A friend observed that storylines about Wall Street are almost always about corruption. I agree. I don't even know what a Wall Street movie would be about if not corruption.
You know another character that is almost always portrayed in movies as corrupt? Pastors.
While Wall Street tycoons and pastors aren't often clumped together in the same category, this is one they share. In our societal stereotypes, we assume the wheelers and dealers are up to no good, and storylines to that effect prop up our stereotypes.
Pastors, though, we stereotype as too good to be true. We idolize these people as holy men (and yes, in movies they are almost always men) who are beyond reproach. Peeling back the public face to show a real person is a compelling storyline. It may be a pastor who appears strong but is weak or a pastor who wants to do right but does wrong. The only other stereotype I have seen is of a pastor who is a dweeby do-gooder, the town fool, and the butt of everyone's jokes.
Basically, we tell the same cultural stories to ourselves over and over: the hero who goes his [sic] own way against all odds, the poor man who is loved by a rich woman, the fallen angel, to name just a few. (Side note: getting into the gender and racial issues of these storylines is fertile ground but too much for this one blog post.)
The thing is, most pastors know they are regular people. Yes, we have to do the dishes, and we make mistakes just like everyone else. And there are many people on Wall Street who are not corrupt power-mongers. Why is it so surprising to everyone else that we're real people? Why is it such an intrigue when a pastor embezzles money as opposed to a treasurer? I welcome your thoughts.
For now, I'll keep doing my part to show the congregation and anyone else who will listen that I make mistakes, too. And believe me, I have plenty of evidence to support my case.