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Monday, March 2, 2009

Presentation on Jesus and Consumerism

Here is the powerpoint and audio of the presentation given at the University of Southern Mississippi in February.  I will probably post it on the podcast page as well.
Mike





2 comments:

  1. Mike - great talk at USM. Really enjoyed the perspective you bring, as always.
    Something I personally wrestle with a great deal is "consumption" vs. "overconsumption". In other words - I must eat, wear clothes, use some form of transportation, and have a roof over my head to survive. That is to say - I consume those material things, right?
    So if consuming those material things isn't inherently bad, but consuming too much of them is bad, at what point does that transition happen? At what point does "consumption" become "overconsumption"? Is an $8 t-shirt consumption, but a $60 wrinkle-free dress shirt overconsumption? Is a 99 cent cheeseburger consumption, but a $40 steak and glass of Cabernet on special occasions overconsumption?
    Is there any room for style, personal taste, or consideration of quality when I'm selecting what to wear, what to eat, what to drive, and where to park it? Given enough thought, I can certainly justify in my own selfish mind why I should spend money on "good quality needs" vs. just "needs".
    Any thoughts from anyone, or am I just the only crazyhead that struggles with this?

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  2. Christian,
    I think that you are asking the million dollar question (no pun intended). I don't know much, but I know that there is no clean cut formula to answer the myriad of questions that come up with this topic. And you are not unique in struggling with it, because I am constantly struggling with it.
    A few things I feel fairly certain of:
    1) consumption is is not inherently evil, like you said we have to consume...although there will always be problems when all we do is consume.
    2)I am trying to represent a different kind of world. One driven chiefly by love, by justice, by generosity, and by the belief that all people are made in the image of God. The key is trying to let those ways of looking at God and the world soak into all parts of my life, and react accordingly.
    The ramifications are endless I know, but we should avoid the temptation of ignoring the issue because of the complexities it raises. So being a "crazyhead" hat is struggling with it is a good thing.

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