about others and how much we impact them in direct and indirect ways. We often (too often, sometimes) forget that there are other people out there. I’ve indirectly hurt my wife by not listening to what she needs while I’m distracted with my own stuff. I know people who’ve been hurt by Christians or seen their hypocrisy and agreed with Gandhi. Time and time again, history has been embarrassing to us Christians by showing us how poorly we follow Christ and chase off those that we need to save. Look at the Spanish Inquisition just for only one example.
Christian hypocrisy is nothing new. It’s been around since day one and will be around until the final day when sin is finally conquered. However, the consequences of it are very real and have a deep, negative, and sometimes everlasting impact on people and the world. People have been broken, hurt, chased away, and discouraged by it. People have sneered, scoffed, rolled their eyes, and said “just shows that religion is full of crazy people” when confronted with it. God and Jesus Christ’s reputations have been tarnished and it’s our fault.
We need to stop. We need to stop being so wrapped up in ourselves that we forget about others. Too many souls are being eternally lost. We need to stop the hurting and begin the healing. For those of you who have been deeply hurt by the Christian/Catholic/Any church in any way, we will be having a time for healing on Sunday, May 31 during all three worship services. Consider coming and bringing someone you know who has been wounded or struggling with hurts done “in the name of Christ or the church.”
May we, this week, live a life where people, Gandhi included, go, “I like your Christ because your Christians are so alike your Christ.”
– Matt
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