When Stupidity And Shallowness Masquerade As Authenticity

In a hurry to appear "authentic" or relatable, those in the evangelical world like to openly claim that certain sins either enslave everyone or that they are far more depraved than they actually are.  People prone to this form of asinine false humility insist that they are just as wicked as everyone else, making few or no distinctions between sins of a comparatively minor nature and those of a more explicitly heinous kind.  They might identify with so-called "sins" that are only perceived to be evil by themselves and fellow legalists.  They might even rush to make their actual sins seem more terrible than they are in their effects and status among sins in order to make those around them feel more subjectively at home.

Of course, sometimes it is even the case that there is a sort of satisfaction taken in the fact that they sin.  Having some sort of sinful habit that is either personally neglected or acknowledged openly seems to make them feel at ease about being in the presence of other evangelicals.  The fixation on presenting the human capacity for sin in an almost positive light in the name of "authenticity" is one of the more bizarre ways that evangelical contradictions in priorities and beliefs show themselves.  Mistaking the mere casual mention of human sinfulness in their lives for one of the deepest forms of openness, this kind of evangelical puts their own shallowness on display to any more thoughtful observer.

It is almost as if they want other people to sin so that they can feel better about their own glaring failings.  At the very least, it is as if they are secretly (or perhaps not secretly in some cases) relieved that other people sin because then they do not have to feel as if there is something wrong with them when they voluntarily do something their own worldview would regard as sinful.  This can be seen wherever evangelicalism puts an emphasis on appearing helpless on an individual level in a group context, usually for the sake of inviting other people to share at least vague descriptions of their struggles that, given the deep attachment evangelicals have to legalism in numerous areas, might even be exaggerated out of a misunderstanding of what specific things are actually sinful to begin with.

Authenticity is found in sincerity, openness, and rationality.  Pretending to be sinful or believing one is sinful in ways one is not is the opposite of authenticity.  Acting like sin is an unavoidable force before which no one can fail to submit, even as a Christian, is blatant dishonesty, both in a purely rationalistic sense and a Biblical one.  Any evangelical who does such a thing errs gravely even if they truly are trying to connect with others.  The goal is not inherently contrary to Christianity; it is the pathetic method of fallacious exaggeration and false humility that so obviously cannot be reconciled to Christian theology.  It is quite improbable that a typical mainstream evangelical would ever challenge the status quo on this matter even in the privacy of their own thoughts, so deeply is it entrenched in evangelical norms.

Rationality, introspection, and genuine sincerity are all needed to embody true authenticity.  Without even a single one of these things, there is either recognition without consistency or sincerity in a distorted, incomplete set of beliefs.  Sharing oneself with others can only be done in the most intimate and truth-honoring ways when no party misrepresents their own standing, even to their own self.  Authenticity cannot be had when there is the delusion of irrationalistic beliefs about self and worldview interfering.  Commitment to Christianity cannot be wholehearted when sin is treated as something that must be present to find some basis for relating to others.  Not all evangelicals appear to succumb to the lies that insist otherwise, but enough do that the phenomenon needs to be addressed directly.