Hypocrisy

[ztodd]

From dictionary.com:

hy·poc·ri·sy

   /hɪˈpɒkrəsi/ Show Spelled[hi-pok-ruh-see] Show IPA

–noun, plural -sies. 1. a pretense of having a virtuous character, moral or religious beliefs or principles, etc., that one does not really possess.

2. a pretense of having some desirable or publicly approved attitude.

3. an act or instance of hypocrisy.

If you disagree with the definition above, let us know in your post.

My question is, does hyposcrisy include preaching or petitioning against certain things in plays or movies that would be rated PG-13, if we still see PG-13 movies sometimes ourselves?

We recently saw the play Les Miserables in Tempe, AZ at ASU's Gammage Auditorium. We've seen this play a few times before and we felt that this time they added some unnecessary sexually explicit scenes that didn't need to be there. Quite a few others in our area feel the same way and are starting a petition that they plan to send to the producer. My personal feeling is that such things never need to be there in movies or plays, but I will still sometimes go and see PG-13 movies if I believe they're not "too bad". Does that make me a hypocrite? Perhaps technically it does... but does that also mean that I don't have the right to preach or petition against these things?

.

[Daybreak79]

I recently saw Les Mis in Salt Lake City and my wife and I also felt that it was a lot more sexually explicit than in past productions that we have seen. I honestly feel that if that is what they are going to focus on in Les Mis then I may not go to future productions of it.

Sorry, I'm not going to comment on the hypocrite aspect of your post because I am still trying to decide if I am a hypocrite!

[ztodd]

The letter that the group here is planning to send is asking the producer to let us know if they intend to keep those scenes so that we can have warning or know if we will want to see future productions.

I would suppose that I am a hypocrite, at least sometimes. I try not to be. For that reason (that I'm trying to not be one) I feel that we still have the right to petition, warn, or preach against these types of things, and that we should be respected and listened to.

I just thought of something to add- someone recently told me how their friend didn't want to go to church because there were too many hypocrities. The first guy replied that yes there are, so he should come too because one more wouldn't make any difference. :)

Oh yeah, I also wanted to say that this production we saw, in my opinion, should maybe have been rated R.

[Vort]

I just thought of something to add- someone recently told me how their friend didn't want to go to church because there were too many hypocrities. The first guy replied that yes there are, so he should come too because one more wouldn't make any difference. :)

I know that I hate going to Church with all those smelly hypocrites. Thank God that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.

[Jamie123]

Hypocracy is the homage vice pays to virtue.

(Francois de La Rochefoucauld)

[Latter Days Guy]

You should be ok if your over 13 to see PG13 movies.

[ztodd]

You should be ok if your over 13 to see PG13 movies.

But would you be ok with me petitioning or preaching against certain things in PG13 movies, if I still go see PG13 movies sometimes? I'm asking more about hypocrisy than about PG13 movies.

[Backroads]

I"m wondering what they did to the Les Mis production that made it worse. I know people who will see the edited high school productions, not realizing it's been edited, then freak out when they see the original. So was anything actually added or was it just the original?

[ztodd]

I"m wondering what they did to the Les Mis production that made it worse. I know people who will see the edited high school productions, not realizing it's been edited, then freak out when they see the original. So was anything actually added or was it just the original?

We've seen the original production a few times before- the difference in this one is that they acted out all the scenes a lot more. In most scenes, this was a great addition and helped us get into the story more. Unfortunately they also made the Master of the House and Lovely Ladies scenes more graphic in their portrayals. I heard from someone that said their 12 or 13 year old was very disturbed by it and wanted to leave.

[Suzie]

My question is, does hypocrisy include preaching or petitioning against certain things in plays or movies that would be rated PG-13, if we still see PG-13 movies sometimes ourselves?

Yep.

[Traveler]

I think you are a hypocrite if you expect someone to determine your personal morals and standards.

The Traveler

[Seminarysnoozer]

From dictionary.com:

hy·poc·ri·sy

   /hɪˈpɒkrəsi/ Show Spelled[hi-pok-ruh-see] Show IPA

–noun, plural -sies. 1. a pretense of having a virtuous character, moral or religious beliefs or principles, etc., that one does not really possess.

2. a pretense of having some desirable or publicly approved attitude.

3. an act or instance of hypocrisy.

If you disagree with the definition above, let us know in your post.

My question is, does hyposcrisy include preaching or petitioning against certain things in plays or movies that would be rated PG-13, if we still see PG-13 movies sometimes ourselves?

We recently saw the play Les Miserables in Tempe, AZ at ASU's Gammage Auditorium. We've seen this play a few times before and we felt that this time they added some unnecessary sexually explicit scenes that didn't need to be there. Quite a few others in our area feel the same way and are starting a petition that they plan to send to the producer. My personal feeling is that such things never need to be there in movies or plays, but I will still sometimes go and see PG-13 movies if I believe they're not "too bad". Does that make me a hypocrite? Perhaps technically it does... but does that also mean that I don't have the right to preach or petition against these things?

.

Anyone who calls someone else a hypocrite should have the authority to do so, otherwise it falls under every other situation where we are not to judge others.

According to the definition you gave, it is in part related to one's beliefs. If we can prove a person's beliefs by their actions then maybe we could call someone a hypocrite. But we know that none of us are perfect, so our actions don't always represent our beliefs. Then, how can you know what a person believes? We can't. Therefore, we can never really call someone a hypocrite unless somehow there is power given to be a judge over that individual (i.e - the prophet, Jesus, etc.).

Many outside religion call religious people hypocrites because they don't live 100% their faith. According to your definition there it doesn't require living it 100%, just that one's beliefs (not actions) are not in opposition to one's goals. So long as you don't pretend to have a religious belief you don't really have then it is not hypocrisy, according to that definition. For example, if someone represented themselves as Mormon when they are not (like a popular Broadway show, for example) then that would be hypocrisy.

[ztodd]

Having a "pretense of having a virtuous character, moral or religious beliefs or principle that one does not really possess"... I was still thinking of that more as being tied into our actions- but I suppose it might just be what we preach to others.

Either way, it's like you said- it depends completely on what it is that we truly believe- on what our real principles are. You're saying that we have no right to call anyone a hypocrite since we don't know for sure what their true beliefs really are. I would agree with that. Someone might say that they believe that X is wrong, and they might be lying or they might be telling the truth... we just don't know... Or someone might act a certain way which contradicts what they say they believe, but that might just be because they are weak in that area, and they know that what they're doing is wrong. We all do that... that's the very definition of sin, which we know we are all guilty of.

Jesus had no problem calling people hypocrites, and rightly so, because only he knew the true intents of their hearts. We, on the other hand, can not ever be sure of knowing whether someone else is a hypocrite. We can only know that of ourselves.

,

[HEthePrimate]

Part of me wants to ask "Would you watch an X-rated movie and then complain about how dirty it is?" However, the reality is more complicated. I don't know the criteria they use for rating movies, but whatever they are, people have different opinions about what is appropriate for children and what is not appropriate. So when a movie is rated PG-13, one parent might watch the movie and think it's just fine for her 14-year-old child. Another parent might watch the same movie and think it's inappropriate. So what are the people who assign the ratings supposed to do? It's impossible to please everybody.

I think the ratings system serves as a general guide, and can be useful even if you don't agree with their rating criteria. For example, if you think too many PG-13 movies are actually not appropriate for 13-year-olds, then tell your children so, and send them to G or PG movies instead.

Of course plays (as opposed to movies) are not rated, so you have to come up with a different way of deciding whether or not to watch those.

It's good that people are willing to give feedback to those who produce our arts and entertainment, so if you have a problem with that production of Les Mis, go ahead and say so. But do keep in mind that what works for you might not work for others, and ultimately what we watch is our own responsibility.

I have to admit that there have been times when I was watching a movie that I thought was fine for somebody my age, but I saw people there with young children. I cringed and wondered what those parents were thinking. But unless they're actually abusing or neglecting their children, it's not my call as to how they raise their own kids.

[ztodd]

...So what are the people who assign the ratings supposed to do? It's impossible to please everybody.

Good question- what are those people supposed to do? Try to please everybody? Try to please the majority? or should there be a more constant standard they should try to hold to?

Do those who assign ratings have, or should they feel, a certain moral responsibility to God? to the best welfare of the public?

How about producers & directors of film or theater productions? Should they have & feel the same moral obligation?

,

[HEthePrimate]

Good question- what are those people supposed to do? Try to please everybody? Try to please the majority? or should there be a more constant standard they should try to hold to?

Do those who assign ratings have, or should they feel, a certain moral responsibility to God? to the best welfare of the public?

How about producers & directors of film or theater productions? Should they have & feel the same moral obligation?

,

It's quite possible they do feel a moral obligation. However, different people have different ideas about what's appropriate. For example, a pacifist might object to a movie like Star Wars, because he feels it glorifies violence. Another person might consider Star Wars to be harmless fun that also teaches good values. One person might object to Harry Potter because he's a wizard. Another will think Harry Potter teaches good values. In a pluralistic society, people can in good faith disagree with each other about what is appropriate.