“If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you.” James 1:5
For many years, my literary junk food was celebrity people magazines. Once every two weeks I headed to the library, grabbed a stack, and caught up on all the latest news of the British Royal Family, heart throbs of my adolescence, and (my favorite) shots of sloppily attired female stars, make-up free.
Very young children tend to jump before they look; mature adults, while we may seem more boring, reflect before we land in a puddle. Reflection, art print from Steve Henderson Collections.
Even after I awoke from the delusional trance of the American Dream and Christian Utopia on Earth (promised from the pulpit, if only we “have enough faith” and “work together as a community”), I still snuck the magazines in, like guilty spoonfuls of ice-cream snatched over the kitchen sink. But eventually, like bad eating, I realized that I never felt happy, content, hopeful, encouraged, or confident after I read these things.
(By the way, Baptist sorts, I wasn’t laboring under the guilt of sin, condemning myself for worldly, evil thoughts; I was just putting commonsense into place.)
Aging Celebrities
And one day, it snapped — and I lost all interest. Perhaps it was the sight of my adolescent heart throb, who at 37 was so sexy to my 17-year-old eyes, but now talked (and looked!) disturbingly like my late, elderly father-in-law. I no longer cared about these people, none of whom I knew personally, and all of whom inhabit a world that is so far out of my sphere that we have remarkably little in common.
So it is within the industrial Christian complex, which really should publish a celebrity magazine of its own, focusing on the prophets and teachers and evangelists and names and holy faces that millions of Christians come to follow, and worship, as being wiser, more righteous, and blessed than the rest of us: they’re rich and well-known, after all — surely that must be a sign of God’s favor?
Real people forget how beautiful we, and real life, really are. Arizona Memories, original oil painting by Steve Henderson.
(If only Jesus had grasped the secret of their success. He could have really made something of Himself, you know?)
Like the Sexiest Men of the Year of the 70s and 80s, many of these celebrities are entering into their 70s, 80s, and 90s themselves, and sadly for them, are no longer on the lips of the saints. But a new crop — in its sexy 30s, 40s, and 50s is there to take their place, writing the books, shaking mighty fists at the camera, and granting interviews to Fox News and Oprah. Their wives are all coiffed and slender, beautifully dressed and appropriately submissive.
Blinded by the Glamorous Light
When the Great Christians give their opinion on the gay marriage issue, people listen, nod their heads, and say, “Yes, yes, that’s it. Prophet Pulpit Pummeler says so.” When they tell acolytes to boycott a store, the believers do. When they meet with ecumenical leaders to discuss a global religion, some followers wring their hands, wondering, “Why does Pastor Protector do this? Doesn’t he know that Catholics and Evangelical Protestants differ on fundamental issues? and that Jewish people and Christians differ on a REALLY major issue? How can all people believe one thing, and what will that one thing be?”
Good questions, but unfortunately, the followers of celebrity Christians do not have enough confidence in themselves to seek answers on their own, considering themselves spiritually unqualified to process through the tough, tough issues facing people who live in the globalized, mass-media dictated, corporately controlled world of the 21st century. The best they can do is listen to the voices of the Voices, and adjust their belief system accordingly.
(It’s not so strange, really, given that millions of Christians are trained, multiple times a week, to sit in a chair and passively listen to the person pacing the dais in front and above them.)
But this is not what we are called to do, or be, anymore than our diet consists of snatching spoonfuls of ice-cream over the kitchen sink. The world is filled, and has always been filled, with complex issues — complex because they involve people — and no pithy saying, Tweet, or meme from any Big Name is going to solve the problems, or do the thinking, for us.
We need wisdom, and wisdom — unlike money, power, celebrity status, and fame — is not held out of reach from ordinary people. It is there for the asking.
If we will only ask.
Thank You
Thank you for joining me at Commonsense Christianity, where my consistent and constant encouragement to believers is to be discerning in what, and more specifically — who, they believe.
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This Woman Writes by Carolyn Henderson 
Ironically, my husband and I were just talking about how lazy many Christians are in their bible study. It is easier to be spoon fed a “Christian Celebrity’s” thoughts than to study on your own. We have seen bible study dumbed-down so much that most people never even open their own bibles to see what it really says—-And, beyond that, they never look to see what the original language was to make sure we have interpreted it correctly. Too much work, I guess. We have the most access to information on our own than any other generation (plus the Holy Spirit to teach us), and yet, most people don’t ever look beyond what the religious leaders or Sunday School teacher tell them to believe. Good article.
I am reminded of various home chefs I have known, who create absolutely astounding food from kitchens that no self-respecting movie or food show would exhibit. Some of these cooks have just a couple pans — but what they do with it!
It makes me think of those of us in the countries with So Many Bible Study Resources — lots of them really bad or useless, like expensive kitchen gadgetry — and some good ones, but only good if you’re willing to take time to learn how to use them.
Ultimately, it comes down to the chef. Within Christianity, it comes down to our willingness to read, meditate, pray, and be involved ourselves, as you say, and not depend upon someone else to dice up everything for us in little pieces, and make it easy to swallow.
Carolyn, your choice of comparisons was very intriguing and you made your point really clearly . It is so true, the world is full of complex issues because they all involve people.
So so so true! Our society increasingly seeks to make us like machines, mere numbers that perform our given cubicle tasks each day, and obey what we are told so that our corporate society can run smoothly and efficiently.
But we are PEOPLE. And people, made in the image of God, are complex, different, unique, and beautiful.
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