Hypocrisy: An occupational hazard of believers?

The church lady, played by Dana Carvey, was one of my favorite Saturday Night Live characters. Dressed in clothes and with a hairdo that was unfashionable even in the 1950s, she laced her spoof interviews with frequent references to Satan, and made judgmental comments to her guests with expressions such as, “Isn’t that special?” and “How convenient!”

The church lady was a model of hypocrisy, judgmental to the core.

A 2012 survey found that 62 percent of millennials (18-24 year olds) believe that present-day Christianity is “judgmental.” It’s among the most often-heard accusations against religious people. And without a doubt, some religious people are just that, appearing to be bitter (unlike the church lady who seemed to have a lot fun zinging her guests) and resentful of others. I believe many people, young and old, who have given up on God and religion but are still searching see committed Christians in this light.

Stinging dingers

Ironically, no one was more critical of hypocrisy than the founder of Christianity. Jesus saved his most stinging dingers for the hypocritical among religious leaders of his day.

“They preach, but do not practice,” he said. “They bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves will not move them with their finger.” In passage after passage in Mathew’s gospel, he calls them hypocrites, a brood of vipers, blind guides, white-washed tombs.

But is hypocrisy and being judgmental confined to religious people? I don’t think so. It appears to be a universal human trait. It’s just that the irony of the trait among religious people is more telling. They ignore love, the greatest of the Christian virtues, in criticizing others.

You have to admit, however, that if one has firmly-held beliefs, it’s hard not to be judgmental about people who ignore or criticize those beliefs. Being judgmental is sort of an “occupational hazard” of believers, who have to continually be on guard to avoid it. If you have no firm religious, moral or ethical beliefs, it’s easier to avoid being judgmental.

There’s plenty of judging going on by all of us, religious or not. Perhaps the number one area in which we are judgmental is that of appearance. Despite what we may say, we DO judge a book by its cover. It wouldn’t be so bad if it were just books. The expression is an analogy for how we judge each other.

Having the right look

It’s hard to succeed in the entertainment or sports biz without the right looks. It’s hard to be accepted by others in high school or college unless you wear the right clothes. It’s hard to fit into your office culture if you are a “nerd.” We are judgmental about people who drive trashy or cheap cars, who don’t wear their hair or makeup right, who don’t live in the right neighborhood.

Is appearance more important than conduct - the most common area in which religious people are judgmental?

I think there’s confusion about hypocrisy. The dictionary defines it as “a feigning to be what one is not or to believe what one does not; especially, the false assumption of an appearance of virtue or religion.”

To me, this means hypocrisy is tied to insincerity. Hypocrisy isn’t about people who sincerely believe in something but fail to consistently practice it. It’s about people who don’t really believe what they say they do. The media has many stories about politicians, clergy or other famous people who violate society’s, or their church’s or other standards. They may be screw-ups, but they may or may not be hypocritical.

Among the favorite traditional antidotes to being judgmental is the phrase, “Hate the sin; love the sinner.” As trite and simplistic as it may sound, it’s probably good advice. Religious people may have to be especially careful not to judge, but we are all at risk of being church ladies.