It’s so common that the Germans have a word for it, Schadenfreude: pleasure derived from the misfortune of someone else.

Most of us want the best for our family and close friends, and we’d say we want the best for everyone. But the truth is seen in that hint of a smile, that glint in our eye, when we learn that someone else has fallen on hard times.

It was 28 years ago, but I shall never forget the reaction of some of my friends to the disgrace of TV evangelist Jim Bakker.

Bakker and his wife Tammy Faye had accumulated a fortune from contributions from viewers of their popular television show, the 700 Club. Bakker kept two sets of books, one for the IRS and another hidden in the safe. He sold shares in a bogus resort. He carried on an adulterous affair and then, using funds donated to his ministry, paid off the woman to keep her quiet. Bakker was eventually indicted and convicted on eight counts of mail fraud, 15 counts of wire fraud, and one count of conspiracy. He served eight years in the federal penitentiary.

I had never cared for Jim Bakker and his “prosperity gospel,” which promised that God would reward those who contributed to Bakker’s ministry with great wealth---“Send me money and God will give you a mansion like mine.”

That’s about as far from real Christianity as one can get, I thought, but I wished Jim Bakker no ill. Yet many of my friends apparently did. They snickered---a few guffawed---when they learned of Bakker’s downfall. That was Schadenfreude, and I found it unappealing.

I recalled the Jim Bakker story last week when I read the sad tale of 24-year-old Caleb Moore.

A student at Troy University, Caleb was arrested ten days ago and charged with a felony possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor possession of marijuana. If this were Caleb’s first arrest, one could overlook it, but this was his seventh arrest in four years, on charges including drunk driving and domestic violence, and he tested positive two years ago for several illicit drugs. Clearly, Caleb Moore is a deeply troubled young man.

Again, some of my friends are snickering and guffawing. That’s because Caleb’s father is Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore, who posts the Ten Commandments in his courtroom and disregards federal court orders while quoting scripture.

Roy Moore acts as if he’s the great white knight defending God and the American way. In that regard, he reminds me of Jim Bakker. There’s no reason to think Moore is guilty of Bakker’s transgressions, but many folks find his pious posturing distasteful. Hence the smirks and guffaws.

Schadenfreude is unappealing even when directed at someone who seems to ask for it. It’s easy to enjoy the misfortunes of those we never liked in the first place. “We always knew they were hucksters and charlatans,” we smugly say.

None of us are what we pretend to be. We all have a public persona that conceals some of our private thoughts and behaviors. The difference is that some people get found out while others manage to maintain their pretenses indefinitely. “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone,” Jesus said.

Since before he became an adolescent, Caleb Moore has lived in his father’s shadow. Although he presumably agrees with his father’s positions (he works for an organization founded by Roy Moore to promote traditional understandings of moral issues), growing up in the Moore household cannot have been easy. Preachers’ kids also cope with unusual expectations (my three sons could tell you about that).

Caleb Moore is not the only child of a famous and controversial father to experience trouble growing up. I recently read a book about the children of U.S. presidents. Most struggled with the notoriety and expectations laid on them. Some never got it together.

So let’s cut the Moores some slack. Roy Moore’s fame undoubtedly creates strains within the family that most of us cannot imagine. Caleb’s troubles do not make Roy and Kayla Moore poor parents. So cut out the snickering.

Richard H. Schmidt is a retired Episcopal priest, editor and author who lives in Fairhope. He can be reached at courier@gulfcoastnewspapers.com.