Bumper Sticker Religion – Part 2

Slogans and phrases often lose their meaning in translation. Coors Beer put its slogan “Turn It Loose” into Spanish, where it was read as “Suffer From Diarrhea.” Chevy Nova met a similar fate, as its car name translates into “It doesn’t go” in Spanish. Pepsi sought to market its products in China a few years back and translated their slogan “Pepsi Brings You Back to Life.” However, the Chinese translation really meant “Pepsi Brings Your Ancestors Back From the Grave.”Words have their place, but empty words are just rhetoric. Empty words are not just “lost in translation”. They have no meaning to begin with.

Our words need to mean something in our homes and in our workplaces.

I was recently standing in line of our very busy grocery store. The clerk was good. Her actions were fluid and fast. With deft and skill she scanned each item and swiftly bagged it. She keyed the total button and the monitor at my eye level showed the final bill. Wordlessly, I passed the money to her and almost as if she had anticipated my $50 bill, she already had the change counted out and passed it to me with amazing speed. She performed all of these functions with textbook skill .… except she never looked at me once. Her job was groceries, not people. She swiftly began scanning the next customer’s groceries although I had not yet pocketed my change. Still without looking at me, hoping to nudge me on , she said “Thank you for shopping at ______” This was my cue to leave and leave I did. I walked to my car feeling as cold as the two gallons of ice cream I had just bought.

Her words did not mirror her actions. The robotics of the job were just motions towards the end of the day. Frankly, I could have lived without the last greeting, thanking me for shopping at the store. For I knew that the words were just another slogan,and more empty rhetoric.

Christianity is not immune from slogans. “Trust God“, “I’ll Pray for You“, “Praise the Lord” pepper our speech. Do we really mean what we say? We often try to reduce the God of the Ages to a five word sound bite. Too often we try to sum up The Maker of Heaven and Earth in a Bumper Sticker Religion.

Jesus was a great master of simple language. He knew the caustic effect of useless words. He continually rebuffed the religious elite of the day, who used words as weapons. They propped themselves up with high sounding words that belied their hearts. Jesus spoke sharply to them in Matt 12:34-37 (NRSV): “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person brings good things out of a good treasure, and the evil person brings evil things out of an evil treasure. I tell you, on the day of judgment you will have to give an account for every careless word you utter; for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

Let’s make sure our words are reflective of our heart! Here’s a new bumper sticker: “No More Empty Slogans!”