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| The Great Imitation |
| The new Christian may discover what millions of others before him have learned: |
| It is possible to avoid the pain and humiliation of repentance and renewal by maintaining an outward facade of spiritual commitment, moral impeccability, and orthodox behavior. In so doing he can preserve a reputation for spiritual growth and maturity that is satisfying to the ego and seems to gain much in the way of opportunities for service and the commendation of the Christian community. Such a Christian life-style is so prevalent and so little condemned that the new Christian can hardly be blamed for adopting it and regarding it as the expected thing. He drifts into it with scarcely a pang, little realizing that it is a total fraud, a shabby imitation of the real thing. He would be deeply
offended if anyone should call him a hypocrite. But in reality he is a hypocrite because the peace he claims to have is present only when the circumstances are untroubled, the joy he sings about never shows on his face, and the love he is forever extolling is reserved only for those who please him. It is a giant sham, though for the most part an unconscious one. Except for rare moments (usually of desperation or high ecstasy) he does not live the Christian life. |
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