Being Consumed

“The Other Journal” just posted a review of an interesting book by William Cavanaugh on consumerism and Christianity entitled,  Being Consumed. Here’s a few lines that struck me:

“Transnational capitalism sells itself as the true catholic order that will bring all of the peoples of the world into a peaceful commercial unity while preserving diversity in the form of choice. This is yet another empty promise. The supposed diversity of global capitalism evacuates all significance from the communities of the world, trivializing their rich heritages, reducing them to the essentially interchangeable consumer choices of the market. In contrast, the church, in which a universal community exists in the form of diverse and specific Eucharistic gatherings, succeeds in bringing together diversity in genuine catholicity, as all are gathered into the Godhead.”

With the economy the way it is (new 11 year low on the Dow yesterday!), it’s a good time to consider what it means to be a Christian in a consumerist society. If this review is accurate, Cavanaugh does a good job of showing how consumerism offers a false eschaton. 

If you are particularly sensitive to the words “Marxism” and “Capitalism” being tossed around, this review might needlessly rile you up, but in general, Frank Valdez, the reviewer, and Cavanaugh offer some challenging thoughts for believers.