Reflection
Christianity is not about a set of spiritless rules but about a compassionate set of values. Jesus warns us not to practice hypocrisy in living out our discipleship. The word hypocrite comes from the Greek word for actor, one who wears a mask or plays a part. We are not to imitate those who exercise power over others for their own advantage or condemn others who seem not to live up to their rules. For a follower of Christ, living faith is not in the show of things but in their substance. It is about compassion not rigidity. To be like Christ is to walk humbly before God and to offer others understanding and loving service.
Prayer
Help me, O Lord, to practice what you have preached.
Action
Are there areas in my life where I lack compassion and understanding and find hypocrisy instead? How will I amend this?
Suggested Reading
Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying,
“The scribes and the Pharisees
have taken their seat on the chair of Moses.
Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you,
but do not follow their example.
For they preach but they do not practice.
As for you, do not be called ‘Rabbi.’
You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters.
Matthew 23:8
The greatest among you must be your servant.
Whoever exalts himself will be humbled;
but whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
Mt 23:1-12
We are all clever and always find a path that is not right, to seem more virtuous than we are: it is the path hypocrisy.
Pope Francis
Hypocrisy: prejudice with a halo.
Ambrose Bierce
Hypocrisy is the homage vice pays to virtue.
Francois de La Rochefoucauld
One should examine oneself for a very long time before thinking of condemning others.
Moliere
Many have quarreled about religion that never practised it.
Ben Franklin
Go put your creed into your deed.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Hypocrite: the man who murdered both his parents… pleaded for mercy on the grounds that he was an orphan.
Abraham Lincoln
The greatest way to live with honor in this world is to be what we pretend to be.
Socrates