I’m sure you read the papers, yes? The one that had that pastor’s latest adultery scandal? We all know him. But do we know the Mr. Legislator who goes to solicit young men at that bar? Some of us do. What is the greater sin?

We are all hypocrites. Every single one of us. We live in a world, a society full of Pharisaic norms. While we are still young, we castigate these norms and label them as backward and judgmental. At the same time, we are slowly absorbing these same norms into our personal value system. We forget the proverb, “Let he without sin cast the first stone.” I will be asking a lot of questions today. Don’t just answer them at face value, let them simmer in your mind until the truth floats to the surface.

Which is the greater sin?

There is a 16 year old girl with an obvious baby bump. There is also a 23 year old girl, never been knocked up. At least that’s what they see. Some of us know how often she visits that ‘clinic’ downtown. Which is the greater sin?

There is the girl that hits the clubs every weekend from school and does ‘runs’ on the side. Just for the heck of it. Don’t we all know her? There is also the girl; devoted choir member and good Christian. A ‘good girl’. We all know her don’t we? But some of us know the kinds of movies and websites she spends her nights ‘meditating’ on. Which is the greater sin?

I’m sure you know Mrs. Convert – the one who lived recklessly but now is devoted to God? Yes, the one of whom it is said that she can’t have children. Haven’t we all dissected her matter? What about Mrs. Community Pillar, the Imam’s wife. We all thank God for strong women leaders and role-models like her, no? Here’s food for thought. If only we knew how many of her children would fail a paternity test. Which is the greater sin?

What about the drunkard lecturer at that university? We have seen him and heard of him. But have you heard of the dean? Good man, isn’t he? Wonderful! If only we knew at what time he leaves his daughter’s bedroom every night. Which is the greater sin?

I’m sure you read the papers, yes? The one that had that pastor’s latest adultery scandal? We all know him. But do we know the Mr. Legislator who goes to solicit young men at that bar?
Some of us do. Which is the greater sin?

It would pay you not to figure out the identities of these ‘people’. They are all figments of my imagination or characters in a book or movie. The truth is that all these things are possibly going on around us. We might even know one or two people whose stories are similar.

A lot of people’s dirty laundry is floating around the city. I would like to assure you that many more people’s dirty linen is folded away neatly and buried farther down than the sun can shine.

Question is, “Which is the greater sin?” Is it the one on soft-sell headlines or the buried secret?

Think of it long and hard. If you ever come up with an answer, I’ll ask you this, “Who made you the judge?”

Let us cast aside our white-washed selves and be real for a while. We are all guilty, whether people know or can see, or not. There is no one who has the right standing to judge another person or condemn their actions, values, lifestyle, beliefs, whatever. Let us all remove the logs in our eyes so we don’t poke out someone else’s.

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Temi Paul loves to write and share her thoughts. She blogs at temipublished.blogspot.com

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30 Days 30 Voices series is an opportunity for young Nigerians to share their stories and experiences with other young Nigerians, within our borders and beyond, to inspire and motivate them.

 

Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.