A little rant from me before I study some more...
What does the word "Christian" mean anymore in the U.S.? Last week, I was watching bits of a tv show that I like (ANTM) and one of the contestants in it introduced herself and said she was a Christian, started to quote scripture, etc. However, as the show unfolded, the more I watched her behavior and her "confessions" in front of the video camera, the more I realized how pessimistic about "Christians" on tv I had become. I don't know if it's all tv editing but it seems that "Christians" and their actions are constantly under scrutiny and cast in a very derogatory and negative light.
And it made me ponder that question. If I were a non-Christian and all I knew about Christians was what was displayed on tv, then I would think that 1) Christians are no different than non-Christians, 2) Christians act a little worse than non-Christians
And it made me think, "What does the world think being a Christian entails?"...
....quoting scripture?
To that, I say, even Satan can quote scripture.
...doing good deeds? being nice?
If that's it, then what's so different about Christianity?
And this makes me conclude that, truly, the world knows nothing about Christ and about who and what Christians are all about.
I Jn 3:1 - "How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him."
So I guess ironically, if you want to talk about misunderstood people groups in this country, perhaps Christians should be on the list too :P. Satan loves to just take words and twist them so that slowly but surely the meaning becomes something totally different. I'll bet 50 yrs ago, the word "Christian" had a totally different meaning and connotation that it does now. Oh the times, they are a'changin'....
And I finish with a quote from Inigo Montoya in Princess Bride: "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
LOL at your last comment :) I thought the same thing watching The Real Housewives of Orange County. One of the couples is depicted praying, attending an evangelical church, etc., but the wife is on a show that revolves around gossip and the husband always encourages her to ditch her friends. I wonder if the producers intend to depict them as hypocrites, liars, etc., or if.. as you say.. the 'cultural' meaning of christian has just changed dramatically. But at the same time, I'm so guilty of not behaving in a way that marks me as a child of God, so I dunno...
ReplyDeleteI think the tv producers edit their shows to whatever will attract audiences. And unfortunately, showing Christians to be hypocrites, liars, confrontational Bible-thumpers is the most "dramatic" and "entertaining". That seems to be the norm because I've seen shows that had Christians but they weren't "dramatic" enough (e.g. confrontational, etc) so not a lot of focus was placed on their religion while they were on the show.
ReplyDeleteThat seems to be the norm hence why I think if most of the world goes by what tv says, then they don't understand Christians at all. People won't pay attention to what's NOT there versus what the producers want them to focus on.