cynical christian

my brother asked me if a christian should be cynical. i'm not sure i know the answer to that. i have a christian friend who is cynical about everything regarding christianity. he seems to hate the church, almost everyone in it, the way they preach, the way they talk or don't talk, their hypocrisy, their interests, their lack of interest, the music, their emphases, their outreach, their lack of oureach, ... well, you get the idea. granted, the guy has some legitimate points. but i remember something the pastor said from my old home church that was quite profound (and believe me, those moments were few and far between - there i go with my cynicism!). he said something along the lines that if you find a perfect church, don't go in because you'll ruin it. he makes a valid point here. i think if we include ourselves in our cynicism, then maybe we're engaging in nothing more than a bit of realism. however, when we're somehow absent from that equation, then perhaps there's a pride problem.