Thu, Dec. 29, 2011 Posted: 05:27 PM EDT
Show your electronics that Jesus saves and ring in the
New Year with a piece of Jesus toast; freshen your breath
with one of the famous Testa-Mints (found in your nearest
Christian bookstore) before slapping on your Jesus Save
sandals to go buy a bobblehead football Jesus.
Are these items harmless, or humorless and offensive?
Christian kitsch is becoming a mainstream commodity,
making waves in Christian retail on Internet sites
featuring odd items.
“There are some disconcerting side effects to watch out
for in the world of Christian advertising,” noted James
Beverley, in an interview with The Christian Post. “Any
promotion that uses Gospel symbols to sell non-spiritual
products increases the chances of non-Christians thinking
that all Christians are interested in is money.
“There is also the danger of cheapening the value of
Christian symbols by direct connection with various
products of modern capitalism,” said Beverley, professor
of Christian thought and ethics at Tyndale University in
Toronto, Canada.
Creators of the kitsch argue that some products were
created for functionality, such as the Higher Power surge
protector, a cross-shaped power strip to maximize outlet
space.
“It’s a much more efficient way of using all your outlets
… it’s also a visual metaphor; the cross is a ‘higher
power,’” Rob Howell, the entrepreneur behind the idea,
told CP.
While Howell is not himself a Christian – he said he is
“more of a searcher” – he saw the popularity of other
Christian products, namely the Jesus toaster featured in a
previous CP article. He and his partner, architect Alex
Pincus, have posted the surge protector on kickstart.com to raise the
funding needed to launch the project. Howell said they
plan to donate 10 percent of the profits to Project Host,
a soup kitchen in Greenville, S.C.
“The feedback has been positive – we haven’t heard any
negative comments so far,” Howell said, stating that
several churches have expressed an interest in the surge
protector, using the logo itself to create T-shirts, or
selling the items as a youth group fundraiser.
“We’re inclusive and we don’t want to hurt anyone’s
feelings. The design is functionally inclusive, not
exclusive,” Howell said.
But how should a Christian view all the religious kitsch?
Is it taking the Lord’s name in vain, trivializing the
Gospel, and an affront to God?
“On the bottom line, Christians will have differences of
opinion about the trappings of the Christian consumer
world,” Beverley said.
Some Christian-themed items are blatantly for fun and
humor – such as Jesus action figures or the “Jesus Shaves”
shaving mugs – and could be taken with a grain of salt. A
previous CP story on the Jesus toaster, sparked
hundreds of comments, mainly positive, on the item.
Some Christians may feel that items like Testa-Mints,
sandals imprinted with “Jesus Loves You” or Evangi-Cubes,
are witnessing tools. But how would a believer feel about
a toilet-seat cover emblazoned with the words “Let My
People Go” in a Hebrew-like font?
Beverley said these things are purely distasteful. “While
Christians have liberty in a free market economy, we
should set our ideals at a high level when presenting the
Gospel,” he said. “Can we picture these modern trinkets in
the Sistene Chapel?”
“Here is a good question, ‘what cultural message are we
communicating by the mediums that we use as vehicles to
present the Christian message?’” asked Matt Capp,
associate pastor at Calvary Baptist Church in the
Winston-Salem area of North Carolina, in a recent blog post.
“The commodification of the Christian message not only
exploits the faith to consumer capitalism, but it also
sentimentalizes and trivializes the Gospel. We can’t just
slap a Bible verse on something and call it “Christian”
because that item itself has a message attached to it
within the context of our culture,” Capp wrote.
It’s hard to imagine Christians getting rid of the Jesus
fish on their cars, or closeting their “Lord’s Gym”
T-shirts, but maybe Christians should think twice before
purchasing any cross-shaped trinket or item emblazoned
with a Bible verse.
"There is no need to question the motives of the sellers
but if a product cheapens the deep, sacred realities of
the Christian faith then the Christian community should
resist buying those items,” Beverley advised.
