Signs of the Times

Wayne E. Oates

The Link

Dr. Wayne E. Oates Professor, Psychology of Religion Southern Baptist Seminary Louisville, Kentucky in The Link Washington, District of Columbia

The capacity to sneer seems to be a unique ability of humankind. This ability to sneer has produced ... a bumper crop of cynicism. The sneering quality in us loves the company of others dedicated to the proposition that all men are liars and no one can be trusted. The love of the company of others who sneer spawns cults of the curled lip, tight-knit groups committed to a contemptuous disbelief in men's sincerity of motives or rectitude of conduct. The internal orientation of these cynical groups is one of grandiose perfection, freedom from self-criticism, and mutual admiration of one another.

The characteristics and dynamics of the "cult of the curled lip" suggest effective ways to avoid the blight of this sourdough diet of life. ...

The cult ... earns its reputation by criticizing the persons and groups who have position, power, prominence, leadership. Many times—not always—the persons in position, power, prominence, and leadership have earned this by hard work, productivity, and creative commitment to positive values. An obscure person can move into a position of his own, gain power of his own, enter a prominence and enjoy a leadership by destroying such persons. ... This is reputation-by-proxy. The obscure and frustrated gain a measure of prominence and a measure of satisfaction at the expense of even moderately constructive, productive, and creative persons.

Therefore, another characteristic of the cult ... is insensitivity to personal values. ... This group studiously avoids firsthand confrontation of persons and issues in the same setting. ... The cultist ... pigeonholes and categorizes people the way one would things. ... We cannot take anyone's personal uniqueness away from him. ...

Men and women who are committed in open covenant with God ... can be kind, tenderhearted and forgiving. ... They do not need to belong to a group that is devoid of self-criticism. ... A person who is a genuine disciple of Jesus Christ ... can stand on his own as he resists evil.

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July 25, 1964

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