Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Catholic
Religion News
The Struggle Between Doctrine And Institutional Hypocrisy

The Struggle Between Doctrine And Institutional Hypocrisy

Last updated on: May 11, 2026 at 3:13 am by Henry Karlson

0 Comments

The Struggle Between Doctrine And Institutional Hypocrisy 2026-05-11T03:13:35-05:00 Henry Karlson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Samuel Collings: The Triumph of Hypocrisy / Wikimedia Commons

As an educated Catholic, as one who has studied more Catholic history than most Catholics will ever need, I examined many of the controversies which have affected Catholicism (and Christianity in general) throughout its long history. While my studies give me a historical and a theological perspective to deal with the crises which exist today, I fear it has also left me desensitized to them as well. It’s because I tend to look at the present moment as one part of a long history, a history which has had controversies come and go. I expect the same to happen with those affecting us today. Theologically, I understand that the truth of the faith is not affected by the character of those who teach it, even as I accept that the sacraments remain available despite the failings of the institutional church and its clergy. But, Christ wants more from us than this. Christ wants the faithful to be true to his teachings, and he wants the institutional church to help them remain faithful. The faithful know this, which, when they see the institution is not doing its job, leaves them very confused. The situation the modern church finds itself in cannot be ignored. And, because of the way I find myself desensitized to such scandals, I fear the situation is far worse than I realize. The church needs to see how ordinary Catholics, otherwise good and faithful Catholics, are creating a distance between themselves and the institutional church, sometimes leaving it altogether because they feel they cannot accept the hypocrisy coming from the institutional church as revealed by its scandals.

There is no question that the most visible scandal affecting the institutional church today is sexual abuse scandal. The greatest horror is not that there were many clergy, many religious, many catechists, many with positions in power and authority, who have abused their positions and have harmed countless innocents, children and adults alike, nor that we find more such abuse happening today, because sexual abuse is a universal problem which affects all walks of life; the greatest horror is how the institutional church tried to cover up the sexual abuse scandal, and how it continues to try to undermine its responsibility now that it has been exposed. The abuse is horrible enough, but the faithful expect the institutional church to serve them and their needs, which includes, protecting them as best it can from such harm. What many now see is that there is a spiritual and moral rot affecting the institution itself. It might properly teach the faith, which is good and true, but those in positions of power within the institution do not seem to live out what they teach. That is, they are hypocrites. And we can observe their hypocrisy, not only in relation to the sexual abuse scandal, but many similar scandals causing the faithful to question the institution (and sometimes, the faith itself). An apologist might point out that logically, or theologically, the truth of the faith is independent from those who teach it, that it would be an ad hominem to use the failings of the institution’s leaders to question the truth of the faith. But that does not deal with the faithful’s emotional response to their experiences, and the institutional church needs to understand this. It needs to deal with the many crises it has created, and the hypocrisy which lies behind them, for if it does not, it will find more and more faithful leaving the institution behind.

The institutional church properly teaches social justice, social justice founded upon the dignity of all humanity, a dignity which was affirmed by God when God assumed human nature in the incarnation, proving its worth. The church’s teachings concerning social justice promote the dignity of work, and with it, the rights of the workers to unionize; it promotes feeding the hungry, healing the sick, and not just through acts of charity, but by changing society to make sure there is a proper safety net for those in need. The church teaches religious liberty for all, not just for Christians. The church tells us that sexism and racism are grave sins. Many, including myself, are thankful for these teachings; I have learned a lot studying them, and in doing so, have found myself encouraged to do what I can to affirm them, not just in word, but in deed. I know I have a long way to go, that I am far from perfect. But I also know that I am a work in progress, seeking to put the teachings into action. What I wish is that the institutional church, or institutions within the church, like Catholic universities, would do the same, that they would put the effort in to follow what they teach, so they will not end up appearing to be great hypocrites when their actions are revealed.

It is good, it is invaluable, to hear the church proclaim the need for living wages; it is a shame that workers in Catholic institutions, from universities, to parishes, often are denied such living wages. It is good, it is invaluable, to see the church promotes the right to unionize; it is a shame that at Catholic universities, that right is often denied. It is good that the church proclaims the need for health care for everyone; it is a shame that the church has often acted in ways which ended up denying such health care to others, especially to those in need (as happened in its fight against the ACA); it is worse when we see it did so on a hypocritical basis, such as when we see it was criticizing and denouncing ACA requirements as violations of religious liberty when the church itself already accepted insurance which met those same requirements (for example, it criticized the ACA for having insurance that included contraceptive coverage despite dioceses having a history funding insurance that includes contraceptive coverage). It is good that the church proclaims the evils of sexism, but it is a shame to see misogyny continues to be a major problem within the institutional church. It is good that the church proclaims the evils of racism, but it is a shame that it has yet to properly deal with and make proper restitution for its own engagement of racism, such as its historical use of black slaves. It is good that the church proclaims religious liberty, but it is a shame that it often gives the impression that the only religious liberty the church is concerned about is that of Christians, and even then, only some of them.

What the church teaches is good, but what it does is what has people asking questions. Its hypocrisy is bad enough, but it is worse when its hypocrisy leads to all kinds of innocents being harmed. The institutional church should be held accountable for that harm. The sexual abuse scandal is an example of this: the church’s sexual teachings are clearly not being followed by many of its leaders, leading to countless innocent lives being wounded if not destroyed as those leaders exploit and sexually assault them. But, perhaps the hypocrisy which is most evident throughout church history is the way the poor has often found itself mistreated and abused, with officials in the church supporting their abusers. It is not that this has gone unnoticed; we can find many great saints calling it out (and often, leading to some temporary improvements), with saints, like St. Salvian and St. Basil the Great, having inspired me in my own writings. And so, it is always important to lend voice to those saints who have tried to deal with such hypocrisy, especially those who have exposed the pain and sorrow such hypocrisy has caused, like that of St. Peter Chrysologus:

We must flee from hypocrisy, brothers, we must flee from it; since it is a slave to praise, it does not relieve the shame of the poor, but it makes it worse; out of the groaning of the needy it seeks a pompous and boastful display of itself; it inflates its own glory from the agony of the poor; from the misery of the beggar it spreads the fame of its own ostentatiousness. [1]

It is important for us to listen to these voices, but also, the voices of those affected by abuse. We must listen to them and do what we can to repent and make things better. We must encourage and hope that the institutional church will have true metanoia and seek to heal those it has harmed. This is what the faithful need and want from the church. They need to see the change. Yes, acknowledging the problem is good, and it is a step which the institutional church has needed to do, and in some cases, it seems it has done, though, as the implications concerning the sexual abuse scandal shows, there remains many attempts to avoid the restitution it needs to make as a consequences for its sin. And, the institution needs to do this with every time its hypocrisy has caused innocents harm. When the church doesn’t do so, too many people are left confused as to what they should do. To that confusion I see two different responses: some, like myself, point to the need for further reform in the institutional church, making sure it deals with its hypocrisy once and for all by putting the teachings in action; the other is to deny those teachings and make new ones to reflect the actions, and this, I fear, is what many who call themselves traditionalists, or Christian nationalists, want to do; they deny social justice as being woke, and so have no problem affirming sexism and even racism. In the end, they want to make doctrines which serve as a defense of such injustices. This is why I speak out against them, because I see their way of dealing with the hypocrisy is to give into the sin instead of helping the church overcome its hypocrisy and live out the teachings which it has been given.

[1] St. Peter Chrysologus, Selected Sermons. Volume 2. Trans. William B Palardy (Washington, DC: CUA Press, 2004),49 [Sermon 9].

* This Is Another Post From My Personal (Informal) Reflections And Speculations Series

Stay in touch! Like A Little Bit of Nothing on Facebook.
If you liked what you read, please consider sharing it with your friends and family!

N.B.: While I read comments to moderate them, I rarely respond to them. If I don’t respond to your comment directly, don’t assume I am unthankful for it. I appreciate it. But I want readers to feel free to ask questions, and hopefully, dialogue with each other. I have shared what I wanted to say, though some responses will get a brief reply by me, or, if I find it interesting and something I can engage fully, as the foundation for another post. I have had many posts inspired or improved upon thanks to my readers.

General Christian

Religion News

History and Religion

Previous Post

May 10, 2026

Reflections for Paschaltide 2026: The Man Born Blind

Next Post

May 13, 2026 How The Apostles Begun The Process Of Doctrinal Development

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"First things first is the easiest way forward. "If someone is bleeding profusely, we must ..."

Dr.Cajetan Coelho

Why We Must Embrace Empathy, Sympathy ..."

"Gosh, did that hit the spot. I have been having great anxiety lately. And I ..."

Mark Wilson

Rejecting Doom: Christian Hope And Human ..."

"Justice and peace are two sides of the same coin. Where there is justice, there ..."

Dr.Cajetan Coelho

Justice First, Charity Beyond It: Serving ..."

"Thank you for your very, very powerful and very, very insightful analysis of the relationship ..."

alwayspuzzled

Justice First, Charity Beyond It: Serving ..."

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Abortion Abraham abuse Aesthetics AI Aliens Ambrose Ancestors and Everything Andrew Angels Animals Anne Anthony Antisemitism apologetics Apophatic Apostle John Aquinas Artificial Intelligence Asanga Ascension Asceticism Assumption Atheism Attachment Augustine Authority Avarice Balthasar Baptism Beauty Biden birthright citizenship Bishops Black History Books Buddhism Bulgakov Byzantine Calendar C.S. Lewis Calcidius Catholic Catholicism Catholicism Celibacy Charity Chastity children Chrismation Christ Christmas Christology Church Climate Change Common Good Communion Confession Confirmation Conscience Constantine conventions conversion councils Covid Creation Cross Dead Death Death Penalty Debate Deception Demagogues Demons Desert Monks Desert Mothers Desire destruction development Dialogue Dignity Dionsyius Dionysius Discipline Diversity Division Doctor Who doctrine dogma Dormition Dualism Easter Easter Series Ecumenical Councils Ecumenism Education Election Empathy Environment Error Eschatology eschaton Eternity Ethics Eucharist Evangelism Eve Evil evolution Faeries Faith Fear femininity Ficino Florence Florensky Folktale Fools Forgiveness Freedom Future gender Gentile Gentiles Glory Gnostic God gods Good Samaritan Goodness Gospel Government Grace Great Fast Guns Halloween Hate healing Health Heaven Hell Hellenism Heresy Hierarchy Hildegard Hinduism History Holiness Holy Spirit Holy Week Hope Horror Human rights humanity Humility hypocrisy ICE icon icons Identification Identity Idol II Nicea Immigration incarnation Individualism Informal Reflections Inklings Intention Inter-Religious Interfaith Internet Interpretation Intrinsic evil Irenaeus Islam Israel Jacob Jerome Jesus Jews John Chrysostom John of Damascus John the Baptist Joseph Judaism justice Justification kenosis Kindnesss Kingdom of God Kingdom of Heaven Law Law of Moses Lazarus Leaf by Niggle Lent Lenten Reflection Liberation Theology Lies Life Listen Literature Liturgy locutions Logic Logos Love Marriage Martyrs Mary Mass Maximos The Confessor Meanness Meditation Mercy Middle Path Migrants Mind Miracles Miriam Morals Moses Movies Music Muslims Myths Names Nationalism Native Americans New Year Nicea Nicholas Nothing Novatian Obedience Occam's Razor Ordination Origen Original Sin Orthodox orthopraxis Pagans Palamas Palm Sunday Paradise Paschaltide Paul Peace Pentecost person Peter piety PKD Plato pluralism Plurality Poem Poetry Poiltics Politics Poor Pope Pope Francis Pope Leo XIV Post Office Prayer Pride Pro-life Prodigal Son propaganda Prophecy Prophets Providence Putin Racism Reading Reason Reflection Refugees Relationships Religion Religion Series Religious Liberty Repent Republicans Rest Resurrection Rich Rites Russia Sacraments Saints Salvation Salvian Santa Science Scripture Self-Giving Sexuality Sibyl Sick Silence Sin Singlehood Social Justice Society Sodom Solovyov Speculations Spiritual Reflection St. Cyril of Alexandria St. Justin Martyr Suffering Sunday of the Paralytic Man Sunday of the Samaritan Woman Superhero Supreme Court Teaching Technology Thanksgiving The Father the Universe Theological Reflection Theology Theosis Theotokos Thomas Timaeus Time Tolerenace Tolkien Tradition Transfiguration Trinity Trump Truth Uncategorized Unity Universities USCCB Vainglory Value Vatican II Vegetarian Vices Violence Virtue Vocations War Water Welcome Wisdom Womanhood Women Work World View Worship Writing Zacchaeus

Select a Month November 2026 October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz