“Practice what you preach.”

That old saw is usually trotted out when some high profile “holier‑than‑thou” type has their wings clipped and their reputation riddled with holes. Or a “sterling” character is revealed to have feet of crumbling clay.

But there is one big problem with “practice what you preach.” It all depends on what it is you are “preaching.” When some convictions are put into action the results can be catastrophic or cruel, insidious or just plain evil. Mother Teresa practiced what she preached, but so too did Adolph Hitler. Osama bin Laden practiced what he preached, as did the Unabomber.

If only the church “practiced what it preached,” we say, then the community of faith that confesses “Jesus is Lord” would be the #1 purveyor of love and peace in the world. But once agai…