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Volume 1 · Honest HereticsLesson 8About 22 minutes

In Secret

If no one ever found out about the good you do, would you still do it?

Honest Heretics edition for skepticsSwitch to Centered (for believers)

Lesson 8 · Honest Heretics
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The center · Matthew 6:6
6But you, when you pray, enter into your inner room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

In this lesson

Most religion is public. There are buildings with names on them, prayers said into microphones, giving announced from the front, and faith worn on shirts, bumpers and social media profiles. It can feel strange to learn that Jesus taught almost the opposite.

You have probably noticed how loudly some Christians practice their faith: public prayers, announced donations, prayer as a political badge. If you've felt like the only one in the room who saw the irony, you weren't wrong. Their founder told them to do all three behind a closed door. This lesson shows exactly what he said.

Read it3 min

In the middle of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus takes three things every devout person of his day did, giving to the poor, praying and fasting, and says the same thing about each.

Who's who: "Hypocrites" comes from a Greek word for a stage actor, someone performing behind a mask. Synagogues were the local meeting houses where Jews gathered to pray and hear Scripture. "Gentiles" means non-Jews. Fasting is going without food for a time as a religious practice.
Matthew 6:1-4
1“Be careful that you don’t do your charitable giving before men, to be seen by them, or else you have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. 2Therefore, when you do merciful deeds, don’t sound a trumpet before yourself, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may get glory from men. Most certainly I tell you, they have received their reward. 3But when you do merciful deeds, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand does, 4so that your merciful deeds may be in secret, then your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
Matthew 6:5-8
5“When you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Most certainly, I tell you, they have received their reward. 6But you, when you pray, enter into your inner room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 7In praying, don’t use vain repetitions as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their much speaking. 8Therefore don’t be like them, for your Father knows what things you need before you ask him.

Then he gives a short prayer as a pattern. It takes less than a minute to say.

Matthew 6:9-13
9Pray like this: “‘Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. 10Let your Kingdom come. Let your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. 11Give us today our daily bread. 12Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors. 13Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.’
Matthew 6:16-18
16“Moreover when you fast, don’t be like the hypocrites, with sad faces. For they disfigure their faces that they may be seen by men to be fasting. Most certainly I tell you, they have received their reward. 17But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18so that you are not seen by men to be fasting, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you.

He told a story about two men at prayer, aimed at people "who were convinced of their own righteousness."

Luke 18:9-14
9He also spoke this parable to certain people who were convinced of their own righteousness, and who despised all others: 10“Two men went up into the temple to pray; one was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. 11The Pharisee stood and prayed by himself like this: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of men: extortionists, unrighteous, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13But the tax collector, standing far away, wouldn’t even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his chest, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Giving (6:2–4) Praying (6:5–6) Fasting (6:16–18) For show In secret sound a trumpetbefore you pray on thestreet corners look gloomy soothers can tell left hand doesn't knowwhat the right does go into your roomand shut the door wash your faceso no one knows "They have received their reward." "Your Father who sees in secret will reward you." The same pattern three times: a public version, a hidden version, and two different rewards.
Matthew 6:1–18. Each practice has a version done for an audience and a version done in secret.

The world behind the words4 min

In Jesus' world, giving, praying and fasting were the three pillars of a devout life, and they were good things. He never told anyone to stop doing them. What he attacked was doing them for an audience.

The Greek word he used for the people he criticized, hypokritēs, was the ordinary word for an actor on a stage. Actors wore masks and played to a crowd. Jesus' charge was that some religious people did the same: they prayed where they would be noticed, gave where it would be announced, and fasted so others could see it on their faces. His verdict on them is short and a little chilling: "they have received their reward." They wanted to be seen, they were seen, and that was all they would get.

He saved some of his harshest words for the same thing in religious leaders: "They do all their works to be seen by men… and love the place of honor at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues" . In Mark he warned about teachers who "for a pretense make long prayers" while they "devour widows' houses" .

His own habit matched his teaching. Mark records that "early in the morning, while it was still dark, he rose up and went out, and departed into a deserted place, and prayed there" . And the prayer he taught is remarkably short. Luke's version is shorter still . The closing line many churches say, "For yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever," is not in the oldest manuscripts of Matthew; it was added later for use in worship.

Point to this: Matthew 6 sits in the Sermon on the Mount, the best-known teaching Jesus gave, and it contains the Lord's Prayer, which most Christians know by heart. The instructions wrapped around that prayer are about secrecy.

How it drifted5 min

Ring 4: modern movements
Faith performed for an audience, and public prayer as a political badge
The further an idea sits from the center, the more it needs a reason to outrank his words.

The pull toward performance started early. Within a century, a Christian manual called the Didache told believers to pray the Lord's Prayer three times a day and to fast on Wednesdays and Fridays, not on Mondays and Thursdays "with the hypocrites." The intent was devotion, but fasting had already become a matter of which days you were seen doing it.

By the Middle Ages, public giving had become a transaction. The church sold indulgences, certificates that promised to reduce punishment for sin, and the money paid for public buildings and church projects. In 1517 a preacher named Johann Tetzel was selling them to raise funds for the new St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. A young monk named Martin Luther objected in his Ninety-five Theses, and one of them is pure Matthew 6.

“
Christians are to be taught that he who gives to the poor or lends to the needy does a better deed than he who buys indulgences.
Martin Luther, Ninety-five Theses, Thesis 43 (1517)

In the twentieth century, public prayer became a matter of national identity. During the Cold War, American leaders wanted to set the country apart from the officially atheist Soviet Union. Congress established a National Day of Prayer in 1952. The first National Prayer Breakfast, with President Eisenhower attending, was held in 1953. "Under God" was added to the Pledge of Allegiance in 1954, and "In God We Trust" became the national motto in 1956. After the Supreme Court ruled in 1962 that public schools could not lead students in official prayer, the fight over public prayer became one of the defining issues of American politics.

c. 30Jesus: pray behind a shut door; give so your left hand doesn't know.
c. 100The Didache sets prayer three times a day and fixed fast days.
1517Indulgences sold for St. Peter's Basilica; Luther's Thesis 43 objects.
1952–1956National Day of Prayer, Prayer Breakfast, "under God," "In God We Trust."
1962The Supreme Court ends official school-led prayer (Engel v. Vitale).
TodayPublic prayer and displays of faith are used as political signals.
Whose purpose it serves: Public faith is useful. It wins votes, raises money and marks who belongs. A politician who prays on camera gets something he could never get from praying in a closet. Many people who want prayer in public places sincerely miss a time when faith felt shared, but the strongest push has always come from those who gain from being seen.

What they'll say back3 min

"Jesus said to let your light shine so people see your good works." He did, in the same sermon: "Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven" . Read the end of that sentence. The light points people to God, not to you. Kindness that can't be hidden is one thing. Piety staged so you'll be admired is another, and Matthew 6 is about the second.

"Jesus prayed in public too." He sometimes did. He blessed the bread before feeding a crowd and prayed aloud at a friend's tomb. What concerned him was the audience: who the prayer is really for. He never asked the government to pray for him, and he never used prayer to show which side he was on.

When you hear these: Both are common, and both prove less than they seem. Matthew 5:16 is about pointing to God, and Jesus' occasional public prayers were never performances. Calmly bring it back to Matthew 6:6: "pray to your Father who is in secret."

Measured against the center2 min

A contradiction
Performing faith for an audience, and using prayer as a public or political badge, contradicts Jesus' direct instruction to give, pray and fast in secret.

Measured against the center, this one is plain, and it is a contradiction, not an add-on. Jesus named three practices, described a public version and a private version of each, and said the public version has already received its whole reward. Faith displayed to be admired, and prayer used to mark which side you are on, are what he warned against.

What you noticed is real. When prayer becomes a political prop or a public performance, it is doing the exact thing Jesus told his followers not to do, in the most famous sermon he gave. You can point that out without contempt; the passage is short and very clear.

A keeper1 min

Do good quietly. Give without announcing it. Help without needing credit. Let the best things you do be the ones no one finds out about.

Matthew 6:3-4
3But when you do merciful deeds, don’t let your left hand know what your right hand does, 4so that your merciful deeds may be in secret, then your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

The same wisdom runs through other traditions. The medieval Jewish scholar Moses Maimonides ranked the ways of giving to the poor, and placed near the top giving where the giver and the receiver do not know each other's names, so that no one is shamed and no one is praised.

You can live this without believing anything. Quiet generosity protects the dignity of the person you help, and it frees you from needing anyone's applause. Many people who never set foot in a church practice it better than the people who pray loudest.

Reflect2 min

  1. Where have you seen faith performed for an audience: at events, in politics, online?
  2. Did the Cold War history of "under God" and the Prayer Breakfast surprise you?
  3. Who is the most generous person you know? Do you know about their generosity because they told you?

Take your time with each one. There is space to write your answers in the book and the PDF.

Practice this week1 min

This week, keep count of the public displays of faith you see: prayers at events, posts, signs, announced donations. Then, separately, do one good thing for someone that you never tell anyone about. Notice how different the two feel.

Bring it back1 min

1
Common ground
"We both know the Lord's Prayer. Do you remember what Jesus said right before it?"
2
The bridge question
"Where did he say to pray: in public, or in private?"
3
Back to his words
Show them Matthew 6:6, "when you pray, enter into your inner room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret," and ask: "If that's what he said, what should we make of prayer used on stage or in politics?"
They sayYou can say
"We need prayer back in schools and government."
"Students can still pray on their own; Jesus' own instruction was to pray behind a closed door (Matthew 6:6). Who is official public prayer really for?"
"Christians shouldn't hide their faith."
"He didn't say hide it. He said don't perform it. 'They have received their reward' (Matthew 6:5) is about people who prayed to be seen."
Pass it on: If a believer you love is tired of faith as a show, Matthew 6 is the gentlest place to start. You don't have to argue; hand them the believer edition of this book.

Remember it

Behind the fold

Shut the door. Matthew 6:6: "Enter into your inner room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret."

Behind the fold: a small green point almost hidden behind a folded flap of paper. Shut the door.

  1. What does the Greek word for "hypocrite" originally mean?
    A stage actor.
  2. What did Jesus say the people who pray to be seen have already received?
    "Their reward" (Matthew 6:5).
  3. Which line of the Lord's Prayer is missing from the oldest manuscripts of Matthew?
    "For yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever."
Sources
  1. Didache 8.1–3 (late 1st or early 2nd century).
  2. Martin Luther, Ninety-five Theses (1517), Thesis 43; on Tetzel and the St. Peter's indulgence, see Roland Bainton, Here I Stand (1950), ch. 4.
  3. National Day of Prayer: Public Law 82-324 (1952). National Prayer Breakfast, February 5, 1953. "Under God" added to the Pledge, June 14, 1954. National motto, July 30, 1956. See Kevin Kruse, One Nation Under God (2015).
  4. Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (1962).
  5. Moses Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Laws of Gifts to the Poor 10:7–14 (12th century).
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