Years ago, I knew a married couple who sat in the front row of the church every Sunday. The husband appeared to be a very pious man, with a rosary wrapped around his hands as he knelt in prayer before Mass. Yet, the same man was eventually arrested for domestic violence against his wife on multiple occasions. I never saw him again.

The prophet Isaiah wastes no time in putting a “whooping” on the leaders of Israel in the first reading. He calls out the hypocrisy of the leaders, who performed all the external acts of worship while exploiting the vulnerable members of society. To get their undivided attention, Isaiah referred to the leaders as “princes of Sodom” and “people of Gomorrah,” the two infamous cities destroyed by God in the book of Genesis.

As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are called to “speak truth to power,” calling out the hypocrisy of our government and Church leaders when it occurs. At the same time, we are also called to look deep within to see if any hypocrisy exists in our own lives.

Am I the same person during the week as I am on Sunday?

Lord, grant me the courage to call out hypocrisy in others and the humility to admit my own. Amen.