The "hypocrisy" of organized religion

[KATRINA_68]

With a little more discussion, it’s rarely the real reason. One friend, after opening up, expressed bitterness about her failed Catholic marriage to an unfaithful spouse, another whose sister is suffering from cancer. One man is bitter because his Dad deserted the family. It’s misdirected anger. Some people become closed off from the Church as a result. And the longer people are away from their Faith, the harder it is to come back. I try to engage them, but of course, have to edge away when some are just not ready to deal with the issue in their life. We are all on this journey, some are struggling worse than others.

 

[Genesis315]

Hypocrisy is defined as follows:
a pretense of having a virtuous character, moral or religious beliefs or principles, etc., that one does not really possess.

HYPOCRISY Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com

HYPOCRISY definition: a pretense of having a virtuous character, moral or religious beliefs or principles, etc., that one does not really possess. See examples of hypocrisy used in a sentence.

www.dictionary.com

As a rule, the Catholic Church does have the moral and religious beliefs and principles it claims. It does not claim that all it’s members therefore live up to those and have virtuous characters (many do and many don’t). Therefore, there is no hypocrisy.

 

[Eric_Hyom]

And the hypocrite says, I do God’s work, but only in an advisory capacity.

 

[ericc]

What should I say to someone who complains bitterly about “the hypocrisy of organized religion”?

You should ask these 2 questions:

1. Which religion? Define religion.
2. Examples? A practitioner of the religion that goes against the teachings of the religion? That may or may not be hypocrisy. No one is perfect. We all fail from time to time. Ask them “have you ever failed, fallen into temptation, never did/think a single bad thing in their entire life?” If they affirm they have fallen before, then why call the kettle black? That too is hypocrisy. What’s wrong with similar thinking folks gathering together trying to better themselves by following a religion that does not teach hypocrisy? I don’t know of any religion that teaches hypocrisy. May be there is.

 

[Mary888]

Tell them that it’s easier to be lost in one’s own contemplation of personal revelation than to present them to others that aim to believe the same things you do (organized religion) and face what they reply. And considering historical organized religion you then have to compare what you think it’s your original spiritual genius to what is recorded that others said during the passage of time and what they said was revealed to them helped many others and thus it is recorded as public revelation.