(On Hypocrisy, Dishonesty, and the Courage to Live an Honest Life)
Nagsisimba tuwing Linggo. Araw-araw nagyo-yosi. Tumotoma kasama ang tropa tuwing Biyernes o Sabado. Nakikipaglandian sa kasintahan ng iba o asawa ng may asawa. Bukambibig ay mga bersong galing sa bibliya, pero pag nagalit masahol pa sa “putang ina” ang namumutawi sa bunganga; at ang karaniwang libangan ay makiusyoso sa buhay ng iba at makipagtsismisan sa mga kapwa matatalas ang dila. Ang katawatawa pa niyan–ang karaniwang nalululong sa mga gawaing ganyan e ang mga panatiko’t sagradong relihiyoso.
I think being hypocritical is a natural human tendency. Everyone falls in the folly of being a hypocrite once in a while. Therefore, what separates one human from another in that aspect is his ability to control that tendency or minimize his hypocrisy. The more honest one is with his words and actions and with his dealings, the less hypocrite he is. Following this premise, the worst hypocrites are those who proclaim that they are living honest and religious lives, imposing on others their faith and beliefs, yet continuously do things that defy the very teachings of what they believe in and what they are preaching–citing the weakness or imperfection of man as an excuse for their failure to practice what they preach and to abide by the teachings of their faiths.
“Hypocrisy is the state of pretending to have beliefs, opinions, virtues, feelings, qualities, or standards that one does not actually have.” It is also the failure to practice those virtues that one preaches or to heed the teachings of the religion one believes in.
Considering our very weak nature as humans, who harbor hypocrisy deep within each of us albeit in varying degrees, the question now is how hypocrite are you?
Here are just a number of hypocritical ways many people fall victims of. The more you can see yourself doing these, the more hypocrite you are. If you think that you are guilty of all these then, sad to say, you are a very hypocritical person. But of course, there is a way to lessen the hypocrisy in your heart–by practicing what you profess or preach and by not criticizing activities other people do which you yourself also engage in.
How Hypocritical Are You?
– You go to your church regularly, and force your children (in case you have children) also to attend church; but you don’t practice the teachings your religion asks you to.
– You criticize other people for having liberated views–yet you also engage in some liberal activities like gambling, smoking, or drinking alcoholic beverages.
– You smile at and talk with people you know, including people you don’t like; but you talk negative things about them behind their backs.
– You impose on others your faith or your beliefs, but you yourself don’t practice what you preach.
– You criticize many of the young people of today for engaging in “earthly” activities including premarital sex, going out or partying with friends and then coming home late, and using slang, forgetting that you as a teenager used to engage in such same if not similar activities.
– You are invited to an occasion; you don’t like to attend, but you still attend because you feet you are forced to.
– Somebody offers you something–say, food–even though you don’t like it, you still accept it. Or the other way around: Somebody offers you food; even though you like it, you say ‘no thanks.
Sa Madaling Salita
Di mo lang alam, pero napakaraming maliliit na bagay na iyong ginagawa araw-araw na maituturing na kaipokrituhan. Kung patuloy mong gagawin ang mga bagay na ito, lalo na para lang “mapabuti” ang pagtingin sa iyo ng iyong kapwa, e patuloy kang mabubuhay na isang ipokrito. Oo, lahat ng tao ay may bahid ng pagkaipokrito; subalit ang bawat isa ay nagkakaiba sa katindihan ng kanyang pagkaipokrito. Datapwat wag mawalan ng pag-asa; may paraan naman para mabawasan ang pagka-ipokrito–sa pamamagitan ng pagiging totoo sa iyong bawat sinasabi at ikinikilos.
Or, in Simple Words
There are many simple things one does every day that may be considered hypocritical. And most of these a person does out of seeming courtesy or to please other people. But what he does not realize is that to do these things continuously without the will to stop them is to live a dishonest or hypocritical life. Yes, everyone has a tinge of hypocrisy inside him, but this doesn’t mean that he couldn’t improve himself in this aspect. The best way to overcome one’s hypocrisy is to say what you mean and mean what you say. If you don’t have the courage to do this, better yet just shut your mouth.
