Maisto 1

Jake Maisto
Professor Rebecca Morean
English 100-20
27 February 2015
Hypocrisy at its Finest

In a society where many Millennials are leaning towards more of a secular life, there are still so
many that remain in tune with what they their faith. Now, whether the meaning of this faith remains
the same as it used to is up for question, and Bill McKibben, who wrote The Christian Paradox: How a
faithful nation gets Jesus wrong, is with the opinion that how people use their religion is much different
than in the past. In many other ways, the Church has been a little bit off since the beginning. Seeing
how self-centered and egotistic our society is, it is hard to disagree with his take. When you look
around and see mega-churches with millions of dollars to spare while there are many struggling to pay
rent and pastors are preaching about money instead of the gospel they just read, there is a major
disconnect that needs to be fixed.
Preaching For the Wrong Reasons
Recently at a church in Pittsburgh, a priest approached the pulpit and began speaking the word of god.
The audience was captivated with every word that Jesus spoke through this man before them. After a
few minutes the story came to and end, and everyone was on the edge of their seats, ready for a life
changing homily after such a moving story. What the priest delivered was not quite what they were
expecting; instead of a heartfelt lessen on humility, the purpose of his rant was something with a godlike attraction and power: money. How not everyone is paying their dues, where they can pay, and
even how much they should be paying. This shows the hypocrisy that comes not only with the
congregation of the church, but people within it as a whole. Although there have not always been

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mega-churches, a large part of the church has always been focused on money. This is clearly shown
with ideas like indulgences and how rich the Church really is.
Around the time right after the Crusades, indulgences began to explode within the church. An
indulgence is a temporary break from the punishments resulting from sin, so basically a break from
dealing with the wrongs someone has done (William). The Church would sell them to anyone who had
the funds, and subsequently made an insane amount of money, becoming one of the richest
foundations in the world at the time, and today. Asking for money and making sure to get money is
in the Church's DNA at this point. People such as Martin Luther have fought this, but even when one
source of money is gone, a new one always appears. Now instead of buying indulgences, they ask for
ten percent of parish goers income during weekly collections, and only sometimes have second
collections for groups that really need it. They make this very clear and take advantage of every
opportunity to make some money.
Mega-bucks, Little Faith
Mega-churches are now clear signs of this, and they don't even attempt to hide that fact. According to
an article done by Forbes on the richest Mega-churches, the wealthiest ones make around $60 million a
year (Bogan). Joel Osteen of Lakewoord Church makes roughly $40 million a year personally for such
exploitations. McKibben speaks about how these mega-churches have Xboxes, aerobics classes, food,
etc (3). Religious bestsellers drag those hoping for a little bit of help into paying for this advice, which
does not seem very humble from the seller's end. These masses are more like parties than religious
ceremonies. Having great wealth is consistently talked about as wrong throughout the bible and
teachings of the early church fathers. Former Carthage bishop Cyprian said that
The property of the wealthy holds them in chains . . . which shackle their courage and choke
their faith and hamper their judgment and throttle their souls. They think of themselves as
owners, whereas it is they rather who are owned: enslaved as they are to their own property,

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they are not the masters of their money but its slaves. (Kangas)
The views of the rich and poor seem to have completely different meanings in reality than what the
teachings have consistently been. Money is everything, just ask the pastor asking for more money, the
mega-church preacher pulling in millions. This hypocrisy does not appear to have an end, and such a
small amount of people seem to care.
Those Poor Poor
This hypocrisy spreads to the other side of the spectrum as well: poverty. According to the Census
Bureau, the poverty rate in 2013 was 14.5 percent (1). Those in poverty need all the help they can get,
yet the rich do not want a part of that. The U.S. Catholic Bishops stated in 2007 that While the
common good embraces all, those who are weak, vulnerable, and most in need deserve preferential
concern. A basic moral test for our society is how we treat the most vulnerable in our midst (USCCB,
1). In 1986 they also expressed poverty is not merely the lack of adequate financial resources. It entails
a more profound kind of deprivation, a denial of full participation in the economic, social, and political
life of society and an inability to influence decisions that affect ones life (USCCB, 2). McKibben
talked about how Alabama almost let through a law that tax code that allowed the rich to pay small
amounts while the poor were heavily taxed, even though ninety percent of those living there claim to be
Christian (McKibben, 5). If all that Catholic tradition says is true, there is no reason screw over the
poor. Once again there is great hypocrisy shown, especially by Catholics.
Killing in the Name Of?
The Church seems pretty clear on their stance on violence: just don't do it. When asked about violence
and spreading faith, Pope Francis was emphatic when saying the word of the Gospel does not
authorize the use of force to spread the faith. It is 'just the opposite: the true strength of the Christian is
the power of truth and love, which leads to the renunciation of all violence.' Faith and violence are
incompatible" (Raushenbush). McKibben points out that America is the most violent rich nation on

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earth, with a murder rate four or five times that of our European peers (2). Why can't we all just get
along? Why can't Christians follow what has been proclaimed to them? People try to bring religion
into every aspect of life when it seems fit, but will go against an aspect of that faith once they feel an
aspect of life would be easier without it.
At this point, we are playing a game of religious tolerance. We have to accept that others have
their respective faiths no matter what, but that does not mean it is insensitive to call them out if
wrongdoing or hypocrisy runs through the veins of the religious. Faith is taken advantage of in our
society, with people quoting bible verses on juries and then turning a blind eye to the clear
contradictions. Although religion is a sensitive topic, it cannot simply be ignored. Those who realize
the problems that America, along with the world, face need to step up and get to work. Religion is a
perfectly acceptable concept as long those following it use it for the right reasons. McKibben does a
wonderful job pointing out the flaws in the system, flaws that clearly go against the Catholic Intellect
Tradition. Let's shape up America in a way that can be consistent and righteous. No matter what your
opinion of religion or Catholicism is, everyone can agree that honesty prevails and that we need to look
after each other, and hypocrisy only weakens our nation. Faith can be a catalyst to a better society for
many people, if they listen wisely.

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Bibliography

Kent, William. "Indulgences." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton
Company, 1910. 1 Mar. 2015 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07783a.htm>.
Bogan, Jesse. "In Pictures: America's 10 Biggest Megachurches." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 26 June
2009. Web. 01 Mar. 2015.
Kangas, Billy. "Teachings of the Early Church Fathers on Poverty & Wealth." The Orant. N.p., 25 Aug.
2012. Web. 01 Mar. 2015.
"United States Census Bureau." About Poverty. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2015.
Our, Responsibilities And Hence To, Manner Of Living (No. 182)., and Department Of Justice,
Peace And Human. "Catholic Social Teaching on Poverty, an Option for the Poor, and the Common
Good." (n.d.): n. pag. Http://www.usccb.org. Web.
Raushenbush, Paul Brandeis. "Pope Francis: 'Faith And Violence Are Incompatible'" The Huffington
Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2015.