I’m a Christian, grateful to be a follower of Jesus. This is my tribe. Many outside the tribe call us hypocrites. Today I learned of a sad and glaring example.

First of all, is there a single reader of mine who is not a hypocrite? Nope, not one. We all miss the mark of perfection (Romans 3:23). But for those of us who follow Jesus, when we recognize our wrongdoing, we should both confess our wrongs to God (1 John 1:9) and to others (James 5:16) for forgiveness and healing.

But when Christian organizations display egregious hypocrisy that harms themselves and others, we have no choice but to publicly make a note.

Such is the case with this headline: NRB spokesman Dan Darling fired after pro-vaccine statements on ‘Morning Joe’ (RNS). 

As pointed out by the Institute for Global Engagement’s Daily Briefing: “The spokesman for a major evangelical nonprofit was fired for promoting vaccines on the MSNBC ‘Morning Joe’ cable news show.

Daniel Darling, senior vice president of communications for the National Religious Broadcasters, was fired Friday (Aug. 27) after refusing to recant his pro-vaccine statements, according to a source authorized to speak for Darling.”

The Daily Briefing writes, “Earlier this week, leaders at NRB, an international association of Christian communicators with 1,100 member organizations, told Darling his statements violated the organization’s policy of remaining neutral about COVID-19 vaccines. According to the source, Darling was given two options — recant or sign a statement admitting he had been insubordinate. When he refused, Darling was fired and given no severance, the source told [Religious News Services].”

Where’s the hypocrisy? It turns out Darling was fired over the vaccine, but the CEO publicly tweeted about the efficacy of the vaccine back in April.

And, is this the same organization that says they are “committed to fighting for the right of Christian communicators to speak freely and truthfully without fear of censorship”?

You can watch Darling’s appearance on Morning Joe here. He was on the show to speak about his USA Today op-ed on the vaccine (read it here).

According to the Daily Briefing:

• Dan advocates for the vaccine, but more than that, he is a man of peace.
• He is not trying to shame anyone for rejecting the vaccine.
• He is trying ultimately to live at peace with those who disagree with him on the vaccine.
• Darling says, “I’ve seen a lot of people just sort of dunking online on someone who gets COVID who maybe didn’t get the vaccine or was skeptical, and listen, we, when someone gets sick, when someone is in bad shape … this is a moment to remember their humanity and remember they are people made in the image of God.”

In the Scriptures, we read about how God’s love for us is made known in this world by our unity with one another and love toward each other (John 17:23, John 13:35).

The Daily Briefing concludes, “Sadly, this instance is the latest example of the vaccine causing disunity and a lack of charity.” Can I get an Amen?

© Copyright WLL, INC. 2021. This blog provides a wide variety of general health information only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment from your regular physician. If you are concerned about your health, take what you learn from this blog and meet with your personal doctor to discuss your concerns.