Written by: gfesadmin on January 25, 2013

“Someone else has it worse than you do.” The jolt of these words paints an ugly reality that many overseas laborers endure daily in various factories. It causes me to think twice about where my products are made and how the workers are treated. We are a global community impacted by consumerism, and our buying and selling affects people in the most inhumane fashions; these are often people we will never meet. Whether it is a young lady from Honduras or an underage girl in China, after reading William Cavanaugh’s book, Being Consumed, it makes me very uncomfortable knowing that I may be unintentionally and unknowingly inflicting pain onto someone else or somehow dispiriting the Imago Dei of another human being.

Knowing that we are impacted by consumerism, what exactly is it? Cavanaugh takes a totally different approach in describing it by not making it about the usual suspects of greed, ego, or too much stuff.  He does not politicize it by attaching a conservative or liberal stamp on it. He steers clear of making consumerism an arch enemy with spirituality. In fact, he explains that Christians are not meant to choose between God and creation. He powers on to say that as Christ followers we have to be careful not to set up a dichotomy between the spiritual and the material. In other words, and contrary to some traditional ideology, consumerism can be a form of spirituality.

With that, rather than being involved in a form of consumerism that is linked to the inhumane and unacceptable treatment of workers, it is possible to invest our resources into a positive form of consumerism that benefits all parties. In my hometown, one of the local radio stations, The Joy FM, puts on multiple community outreaches each year that impact the economy and help thousands of families. One event in particular that I believe is a very creative way to touch lives is called “T-shirts for Turkeys.” As families shop during the holiday season for their favorite ingredients, they are invited to purchase extra groceries, and as they are venture to their vehicles, they give the extra groceries, in particular the turkeys, to radio staff to be given to a local family in need. In exchange, they receive one of the stations’ t-shirts.

Over the last few years, this same radio station has challenged its listening audience to purchase thousands of new pairs of shoes to provide to Honduran children living in orphanages. The listeners came out with an overwhelming response to help provide for the need.

            These latter examples show how God created resources for us to enjoy that we can also use to bless others and offer assistance, hence making consumerism a spiritual experience with a genuine motivation to love our neighbor and honor God.

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