When Christians Get It Wrong

by Adam Hamilton

91% of those adults surveyed who were outside the Christian faith felt Christians were “anti-homosexual.” 87% felt Christians were judgmental. 85% felt Christians were hypocritical. 75% felt Christians were too political. 70% thought Christians were insensitive.

I’ve known people who called themselves Christians, who were convinced that they alone were right, and who were willing to fight over the tiniest, least consequential of things. We Christians argue over forms of baptism, our interpretation of minor points of Scripture, even the forms of music we play in church. Christians have fought entire wars over our sectarian differences, all the while forgetting that Jesus said that the defining characteristic of a Christian's life is meant to be love.

When Christians get it right they love and give, they work for justice and demonstrate kindness. When Christians get it right they, like Jesus, befriend those who are outside the church rather than condemning them. And when Christians get it right, people are drawn to, rather than repelled by, their faith.

Christians fear science because they think that it either competes with faith or is actively engaged in destroying faith.

Some Christians, in the name of God, say and do things in the realm of politics that are the antithesis of the gospel: slander, gossip, malicious talk, mean-spirited rhetoric, disrespect, and worse. This has been particularly true when it comes to spreading rumors and half-truths using the Internet. I am disappointed at how often Christians I know forward slanderous e-mail to everyone on their e-mail list without taking the time to verify the claims in the message.