May 22 2000

ARTICLE TOOLS

Find similar articles E-mail this page

So here I am getting angry at Christians for getting angry at the world.I have found that in seeking to identify pharisaical attitudes, I have found them in others more easily than in myself. For instance, in the last few years … I have been concerned that in choosing a moral/political banner to wave, the church has alienated the unsaved from the very message that will save them. I have also noticed that whenever I write about this or talk about it, I get angry. My writing, for instance, has to go through a number of revisions before I have calmed it down to where it might help someone think instead of merely react defensively to me. It takes a day or two for the smoke to clear . …So here I am getting angry at Christians for getting angry at the world. Slowly and painfully I realize that I, the one who is on a crusade to stop Christians from condemning the world, am doing the same thing by condemning judgmental Christians. What's the difference? I am judging the "judgers," and which is worse? The one that I can do something about: myself. It's so subtle the way this hypocrisy creeps in. It starts by thinking you are an expert on something—that you know more than others, at least about certain things. In this case, the thing I imagine I know more about is everyone's judgmental attitude. Think of the irony in that. How far does this go? I wonder if you are not judging me for judging Christians for judging. If you are, you can be sure that if I hear it, I will judge you for judging me for judging Christians for judging.