Veteran readers of my blog know how much I respect and appreciate the efforts of Rev. Billy Talen and the Church of Stop Shopping.  After all, I believe that our currently culture of consumerism is probably on of our biggest hindrances to connecting with God.  Well, recently I posted a contribution to their newly budding forum that I was personally very happy with (*Shameless self-promotion alert!*) and got a lot of good feedback on.  Please take a trip over to the Church of Stop Shopping forum and check out my article on where consumerism came from, and how we get out.  Here is a sample:

I like, like many, who wake up to the disasters of consumerism at some point wonder, “How did we get here?”. I don’t think any would believe our ancestors fought to have us pack ourselves into Wal-Marts for the latest deals on DVD players and generic potato chips.  I don’t believe our forefathers envisioned the American Dream of prosperity as a life of extreme debt, constant stress, and abundant discontent.  I realize however, the problem is that no one envisioned this at all. The sad truth is… we got here on accident….

CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF MY RANT ON CONSUMERISM ->

Technorati Tags: consumerism, Life Application, practical

The things you own end up owning you. It’s only after you lose everything that you’re free to do anything. ~Fight Club

Bill Talen (aka “Reverend Billy”) has gained much of my esteem. He stars in a new documentary/comedy called “What Would Jesus Buy?”. The movie is not only funny, but really hits home. Seldom does anyone stop to question consumerism, yet it runs (ruins?) our lives. Consumerism isn’t about buying things, it is about buying things we don’t need. We have created an entire culture were we work, labor, and struggle all in the hopes of buying our next… something. Continue Reading »

Technorati Tags: bill talen, Christian Mysticism, consumerism, reverend billy, what would jesus buy