Of course, Christians have been accused of being hypocrites for centuries. The problem is a religion with high moral and behavior standards and a population with human tendencies. The book, however, points out a couple of really disturbing characteristics.
As long as Christianity is defined as performance—acting good—something has gone astray. The old silly song, "we don't smoke and we don't chew and we don't go with the girls who do" defines the "true meaning" of Christianity for both the insiders and the outsiders. Add this to the very secularized morals and behavior of Christians today (about the only place where we differ from outsiders is that we don't like the "F" word on television), and you get a recipe for hypocrisy.
If "Christian" means "good, acceptable person," and "Christianity" means "keeping the rules," then everyone who wants to be seen as a good acceptable person will put on a façade of respectability. By definition, a façade is thin and superficial, so it's pretty easy to see through. And outsiders do. We stereotype people morally, we're cold and unhelpful, and we blur the message of Christ. As if that weren't enough, we actually believe each other's false faces, so we don't allow ourselves meaningful interaction with one another.
Proposed solution: transparency and public (yes!) apology for the church's self-righteous judgmental attitude.
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