Thursday, February 08, 2007

Suburban Idol: Consumerism

I just saw a commercial for some Super Bingo Lottery thing. How silly it seemed to me especially with the commercial jingle repeating "Happiness is playing...happiness is playing." What a crude example of how marketers are trying to tap into the souls of people by positioning a game of chance as something fulfilling to the soul.

When you think about it, consumerism (the obsessive pursuit of safety, security, comfort, and convenience) has just as much influence as emperor worship (Caesar) in the first century Roman empire. Suburbanites regularly bow to the god of comfort and convenience in the name of their children's future and well-being. But in the end, they are sacrificing their souls. After being deeply embedded in the kingdom of consumerism, suburbanites end up feeling empty and BORED.

The challenge is how followers of Christ engage this today...What does the gospel of the Kingdom sound like and look like to desperate housewives and their husbands?

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