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Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores
    #4997891 -

Raleigh Church Campaigns For More 'Pro-Christmas' In Triangle Stores
WRAL.com

RALEIGH, N.C. -- At Fig's Market, some products in the store say "merry Christmas," but the store window displays do not.

"We definitely don't want to offend anybody," said Fig's Market co-owner Jill Kucera. "We want everybody to celebrate the holiday that suits them and we want to be open to everybody."

But Pastor Patrick Wooden believes being "open" closes the door on Christmas.

"The way I see it is retailers want to make Christmas money without acknowledging Christmas," Wooden said.

So, his church, the Upper Room Church, is doing its own acknowledging.

To grab the public's attention, the church is putting on a media blitz that includes advertisements in the newspaper, on the radio and on television -- costing the church approximately $11,000.

The advertisements even encourage shoppers to patronize businesses that use the phrase "merry Christmas."

Critics argue the Upper Room Church should have spent the campaign's $11,000 on helping the poor, but Wooden said the money is well spent. He adds the church helps the poor locally every week and has also donated money to hurricane victims.

Some storeowners also call Wooden anti-Jewish, anti-Islamic and anti-Buddhist, but he says he is simply being pro-Christmas.

"If there was a store that had merry Christmas, happy Hanukah, happy Kwanzaa, season's greetings and the like, I would have no problem spending my money in that store," Wooden said.

And if the stores do not?

"If they don't, as Americans, it's their right," Wooden said.
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Oh you crazy, crazy deists. :rolleyes:

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: DNKYD]
    #4997912 -

Duh!

Hate to state the obvious, but...

That money could have been used so much more productively!

Like giving the money to charity...


--------------------
"You've got to get hold of the thread of marching time, pull the fuck thing down, get on the end of it and pang yourself to the infinitude of absolute mind"
Ken Campbell - Furtive Nudist

"The mystery of life is not a problem to be solved but a reality to be experienced" - Aart van der Leeuw

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: theorganicdomino]
    #4997919 -

Deists have already proven their lack of logic and rationality.

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: theorganicdomino]
    #4997923 -

It was there money and their call. If you know of some other uses by all means donate.

I can see why a church would want to do something like that though.

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: DNKYD]
    #4997925 -

DNKYD said:
Deists have already proven their lack of logic and rationality.


Indeed. That could have fed a lot of people for Xmas.....

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: Le_Canard]
    #4997934 -

They've done worse things. The really stupid people are the ones that call him "anti-jewish" or "anti-buddhist" because he likes Christmas. Those people are the real ignorant ones.


--------------------
Ishmael
http://www.ishmael.org

Ron Paul 2008!
http://www.ronpaul2008.com/

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: theorganicdomino]
    #4997971 -

I'd like to know how many people who are bitching that this church spent their $11K on ads instead of the homeless, have done something for the homeless themselves?

Lack of Christian values is the reason for homelessness and poverty, in my opinion. Jesus said, "Let every man who has two cloaks share with the man who has none." So, if you have more than you NEED... and choose not to share the excess with the poor, then in effect, you have decided to let someone starve or go homeless or whatever, so that you can live how you feel comfortable living.

Want to help the poor? Then sell everything. Ditch your computer and net connection. Sell your TV. Don't have a phone. Is that how you'd like to live? Of course not. God doesn't want you to live like that either. He wants you to do your part though, and most Christians believe 10% of your pretax income should go your Church in the form of a tithe. If everyone in the world gave 10% of their income to the poor, would there be any poor left? I doubt it.

If this Church has done their part then who cares how they spend the excess. I'm sure they see honoring God as a long-term solution to a bigger problem. If you are not willing to donate every single spare resource at your disposal to the poor, then why are you expecting others to do the same? Christians are to give 10% (and yeah, there is a lot of debate in the Christian community over this figure but it is the generally accepted amount) and so long as they do that first, they can enjoy the blessings they've been given as they see fit.

So, before pointing your finger at the Christians, please make it a lifestyle to give 10% of your income to the poor.

I hope this doesn't sound like I'm ranting- just an issue I'm passionate about. Merry Christmas! :laugh:

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: Srirachi]
    #4998438 -

screenprinter said:
I'd like to know how many people who are bitching that this church spent their $11K on ads instead of the homeless, have done something for the homeless themselves?

Lack of Christian values is the reason for homelessness and poverty, in my opinion. Jesus said, "Let every man who has two cloaks share with the man who has none." So, if you have more than you NEED... and choose not to share the excess with the poor, then in effect, you have decided to let someone starve or go homeless or whatever, so that you can live how you feel comfortable living.

Want to help the poor? Then sell everything. Ditch your computer and net connection. Sell your TV. Don't have a phone. Is that how you'd like to live? Of course not. God doesn't want you to live like that either. He wants you to do your part though, and most Christians believe 10% of your pretax income should go your Church in the form of a tithe. If everyone in the world gave 10% of their income to the poor, would there be any poor left? I doubt it.

If this Church has done their part then who cares how they spend the excess. I'm sure they see honoring God as a long-term solution to a bigger problem. If you are not willing to donate every single spare resource at your disposal to the poor, then why are you expecting others to do the same? Christians are to give 10% (and yeah, there is a lot of debate in the Christian community over this figure but it is the generally accepted amount) and so long as they do that first, they can enjoy the blessings they've been given as they see fit.

So, before pointing your finger at the Christians, please make it a lifestyle to give 10% of your income to the poor.

I hope this doesn't sound like I'm ranting- just an issue I'm passionate about. Merry Christmas! :laugh:


The posters in this thread arent the ones under scrutiny. It is this church which decided to spend 11k on "advertising" an iconic and religious mnemonic, that is under scrutiny.
and why 10%? As if the christian tithes have set the bar for all giving?

Ask yourself this.... as a poor person, living on the streets, with a crappy sweater at best in freezing temps... what would you rather have? warm soup and a jacket, or someone telling you merry christmas?

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: Srirachi]
    #4998457 -

By definition, I AM the poor! But I do volunteer from time to time at the local homeless shelter. It's about all I can do....

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: SneezingPenis]
    #4998472 -

RE: who ever responds

What church do you go to?

How much do you donate in tithes to that church?

How does your church decide what these tithes go for?

If it's your church, you pay your tithes, and still want to bitch then go right ahead. If not mind your own business.

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: Srirachi]
    #4998485 -

How many Christians give 10% of their income to their Church? Probably not a significant portion of them. And since when did monetary contributions become the only marker of good deeds?

Do you know me? No. Have you ever said "Hey Danky" to me while I was dishing out soup at a soup kitchen? No. I live modestly, and I live within my means. This doesn't mean I have 10% of my income that I can just willy-nilly give to some church. I do what I can to help out people that need it. In fact just the other week I donated a few old coats that I never wear any more to a local coat drive. All my old clothes go to Salvation Army. Around Xmas time I buy a few small toys to donate to Toys for Tots. Please don't lecture me on doing good deeds for those less fortunate. Save that for someone who needs it.

I find it asinine that a church goes and wastes $11K to encourage their underlings to only shop at stores that proclaim "Merry Christmas!" instead of the general "Happy Holidays!". Maybe they're too caught up in the consumer society and would rather not have their good-hearted believers shopping at stores that don't pander to their fairy tale bullshit.

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: Srirachi]
    #4998496 -

screenprinter said:
If everyone in the world gave 10% of their income to the poor, would there be any poor left? I doubt it.




actually i think their would be a bunch of lazy fucks mooching. Drawing the line between who is in poverty and rich will always be debated. Who decides who works and who doesn't? You do. Now get off your ass. If you can't then i'm not talking to you then am I?

Quote:
If this Church has done their part then who cares how they spend the excess. I'm sure they see honoring God as a long-term solution to a bigger problem. If you are not willing to donate every single spare resource at your disposal to the poor, then why are you expecting others to do the same?


I agree.

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Re: Church spends $11K in ads to encourage "Merry Christmas" in stores [Re: DNKYD]
    #5000665 -

DNKYD said:
How many Christians give 10% of their income to their Church? Probably not a significant portion of them. And since when did monetary contributions become the only marker of good deeds?


I didn't say or mean to imply that money is the only measure of good deeds. Rather, tithing is a lesson about putting your God before your bank account. It is a lot easier for most people to pray and act goodie twoshoes than to hand over the loot. God made everything. He doesn't need the money. It is all about priorities.


DNKYD said:
Do you know me? No. Have you ever said "Hey Danky" to me while I was dishing out soup at a soup kitchen? No. I live modestly, and I live within my means. This doesn't mean I have 10% of my income that I can just willy-nilly give to some church. I do what I can to help out people that need it. In fact just the other week I donated a few old coats that I never wear any more to a local coat drive. All my old clothes go to Salvation Army. Around Xmas time I buy a few small toys to donate to Toys for Tots. Please don't lecture me on doing good deeds for those less fortunate. Save that for someone who needs it.


Nobody has the extra 10%. As I said above, you do it for spiritual growth. Most people talk about spiritual growth; but, do they love their spirituality enough to part with their money?

As for your donations, fantastic! You gave stuff you can't use anymore to people who could use it. That's how its supposed to work. If you're at peace with what you do, then it's all good.

I didn't mean it to sound like a lecture. I'm sometimes inarticulate when I am passionate about something. My point was not to make anyone feel bad (or to try and make anyone feel bad), but to point out that it isn't God's fault that people starve to death every day... it is mankind's fault. It is our politics, wars, and greed, not God, that creates the problem. So, I think it is asinine to expect that God's Church is to give 100% of its resources to fixing problems that Christianity has not, for the most part, created!


DNKYD said:
I find it asinine that a church goes and wastes $11K to encourage their underlings to only shop at stores that proclaim "Merry Christmas!" instead of the general "Happy Holidays!". Maybe they're too caught up in the consumer society and would rather not have their good-hearted believers shopping at stores that don't pander to their fairy tale bullshit.


That last sentence there... sort of shows why we won't ever agree on this, so I'll leave it to you to post a final rebuttal if you feel it is warranted. No sense in us arguing- we believe different things. I do agree that trying to get your members (underlings you said) to only shop at places that say "Merry Christmas" is some bullshit. That takes the same approach as the Inquisition, conversion by force, and it's just creepy and un-Godly and un-American.

However, it isn't just Christians who do stuff like this. It is a ploy equally popular with both the extreme left and extreme right.

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