A shining city on a hill and christian charity

Throughout the book the Wordy Shipmates we get reminded that Winthrop's idea of America, is that it will be a shining city upon a hill.  Winthrop believes that America will one day be this perfect place where everybody gives to one another and everybody is empathetic to one another.  This comes from his idea of christian charity, where the idea is that everyone gives back to one another and people give and give and give and don't really think of themselves at all.  That the community is one body and everyone helps each other all the time.  But when you look at America today, yes there are instances where people help one another and people care of and help one another and America seems like a great place to be, but there are other instances where America isn't exactly the shining city on a hill.  Vowell uses her sarcasm once again in this quote "As I write this, the united states of America is still a city on a hill; and it's still shining- because we never turn off the lights in our torture prisons." (pg.72 Vowell) 

But there is also this idea of christian charity that Winthrop brings to us. Google's definition of christian charity is "In christian theology charity, or love, means an unlimited kindness toward all others."  But obviously as Vowell explains to us,  Winthrop is not exactly a great model of this.  But Winthrop has a problem with deputy governor Dudleys wainscoting on his house and saying that it is too ostentatious for his house.  It seems that "rejoicing together"(pg.106 Vowell) Which is apart of christian charity, is too hard for Winthrop to handle and don't we wonder why America isn't the shining city on hill that he dreamed of, that president Reagan brought up once again many years in the future?