The American Spectator

Reader Mail

(Page 7 of 19)

"Is a church its people, or is it the body of Christ, or both? When you feel like certain people -- perhaps key people -- have let you down, what do you do?"

You remember that the Church is not a resort for saints, it is a hospital for sinners. Of COURSE people let us down, including -- perhaps especially -- those who are leaders in religious organizations. They are Fallen creatures, they fail. The Church teaches us to accept this. It is only the secularists who believe in the perfectibility of mankind who have reason to be "shocked" when the people they've placed on pedestals prove to have feet of clay. Except that they almost never are. They make excuses for *those* people. They're only "shocked" (and secretly delighted) when religious leaders fail.

p>"In the best Utopia, I must be prepared for the moral fall of any man in any position at any moment; especially for my fall from my position at this moment." -- G.K. Chesterton, ORTHODOXY br> -- Joseph DeMartino br> West Palm Beach, Florida /p>

I can understand Mr. Henry's frustration with human fallibility in churches. And yet, that's the whole point of going to church. Sick people go to hospitals because they need physical healing; if doctors threw their hands up every time a patient wasn't helped, then what would be the point of the hospital? Christians should support each other because of our fallibility, not in spite of it. Even the best congregation can't prevent every hardship, or do the right thing in all circumstances. What we need are people like Mr. Henry, who recognize this shortcoming, to choose action over retreat. If you see a failure, make a step towards correcting it. If you've been let down, do something to lift someone else up. The church is more than just the sum of its mortal parts. We should work through our communal faults, rather than isolating ourselves from them.

p>If the people who care enough to notice choose to disengage, all that's assured is more disappointment. I hope Mr. Henry finds a way to see his situation as an opportunity to make a difference, not a burden to seek refuge from. After all, a "perfect" church wouldn't let him -- or me -- in, would they? br> -- Jeff Laird br> Cleveland, Ohio /p>

A few observations about Lawrence Henry's article:

1. I suspect people from all denominations can identify with Mr. Henry's feelings, although for different reasons.

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