Many Americans are born into a consumer culture. Our bodies and hearts are hardwired for a consumer system and our brains follow, knowingly or unknowingly. Can we possibly disengage ourselves from this life routine and worldview?<\/p>\n
Miller and Clark: Christians Entrenched in a Capitalist Landscape<\/strong><\/p>\n Vincent Miller, author of Consuming Religion: Christian Faith and Practice in a Consumer Culture, <\/em>analyzes \u201chow the habits of consumption transform our relationship to the religious beliefs we profess.\u201d[1]<\/a> He points out that consumer culture interprets the world through a lens of commodification and, he notes, \u201cWhen we relate to cultural and religious traditions as commodities, they lose their power to inform the concrete practice of life.”<\/p>\n Jason Clark, in his thesis, \u201cEvangelicalism and Capitalism: A Reparative Account and Diagnosis of Pathogeneses in the Relationship,\u201d joins Miller in this conversation, asking how Christians, rooted in consumer cultures, can counter these deformative forces and live more authentically in their desire to know and follow God in their practical behaviors.[2]<\/a> He quotes James K.A. Smith, who believes humans are \u201cliturgical animals, creatures who can\u2019t not <\/em>worship and who are fundamentally formed by worship practices because it is these liturgies \u2013 whether Christian or secular \u2013 that shape what we love. And we are what we love.\u201d[3]<\/a> Liturgies train our hearts through the habits of our bodies and thus direct our lives.<\/p>\n Can We Disengage?<\/strong><\/p>\n For Clark, the key to disengaging our bodies, hearts, and minds from a consumer mentality lies in worship. He asks, \u201cWhat kind of worship is able to affectively order Christians around the body of Christ?\u201d[4]<\/a> Smith proposes the need for better curricula.[5]<\/a> Miller thinks all curricula fall to the commodification machine that checks us at every move.[6]<\/a> Clark\u2019s answer: \u201cOnly a form of worship with a whole-of-life social imaginary can begin to compete affectively with the social imaginary of the market.\u201d[7]<\/a><\/p>\n As I read the above authors\u2019 ideas, I thought of my friend Lisa, who was a stakeholder in my DLGP design workshop.[8]<\/a> She recently committed to buy nothing in 2023, other than food, toiletries, and books. Though Miller points out that we can be caught up in the marketing schemes of \u201csimplifying\u201d our lives and remain entrenched in consumerism, I wondered if perhaps Lisa was discovering and experiencing some somatic and cognitive keys to illumination on this subject.[9]<\/a> I decided to give her a call to learn more. The following summarizes our conversation.<\/p>\n Lisa: Breaking Through to Clearer Living<\/strong><\/p>\n Lisa: I have been wanting to do this for many years, but this year, I had a shift in my thinking, spurred on by two things. First, I watched multiple delivery trucks come up my street during the holidays, bringing hundreds of packages to our neighborhood. I asked myself, \u201cIs this what Christmas is about?\u201d Second, my son gave me the book Braiding Sweet Grass<\/em> for Christmas. It talks of having a mindset of abundance, as opposed to scarcity. I asked myself, \u201cWhat if I lived as if the world is abundantly full with all that I need?\u201d Capitalism seems to feed off of a fear of scarcity of resources. I wanted to change my worldview and stop buying so much and instead, use what I have.<\/p>\n Lisa: I feel calmer and more peaceful. I\u2019m not on the treadmill of always looking for and buying things. I have more time. Life is spacious. It\u2019s a relief. I realized I can appreciate something without acquiring it. For example, I can appreciate that clothing item on someone else. I don\u2019t have to own it. I also don\u2019t have to feel like things are going to run out. There is an abundance of resources in our world, and I don\u2019t have to be storing them in my home.<\/p>\n Lisa: I agree. I\u2019ve seen a lot of church shopping in the United States. People are shopping for the right sermons and educational programs for their kids, instead of staying in one church and building community in that place. It used to be that people went to the parish in their neighborhood. You belonged for a lifetime.<\/p>\n I recently heard a pastor respond to a question regarding her declining denominational membership. She said, \u201cWe\u2019re not running a membership campaign. We\u2019re following Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n Lisa: I think that will take a whole different sense of our understanding of belonging<\/em>. For example, church shopping is often based on looking for a church that has a youth group that will be best for our kids. Instead of looking for a group that can best feed our kids, what if we asked, \u201cWhat can my kids contribute to building a strong youth group here at our church?\u201d Can they contribute to fostering belonging [founded on Christ and not programming]?<\/p>\n When I was raising my kids, I was always watching other parents and the opportunities they were securing for their kids. I felt pressured to do the same. It was that scarcity mindset again. I wonder what would have happened if I hadn\u2019t tried to navigate their opportunities for them and just let them be who they were in the world, naturally.<\/p>\n Lisa: I\u2019m not sure yet. I need to see what I learn. For now, I\u2019m taking myself out of the consumer running and am no longer in that race. I\u2019m not letting myself be driven by the culture\u2019s \u201cshoulds\u201d and \u201coughts\u201d and I can\u2019t imagine that I will ever again be so caught up in the consumer world.<\/p>\n Lisa: I think rooting it in the church is a good idea. What comes to mind is a couple groups that I belong to. Anyone can join, everyone is welcome, and it doesn’t cost anything. Maybe that\u2019s a place to start.[10]<\/a><\/p>\n Concluding Thoughts and Questions<\/strong><\/p>\n In our readings, Miller and Clark claim that for many Christians in a consumer culture, \u201cworship is not primarily about Christian identity and faithful living, but about God providing a way of life that the heart is set upon within the capitalist landscape and social imagination.\u201d[11]<\/a> I have to admit, this seems true. What are we to do?<\/p>\n I think my friend Lisa is on her way to clearer living through practicing new life habits that call her out of a capitalist landscape and imagination and into \u201cwhole-of-life\u201d experiences. I\u2019m intrigued by the calm and spacious living she described. My thoughts turn to my doctoral project. How do I avoid creating one more curriculum? Can I be successful in offering an opportunity without commodifying spiritual practice? What responsibility does the participant have for their own experience within the church setting? What responsibility do the leaders in the church have to offer opportunities free of consumer-tainted values? I will continue to ponder these questions and prayerfully ask God\u2019s guidance.[12]<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n [1]<\/a> Vincent Miller, Consuming Religion: Christian Faith and Practice in a Consumer Culture<\/em> (New York, NY: The Continuum International Publishing Group, Inc.), 11.<\/em><\/p>\n [2]<\/a> Jason P. Clark, “Evangelicalism and Capitalism: A Reparative Account and Diagnosis of Pathogeneses in the Relationship\u201d (2018). Faculty Publications – Portland Seminary. 132. https:\/\/digitalcommons.georgefox.edu\/gfes\/132<\/a>, 218.<\/p>\n [3]<\/a> James K.A. Smith in Clark, 215-216.<\/p>\n [4]<\/a> Clark, 223.<\/p>\n [5]<\/a> Smith in Clark, 229.<\/p>\n [6]<\/a> Miller in Clark, 229.<\/p>\n [7]<\/a> Clark, 223.<\/p>\n [8]<\/a> The Doctor of Leadership and Global Perspectives (DLGP) design workshop is an assignment of the Portland Seminary class 895 and part of the Project Portfolio.<\/p>\n [9]<\/a> Miller, 2.<\/p>\n [10]<\/a> Lisa W., virtual interview with Jenny Hale, March 31, 2023.<\/p>\n\n
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