I want to be clear from the start – I want the Jesus: All About Life campaign to be a success as much as the next Christian. Jesus is worthy of all glory and honour, and is the saviour and hope of humanity. I desire, along with Christians in Sydney and around the world, for all people to come to know that, and to acknowedge Jesus as their Lord and Saviour. For this reason, I am enthusiastic and supportive of ideas for declaring the good news of Jesus to as many people as possible.
However, I’m disappointed with how the campaign is playing out so far. I know, it’s early days and we’re only in phase 1, but here’s four reasons why I’m feeling disappointed.
Reason #1 – Average (i.e. bad) use of social media
Phase 1 of the campaign is the ’seeding/viral stage’ (check out JAAL media dates). What does this involve? According to the JAAL website:
“Thank You Jesus” campaign images sent out via emails, Facebook, Twitter and distributed by electronic media. This will build momentum and create preparation, awareness and community participant involvement to thank Jesus on line for something that means a lot to them.
Clearly, this phase of the campaign is focusing on the web and associated applications. However, the online presence is pretty basic and unimpressive. The campaign has two websites (jesusallaboutlife.com.au and allaboutlife.com.au) which is confusing, and, whilst neither website is visually impressive, the allaboutlife website is a shocker (see Reason #2). The Twitter updates aren’t particularly inspiring (lots of “Check out www.allaboutlife.com.au and post a message”) and lots of Bible verses – which are great, but not very re-tweetable. There’s only one event listed on the official Facebook page, and only 20 posts on the four discussion forums that have been active in September. The prayer updates are a great use of social media, but these haven’t been updated since July. Finally (on this point), the campaign has been receiving some attention online (particularly in atheist blogs – see full list here), but I haven’t seen much interaction from Christians, responding to people whose attention has been pricked by this campaign. This is such a wasted opportunity – using social media to promote the campaign, but not following up when people notice and respond in-kind to the campaign.
Reason #2 – The ‘Thank you’ Jesus website (and concept) is kitsch
Take a look at the allaboutlife.com.au website. It screams ‘Christian’. Visitors are encouraged to upload a personal ‘thank you Jesus’ photo/image. These are then displayed for others to see, or even print onto a range of merchandise. I noticed on Facebook that people were being encouraged to invite their non-Christian friends to upload an image – personally I’d be hoping my non-Christian friends didn’t come across the site. It just looks daggy and everything (I think) we’re trying to not look like. This is reinforced by many of the trite things people are thanking Jesus for – “my mole”, “hot chips”, “crocs”, “birds that look like they’re wearing pants” and “bubble wrap”. These ‘thank you’ messages have been the subject of ridicule on the 7pm project and Rove (again, see list of media mentions) and in many ways, I don’t blame them.
Reason #3 – The ‘Thank you’ Jesus website is technically unstable
Unless you uploaded a ‘thank you’ message, I can’t imagine why you’d like one printed onto a t-shirt or other merchandise. However, I decided to test this functionality out, and both times I tried I got a (different) error message (e.g. ‘Length cannot be less than zero. Parameter name: length’ and ‘Check that the path is correct and that the domain is in your allowed domains for upload.’). Despite the best de-bugging, error messages are hard to avoid, but it is possible (and recommended) to create custom error messages that make more sense to visitors when they encounter them.
Reason #4 – The ‘Thank you’ Jesus concept is overly simplistic
Perhaps most disappointing is the main concept – thanking Jesus. I’m all for thanking Jesus, and encouraging people to remember that everything good comes from God. But this concept, when promoted to those who don’t know Jesus, opens itself up to big questions that lie not so deep beneath the surface, because, as one person on a blog pointed out:
“If one should thank Jesus for all the nice things in our lives, shouldn’t one also blame Jesus for all the crap things too?
After all, if some crazy flight of fancy convinces you that Jesus gave the world hot chips, then I guess he also gave the world throat cancer, poverty and Dolf Lundgren movies.”
Should we also be encouraging people to say:
- “Thank you Jesus for letting my baby girl die”? or,
- “Thank you Jesus for giving me cancer”? or,
- “Thank you Jesus that I don’t have a job and can’t afford to feed my family”?
- Why is there pain?
- Is Jesus only in control of the good and not the bad?
- If Jesus isn’t in control of the bad, why should I be interested in a powerless God?
- If Jesus does have control of the bad, why doesn’t he do something about it?
I agree Steve. So far I’ve found myself rather underwhelmed by the campaign. I’m all for the concept behind the campaign, but as of yet it’s not something that I’d particularly want to draw the attention of my non-Christian mates to.
Some comments on your reasons:
#1 – Their use of Twitter definitely leaves something to be desired. I get the feeling that whoever is in charge of that account didn’t really have much experience with Twitter before the campaign. A look at their tweets reveals a repetitive cycle of pointing to the website and quoting the Beatitudes. It leaves me feeling – “i saw that yesterday / last week”. Facebook is also left wanting. For example – they’re promoting that people put the campaign logo as their display pic. Yet the picture they provide for this purpose is not in a square format, and so leaves a display pic which reads ‘esu – All About Life’. Very simple to fix, but clearly not well thought through.
#2 – I cringe every time I look at the website. And this website is what the media is largely picking up on. I REALLY, REALLY hope that these images are NOT going to be the ones used on the bus shelters etc. I think there should also be an easy link through to more information about Christianity from here
#3 – I also tried to print a T-shirt (purely to see how much they were charging). All I got was error messages.
#4 – That is exactly the response that I have heard from any unbelievers thus far.
I really don’t want to sound like I’m ‘bashing’ the campaign. I’m all for it, and think that it has great potential. It’s just that at this stage it seems to have been fairly poorly executed.
On the positive side, I know of many churches that are tapping into the campaign and organising great outreach events to their local communities.
Chris Jones.
Thanks for your reflections, Chris.
I thought it might also be worth mentioning that I’m sure there are lots of Christians who would be very wiling to help out however possible with this campaign.
I know Christians in advertising, marketing, social media, SEO, copy writing etc who would be pleased (time permitting!) to use their gifts to help this campaign have maximum impact.
JAAL – if you need any help, please ask
Thanks for your thoughtful critique, Steve. And like you, I’m hoping the campaign bounces back!
Hey Steve,
As you know I am not very computer saavy and know very little about websites, so I can’t really comment on the validity of the criticisms that you have raised.
What I would like to say though, is that I wonder if slamming the campaign in a public forum is the best way to effect change.
If you can see problems with the website and the twitter stuff why not ring Bible Society directly and raise it with them?
Your post here only seems to be generating more criticism and discontent among Christians. Surely we are sadly, already masters at being critical and cynical.
Let’s get behind JAAL and do all we can to make it great instead of just listing the negatives.
Steve – why haven’t you discussed this in person or via phone conversation directly with the campaign creators instead of posting these comments on the net for everyone to see and be highly disappointed in all of your remarks? Not a great Christian example..
What happened to a positive Christian attitude and brotherly love for your co-brothers and sisters in Christ? We are to speak words to edify and build one another up. They are taking a stand and are stepping out in faith to proclaim Jesus name to NSW. Satan will use anything to bring this campaign down
Very disappointing indeed Steve for you to write these comments in the way that you have done so publically.
Hold on everyone! I think the Christian community can get awfully precious about things in an unrealistic and unprofessional way.
If we are going to be adults, doing public things like running TV campaigns and Societies and ‘engaging with a city’ then we should be able to cope with, tolerate and encourage criticism in the public forum.
If the Bible Society had produced their campaign in private, then Steve should of course begin by sharing his thoughts in private.
But they’ve done a public campaign. I’m sure they are happy to also receive criticism in the public arena.
Hear hear, and no not harsh; Steve you’re always balanced and you always back up your claims.
It seems that someone wanted to harness the whole web 2.0 thing to raise awareness of Jesus (great!), but wasn’t experienced enough in the execution. I wonder if they workshopped their ideas first with people who aren’t christian? I wonder about the strategy and governance behind what gets published on that cheesy site of pictures?
And any website with errors like that is akin to walking into a business meeting with your pants around your ankles. Not a good look, and not good for brand. And not honouring of Jesus.
So if anyone’s listening, here are 2 important points:
1) Please work with people who know what they’re doing. We *are* here, and the money *is* worth it
2) Please test websites thoroughly. In this case, it’s Jesus’ very reputation at stake.
What has frustrated me super-hugely is that they forgot to also register the .com (and not just .com.au) sites. Both of the .com sites are owned by atheists with rebuttals against the real campaign.
In terms of cost, this would have set them back about $20, and they could just have put redirects in place to the real sites, and like the twitter and facebook elements, seems to have not been thought too thoroughly.
BUT, even though the sites may be daggy and have errors, the upside is people are talking, even if only about the problem to start with. And when we as Christians have to deal with the crusades, Westboro baptists and the like, I think a broken T-shirt order form is the least of our worries.
“They are taking a stand and are stepping out in faith to proclaim Jesus name to NSW.
“Is that really what’s going on with the thing that says ‘thank you Jesus for birds that look like they’re wearing pants’?
The reporting on the Syd Ang website suggested ‘gritty and real’. This does not look like gritty or real, and having seen some on bus shelters it doesn’t seem to really tie the brand visually to all the bright blue banners that we’re all whacking up on the sides of our churches.
Mind you, we’re doing neighbourhood visitation against, starting tomorrow, so maybe some confused people who’ve seen the posters will take the opportunity to ask a Christian what the heck they mean. Just not sure of the answer I’d give.
However, the question still remains, Steve: have you discussed this in person or via phone conversation directly with the campaign creators?
I can’t see how posting here *only* can be reconciled with “I want the Jesus: All About Life campaign to be a success as much as the next Christian.”
@ John – There are different degrees of ‘wanting’ (something to be a success) and taking responsiblity for someone else’s project.
Contacting them directly with feedback might be one possible good idea. But it’s not a necessary action and failing to do so doesn’t threaten Steve’s sincerity/integrity.
Thanks everyone for your comments. I’ve posted a follow up article, ‘Responding to feedback on ‘Four reasons why I’m disappointed…’.
I made some commments on the new post.
I query the need to contact the campaign organisers… it’s not like this criticism is a scriptural disagreement, or a lawsuit amongst believers.
It’s just a question of strategy, pragmatism and the quest to have Jesus communicated better.
I would think that anybody considering a campaign like this on a local or national scale in the future will find this critique useful.
I’d say in this case the horse has bolted, and we’ve just got to hope the race is worthwhile rather than trying to shut the gate. To extend a metaphor.
I’m not a regular churchgoer but as someone who works in marketing was very intrigued by this campaign when I saw it on Rove. My neighbour Colin (who is an active Christian) and I subsequently spent 30 minutes on the website and I can honestly say it is the most progressive and refreshing thing to come from the Church that I have seen for sometime ( the Bible society represent the Church right?).
Obviously this is an early teaser to a bigger mass media campaign to generate conversation and debate, like the one above, and I think its refreshing that it’s fun and doesn’t proselytise. And what’s more I don’t think it’s kitsch, I think it’s cool, something which Christians like Colin I know struggle with….he’s usually embarrassed to talk about his beliefs because he thinks it’s uncool.
And I don’t care that Rove ridiculed it. He’s not the target for your campaign and is probably a complete atheist. The fact is he gave it prime time media coverage that prompted me to go to the site and write to you.
Steven, I also think that you’re completely missing the point when you talk about the campaign being simplistic. Of course it prompts the question, ‘but what about thanking Jesus when things go wrong and what about all the pain in the world’.
But surely the point is, that non-active Christians like me reject serious churchy sounding advice about the bad stuff in life . We think we’re invincible and are far more engaged by messaging that’s engaging , fun and democratic.
I think this campaign rocks and is working because it’s getting normal people talking about Jesus for the first time for ages.
I suspect the more serious & predictable, churchy messages about spirituality, life and death are yet to come unfortunately. That’s probably when i will switch off
Good luck
kirsty
Hi Kirsty, thanks so much for writing and sharing your reflections. It’s great to hear from someone who has viewed the campaign as a ‘neutral observer’, and it’s encouraging to hear how this campaign has had a positive influence on you. Have you posted a thank you message on the website?
Mikey Lynch has shared some reflections on the public critique of public Christians over at his blog, Christian Reflections.
You know this campaign I guess was done on really limited resources. I certainly agree that the Twitter/FB campaigns are a little amateur. I really do think there is creativity at heart in this JAAL movement but it probably wasn’t marketed as successfully as I had hoped.
My sister signed up which made me a little excited, that nominal Christians are getting slightly pumped about it.
The frustrating thing is http://www.iamsecond.com is a far better site, with a far better marketing tool for the power of Jesus. I want real, gritty, hard hitting testimonies done well. Not Kitsch photos in an amateur website.
Nice insights Steve.
Thanks for joining the conversation, Duncan.
I too, love the iamsecond website – the videos are well produced, articulately delivered, and moving examples of the work of Jesus in people’s lives. I think in post-modern Australia (if that is indeed where we are as a nation today), that testimonies – personal stories – are a very powerful method for communicating the relevance and significance of Jesus.
What are your reasons for thinking that iamsecond is a better marketing tool?
My take on the campaign and the info from their website is that the campaign is meant to be simple and is not meant to answer all the questions that people may have – you are!
If you are a Christian you should take the opportunity to tell others about Jesus in your own way, and in a way that is culturally appropriate to the context of the discussion. That may mean we have to deal with some hard questions or comments like the one quoted in the original post but it’s worth it. You just have to be honest.
I am sure that whilst Craig may not know how to explain the logic behind the advertisement, he will certainly not miss the opportunity to turn the conversation into an invitation to church on Sunday.
The fact that the ads are quirky and weird simply makes it more likely that someone will say something about it – that’s when you pounce!
I think the http://www.iamsecond.com website is slick, for the USA it involves famous people and regular people sharing their testimonies about Jesus. Brian Walsh’s testimony is particularly powerful.
There is a realness and an honesty that I appreciate. Also people know these people, and some of the stories you can relate to.
Overall it strikes me as a far more powerful tool to engage people about Jesus.
The childish and simplistic nature of the campaign is appropriate for such a silly idea to begin with.
The poster for the grave should be “Proof that prayer does nothing”. Or “Thanks Jesus for letting my mum die”. I love how you associate anything good with Jesus/God/easter bunny but dissociate the bad.
As for some of the comments on here: “Satan will use anything to bring this campaign down”. Are you kidding me? Christianity is a dying religion in Australia because we’re an educated nation and superstition is replaced with rational knowledge. It’s your own absurd flimsy proof “bible says the bible is true, so it must be true” that is your problem. Again, that should be “god’s fault” not satan (unless he wrote your bible now?).
Good to see such noble use of money scammed for charity purposes pouring into this ad campaign. Will go well with the money spent keeping those gold trinkets, popemobiles (why is that bulletproof again?) and big churches shiny.
I hope the muslims waste some of their money on a similar campaign so that the rest of us can see how quickly you denounce Islam as false. Maybe you’ll see that it provides exactly identical “proof”.
Here’s a suggestion: pray to your god to give you some evidence for once. Get the lazy sod out of bed. 2000 years and you’re still swinging in the wind making claims with zero proof and looking ridiculous. If that doesn’t make you religious lot a bit annoyed it’s no wonder people are leaving in droves.
Grow up and ditch the imaginary friends guys. Be good for the sake of being good and fair rather because you think you’re going to be tortured for eternity if you don’t.
We’ve got one life as far as anyone can tell, so stop wasting your time on superstition, outdated theology and primitive morality (slavery anyone?) and just be good to each other.
Oh and instead of harassing this guy about publicly speaking: they should be applauded.
Have you learned nothing from the way the churches handled child rape and abuse via shady cover-ups and evasive approaches?
Keeping things behind closed doors is hardly a very open or honest way to deal with glaring problems.
I’d be asking why so much money is going into such a silly campaign rather than, oh, I don’t know: feeding the homeless, planting trees to help the environment or even just giving back some money to the church members if the churches are so flushed with money.
So you don’t think much of the campaign, Then why is everyone talking about it?
You think you could design a campaign that would be cool and cause people to flock to church and have the social commentators like Rove and the 7PM project talking seriously about Christianity.
Just the fact that people are talking about Jesus is more than they were doing last week.
The great thing about marketing when done well is that it can cause you to think about something you had no intention of thinking about even if its only for 15 seconds or so surely that’s enough for the spirit of God to work with
Perhaps if you spent your time engaging in conversation with people who might have found the campaign so far kitschy about what they think would have been better and why your serious about your faith you would have time to blog so negatively about the campaign.
I think its interesting that the most negative coverage of the campaign has come from the churched whereas the unchurched seem to take it for what it is make comment and move on our job should be listening to the comment and engaging the questions it raises
Just my perspective on it all
Pete
Good point Nathan. The whole “Thanks Jesus for letting my mum die”
I hope that the ‘Thankyou Jesus for XXX’ will help people to raise the real issues like that, and see that Jesus does have answers for why there is suffering. IMHO the best answers. In fact given the first TV add, that looks like where the adds will be heading.
really JAAL in my opinion = epic fail .. it’s more like the death throws of a dying dogma with nothing to actually counter the education of mankind (other than just complaining) that is seeing it slip away.
If you REALLY want to make a difference, and reach non-christians, you have to face and answer the massive evidence and critiques of your faith with actual ANSWERS. You don’t give any. You just state ‘Jesus is the answer’, with nothing to back it up. There is basically ‘he will make you feel better if you believe’.
You have to :
1/ Show logic and reason behind the existence of a supernatural entity other than pointing continually at your bible and using it’s phrases to point out positions that most all humans find totally obvious regardless as we are evolutionary socialistic beings.
2/ Show how your god is the one true god, amongst hundreds of others, and thousands that have gone before you.
3/ Show us the evidence of the claims for a young earth, and the ‘fact’ of creation that you claim is an alternative Theory (and look up how a scientific theory actually works) to the evolution of humans from a common ancestor to other life. Actually read up on what evolution actually is, that it is seperate from abiogenesis and cosmology, and approach the facts, not the straw man you put forward
4/ Stop trying to point at non-belief, and saying it is a belief (like not stamp collecting is a ‘hobby’) as it does not make sense to anyone but you.
4/ Explain why we have mountains of evidence that contradict the creationists claims, why the mass of evidence in radioactivity, tree rings, ice cores, corals, supernovas – from astronomy, biology, physics, geology, chemistry and archeology all combine and go against your faiths concepts.
5/ explain why your god has always existed, and the universe in some form, couldn’t. (you may want to actually read up on scientific concepts like singularities and bubble universes etc etc)
Otherwise your wordplay is just what it shows itself to be, empty, hollow, shallow, ’stupid’ faith, and a total misunderstanding and ignorance of what in fact you are trying to argue against.
That’s why people are not connecting with your faith, and until you do this, it’s only going to get worse. Hence your attacking science, rather than putting forward solid reason, logic and evidence as to your position. Anyone with a modicum of knowledge on what you are attacking, can see that you are relying on misinformation over what scientific method is.
I personally think it’s great your doing the campaign the way you are, indeed it is raising awareness that there’s not really any ‘meat’ to your belief, it appears shallow in that regard.
Education and critical thinking are the reasons your having to resort to branding Jesus(tm).
Religious groups should not have rights above and beyond any secular group doing the same thing. For sure believe in your beliefs, but the ability to be able to state clearly that it is a belief with no evidence whatsoever should be a right of all Australians.
Critical commentary on your belief should be allowed, and so long as religion is doing things like this :
http://www.smh.com.au/national/almighty-row-over-ethics-class-in-schools-20090925-g6a0.html
Your going to have people saying enough is enough.
Take care folk, honestly, by all means enjoy your faith, but don’t exploit your traditional power structures within society to further your personal agenda’s, degrading the evolutionary moralistic, critical thinking humans we are due to your dogmatic opinion of a collection of fables from the bronze age.
I will believe in god when s/he/it comes down and -
1 – destroys all weapons of war without harming anyone
2 – removes all pathogens or redesign our pathetic bodies with perfect immunity
3 – redesign our bodies so that we no longer have to kill another living being to survive.
4 – hard wire in our brains the compassion and ethics to live together in supporting communities.
Hi Gerry, let’s take God out of the picture at the moment. Assuming (falsely, in my view!) that there is no god…
- why are there weapons of war in our world?
- why is there disease in our world?
- we are we not compassionate toward one another?
How does an atheist respond to these difficult questions of suffering, pain, disease, sickness and the overall problems with the human condition?
God easily becomes the scapegoat for humanity’s woes, yet I am yet to hear an atheist thank God for what is good about humanity and the world we live in. If there is no god, how do you respond to the questions above?
Just a sec Steven, so your saying, because things like weapons of war, disease, and that SOME people are not compassionate, there is a god?
This does not make sense as an argument for the existence of a god.
“I am yet to hear an atheist thank God for what is good about humanity and the world we live in”
Because there is none, do you know what an atheist is?
God is not being used as a scapegoat, there is no god. These things exist for very good understandable reasoning. To turn around and claim these things exist, but there is an all-loving, all-good god is a paradox.
I’m not saying that at all. My question is, if there is no god (as you suggest), then what are your answers to the questions:
- why are there weapons of war in our world?
- why is there disease in our world?
- we are we not compassionate toward one another?
I’m not suggesting that the presence of these things is evidence that there is a god, I’m asking atheists to articulate how their worldview accounts for evil. What is the “very good understandable reasoning” for these things?
Actually, as stated, without writing a whole diatribe on these issues and how they come about going thru historical systems, religion differences that cause conflict, power struggles etc, I want to point out you are actually the one making the claim of a supreme being. I am but pointing out that this claim fails on so many levels.
For instance, the problem of evil is not one for non-believers to explain, it’s evident from the whole evolutionary tree as to the reasoning.
The problem of evil is one for those claiming an all-loving, all-good god, that allows these things to happen.
If this god is all-powerful and is capable of stopping a tsunami before it killed off thousands of people, women children. Why didn’t He? Is it because he’s not perfectly good? I perfectly good being could not by it’s very nature, allow evil to exist, let alone create it (you do claim this god created everything, knowing everything that would happen)
1. A god that is all powerful would be able to stop evil and suffering.
2. A god that is all knowing would know that evil and suffering occur.
3. A god that is all loving wouldn’t want evil and suffering to happen, and has the power to stop it.
But evil and suffering happen.
This is the problem trying to be articulated here. The non-believers are trying to point out to yourselves, that the problem of evil is one that is only a problem, in a world where there is the claim of an all-loving, totally good god.
I’d love it if you would approach the questions I posted earlier, rather than just playing word games and trying to put the onus back on non-believers to prove there is no god, when your the one making the claim.
‘Gee Suss’, in your previous post you said that, in regards to disease, lack of compassion, war etc – “these things exist for very good understandable reasoning”. I’m asking you to articulate what very good, understandable reasoning you have for these things. I’m (temporarily) joining you and assuming your worldview that there is no god, and trying to understand what explanation you give for these things. I’m not playing word games, nor am I trying to get you to prove there is no god (not sure where I’ve suggested this?), I’m trying to understand how your worldview accounts for the problems of humanity, suffering, diseases etc. How do you explain the presence of these terrible things?
Steven, I don’t really get what you are saying. They exist as the universe is impartial. It is neither good nor evil, it is everything.
Typically, you are just using wordplay to ignore the questions asked of yourself with your claim to their being a supreme being. You are making the claim, you should be the one that justifies it.
I mentioned historical systems, religion differences that cause conflict, power struggles, evolutionary aspects as causes, the fact we have a complex brain structure etc etc. I could delve into what any conflict or how diseases are explained from the atomic level up, but I do not see the point, I would be explaining what they are. There is not enough space here to explain every different happenings cause.
The problem as I see it, is your professing a god exists. You are leaping to a conclusion based on no evidence, and stating that that cause is a completely ‘good’ one. You have been asked about this, but as mentioned, instead of providing the answers you profess your jesus gives, you turn it back without anything given.
I came with questions, you profess your jesus provides answers. Indeed your whole campaign is based around that, yet you provide nothing, your claim that jesus exists appears empty on that count.
If you are making a claim that god exists, with no evidence nor reason, you should provide it. The onus is on the claimant.
I could say ‘the greek gods did it’. Would it be up to you to justify why evil and good exist, and if you couldn’t, my claim has worth?
Effectively, you are just side-stepping your claim, and saying ‘prove it’s not’. This is just empty and devoid of reasoning, or providing the answers asked, is this what your jesus is teaching? not to critically think about issues, just say ‘god did it?’
Gee – I think what Steve is getting at (correct me if I’m wrong) is the whole problem of saying [War, disease, hate etc] exist as the universe is impartial. It is neither good nor evil, it is everything..
This viewpoint says that genocide, rape, murder and the like aren’t evil. They just are. And that doesn’t gel with most human experience. Ask anyone if raping a child over the course of several decades while keeping them locked in a basement is a neutral act.
I’m keen to offer you, as my friend and colleague Hayley did, the chance to chat about this some more, off-line. You are raising lots of good questions, and these aren’t easily answered in a back and forth discussion on a post.
Feel free to send me an email with your phone number and we can have a chat – steve AT communiatejesus.com. I might ask Hayley to join us as well – it’d be great to chat these things through together.
RodeoClown, evil is a concept brought about by the fact we are evolutionary, social animals. Not divinely given to us by a supreme being as you are effectively claiming.
If you are making the claim that a supreme being has ‘injected’ these concepts into us, let alone your particular divine being, please provide the evidence to that effect.
Steven, as replied to her on her blog, your campaign has already threatened legal action to silence our critique of what you are professing, our questions that you fail to approach, so sorry, but I am not interested.
I have been open with asking questions, that every christian that I am approaching over this campaign claiming their jesus provides answers, is avoiding.
Hi Gee Suss, I’m certainly not avoiding your questions – I want to talk about this with you, I just don’t think online, back and forth, is the best way of doing this. Please don’t think I’m avoiding your questions – I’d love to chat.
Reading the following, as this person has the guts to actually respond, rather than asking airy fairy questions as a response to direct ones
http://bartik.wordpress.com/2009/09/28/possibly-disappointed-by-jesusallaboutlife-com/
Respect, even if I disagree, but let my digest what he has to say before saying if I do!
why are there weapons of war in our world?
Clausewitz said it best (paraphrasing): to compel others to submit to our will, or to prevent others from forcing us to submit to theirs.
Why would a just God allow the injustices of war, or rather, demand them as He does, e.g., in Numbers 33:50.
The simplest answer is that there is no god or gods that cares about human justice or injustice.
why is there disease in our world?
Because either (1) some DNA-copying machines (viruses, bacteria) are able to replicate themselves by using our cell’s anatomy, or (2) our own dna copying mechanisms are imperfect, which sometimes causes deadly results like cancer or Huntington disease.
It’s ridiculous to to think of a god or gods as the agents behind DNA copying. The simplest answer is that there is no god or gods that cares about human disease.
[why] are we not compassionate toward one another?
We are, because it’s genetically advantageous for a gregarious, intelligent species like humans to care about each other. This often breaks down, like with sociopaths, but a society of humans that cares about each other does better (makes more humans) than a society of sociopaths, hence there’s more people that are compassionate about each other.
The simplest answer is that there is no god or gods that cares about human compassion.
Some questions have been raised about the existence of God. I’ve just added a new post on the subject ‘Does God exist’. It lists a range of resources that debate and explore this subject. You can read it here.
Sorry for being late to the conversation
@Gerry
Sounds like your wish will come true at the return of Jesus to me, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Rev 21:4) and as it says in Romans 14:10-12 “For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written: “‘As surely as I live,’says the Lord,’every knee will bow before me; every tongue confess to God’” So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.”
So what you are saying will happen and I’d much rather be a sheep than a goat (Matthew 25:31-26).
As the campaign says “Jesus all about (eternal) life”
Cheers
I just want to point out that allaboutlife.com was registered on November 1st, 1998. That’s almost 11 years ago. Any suggestion that it was “grabbed up” in response to this campaign is nonsense.
I just want to point out that allaboutlife.com was registered on November 1st, 1998. That’s almost 11 years ago. Any suggestion that it was “grabbed up” in response to this campaign is nonsense. But thanks for the traffic anyway…
I was the Jesus. All about Life (JAAL) coordinator in Canberra during 2006. Our campaign had its first phase directed at Christians. We wanted Christians to know that advertisements would be would be running in the media over a period of 3 weeks. Christians needed to be prepared for the questions they would be asked during the campaign. Then the campaign ran and this created interest in the media. It was a great way to present Jesus to people and have Christians working together to explain Christianity to those who are not familiar with it.
Twitter was not around then. JAAL NSW is in a situation where instant messaging is coming before the explanation. However, this is not a bad thing. That people here on this website are discussing Jesus is great news.
On the question of good and bad things happening in the world. Good things happen to show that God is in the world. Bad things happen because evil (‘evil’ is ‘live’ back to front) exists in the world because of our sin. Evil is the opposite of life.
This year my wife got cancer. This didn’t turn us away from God. In fact, it brought us closer to Him. In God’s grace my wife is now in remision. This is great news for us both and we thank God. God could have let my wife die. I would have been very sad about this, not having her around. However, if she had died I would have accepted this knowing that she was with God in a much better place than we have here on earth. For those who have faith in God and in Jesus’ saving power, we know that living with him in a perfect place without even the hint of evil will be the greatest. And we all die. Those who don’t know Jesus should at least find out what his death means to us. Without this knowledge it is hard to make a decision but it is a decision everyone needs to make.