jasonackerman.com

After a couple different exchanges on various Facebook profiles, I feel like I should be a little more complete on this issue. The issue is “Black Friday”. As one of my friends noted, just a few years ago nobody used the term “black friday” as a sales pitch… it’s been an unofficial name for years, and it was just commonly accepted that the day after Thanksgiving would be a peak day for retailers. Now, it’s part of advertisements. How long before printed calendars show it as an “unofficial holiday”? So what’s all the fuss about? It’s not like Black Friday is the one day of year that we go all consumerist and greedy on each other, right?

So let’s start with this: first, I in no way set myself above anyone else in terms of dealing with materialism and the fallout from wanting more stuff. In fact, it’s as big a deal for me as anyone else. That I’m aware of it doesn’t make me better, only aware. I want a better phone. I want a bigger TV. I want a newer car. And I have to face the reality that because I don’t have a ton of money doesn’t make me more spiritual, it’s just easier to not be materialistic when you can’t afford stuff. I shudder to think how much harder it would be if I had more money to spend.

I guess my objection is that on this one day – this single day in the entire year, we are expected and encouraged to spend inordinate amounts of money, because the SALES ARE SO GREAT… you’ll never beat these deals. And on that day, consumers spend enough money to make the year profitable for retailers. That’s why it’s called Black Friday – so it has a name. It’s not just another day of spending, it’s a day where the entire economy focuses on how much is spent, and if Black Friday is slow, retailers panic. It’s because of this that I can’t simply call it “another day”. It’s because the final tally at the end of the day is a magnified look at how much wealth is pushed around inside the borders of this country, in the name of “giving”. Add on top of that what we all know – most of what we “give” and “receive” could be classified as junk. Gadgets that will sit in a box 6 months from now, clothes we won’t wear (or won’t fit into), toys that break or lose the interest of the kids… I don’t need another coffee mug. I appreciate the thoughts of the person that buys me another mug to enjoy coffee from, but I have lots of mugs. I could probably use a different mug every day until Christmas.

See what I mean? It’s not just another day. It’s a day of hoarding. Yeah, we’re giving away all the stuff to other people, but it’s still hoarding, we’re just relocating the mess.

The estimated cost to alleviate the problem of unclean drinking water in our world is $10 billion. Some estimates say more like $20B, and I’m sure it’s an ongoing problem that wouldn’t be solved today and forever at that price tag. But when you realize that Americans will spend by some estimates $20B today – that’s twenty. billion. dollars. – that doesn’t count the rest of the shopping season, that’s just today, and that’s in an economy where people within our own borders are losing houses and going hungry at alarming rates – you at least have to stop and think. If every American who is shopping today spent half of what they planned on spending, then took the other half and dedicated it to the water issue, there would be a global impact unlike anything the world has ever seen, economically speaking. Would it solve the problem? Doubtful. Would it make such a major impact that the world would be forever changed for it? Absolutely.

So my point is not that we shouldn’t spend. I’ll be buying Christmas gifts this year. If you take this as a reason for feeling guilty, then you’re sorely missing the point. Only a fool turns away God’s blessings – feeling guilty about what He’s given us is a slope we’ll never stop slipping down. It’s why I don’t live in a hut on the prairie. How long before I feel guilty that there is a clean stream flowing by my hut, and lots of wildlife to subsist on? The point is that if we balance our viewpoint, and understand that all our resources, though given to us, are God’s, we can then approach life with a global perspective. This perspective says that we do live in a wealthy society, and by global standards we are all wealthy. It says that we can enjoy the blessings of being in this place – we can enjoy technology, abundant food, and clean water. But it also says that we have a responsibility not to turn our backs on “the rest”. The poor, the afflicted, the marginalized. We do a great job in our country of simply ignoring the unseen – and if it’s not right in our faces, it’s unseen. So is it possible to enjoy what we have? To buy nice things, to eat well, to give Christmas gifts, and to still willingly shoulder the burden for someone who can’t carry it on their own? I say yes. I say that if we look at things with balance, and not get caught in one extreme or the other, we can make a difference. I know that sounds like a cheesy PSA on network TV, but it’s true. That’s why I believe in what Advent Conspiracy is doing. Not because I think celebrating the Advent of the Christ needs to be repackaged, or that I think anything substitutes for sharing the love of Christ and God’s unmatched sacrifice with all who will hear – but because I think living with the entirety of God’s creation in mind is our responsibility.

Spend less – don’t stop spending. Go ahead and keep our economy spinning. But take time to consider whether there are better ways to allocate the resources we’ve been given.