Have you ever thought about how bad the Apostles were? Few of the stories in the gospels portray them in a good light. They are usually saying something bad or getting our Lord to rebuke them. A heathen once asked me how I could follow a religion where the original followers were described as such awful people. I told him something that shocked him. I said that the fact that their bad behavior is in the gospel is proof positive that the gospels are authentic and that Jesus really was divine. How can that be, you may ask? If the Apostles were fakes, and had made the whole thing up (and were thus lying about the whole thing), then it is doubtful they would have portrayed themselves as the bumbling goofs that we read about in the four Gospels and the book of Acts. If they had no problem lying about what Jesus actually did, then they would have had even less problem lying about what they did. If this had been the case, then the gospels would be filled with stories of how brilliant and holy the Apostles were. Instead we get the honesty of their errors, sins, and mistakes. We get the clear picture that Jesus chooses cracked pots for His people (especially for the leaders!). He does this so that He can show all of us that it all relies on Him, and that in ourselves we can do nothing. We fail because we are fallen, but we succeed because Jesus gives us the strength and wisdom to do so. So, then, yes, I have no problem following a religion where the original leaders were sinners. In fact, I would not have it any other way. Jesus was perfect, but the fallenness of His Apostles shows that He can build a Church, and make it last, no matter how problematic and foolish His people are. If He could establish the Church with those Apostles (in spite of their sins), how much can He do with us today?