Why I’m happy to be a hypocrite

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Several years I co-wrote a book about with Julie Burchill. We took aim at the hypocrisy of a raft of targets including Israel-bashers, reformed smokers and the environmental movement.

One reviewer described our book as ‘a collection of enjoyable rants on hypocritical attitudes to everything from anal sex to Israel and Amy Winehouse’.

I still love the book – it’s angry, crazy and funny in all the right places.

But I do feel differently now about hypocrisy.

Now, I feel that to accuse someone of being a hypocrite is simply to accuse them of being spiritually alive. Therefore, to try and avoid being a hypocrite is to try and avoid being spiritually alive.

My favourite quote about hypocrisy comes from the Chabad Rebbe. He wrote: ‘Do not be dismayed by the hypocrisy of others, nor by your own inconsistencies. Our lives are all journeys through hills and valleys—no person’s spiritual standing is a static affair.’

Wise words. Have a lovely weekend everyone.