Most young adults of today, regardless of background, have encountered some form of Christian entertainment. Companies like Universal Pictures and Focus on the Family have produced extremely successful films, television shows, and even radio shows, such as the long-beloved Veggie Tales or the family-oriented Adventures in Odyssey. Even DreamWorks Animation, the brains behind the hit film series Shrek (2001), produced a retelling of the biblical Moses with its 1998 film, The Prince of Egypt, which has since been adapted into a stage musical and completed its run in January.
But despite several blockbuster hits and dusty VHS tapes scattered around U.S. homes in the name of nostalgia (thanks Hanna-Barbera!), there remains a plethora of terribly made Christian media. Sure, there’s terribly made media everywhere, but what I often hear regarding Christian media is, “Well, it was made by Christians, after all.” In other words, the rest of the world doesn’t have high expectations for what we create.
I spent a few minutes listening to my English professor explain how Christian music lacks depth and that the artists know nothing about the “real world.” This garnered a few laughs from my classmates, and I laughed along with them--my friends and I are the first to send each other memes and Instagram reels that make fun of popular Christian music or discuss how media is handled within the church. But at the same time, I felt a twinge of shame; the joke hits differently when laughter is coming from individuals outside of your belief system. My ex-boyfriend, an agnostic, used to let me play music during car rides, and I found myself constantly apologizing for a band I consider to be one of the best Christian groups out there. His response? “Don’t worry. I’ve heard my share of cringe religious music.” Okay. Cool. So, am I cringe too?
There are always reasons behind poor media quality, funding being the biggest setback. But Christian creators, we need to do better. Too often, we let our pride get in the way of our creative process, or we lose ourselves in a “God-given mission” and completely miss the point of what we should be doing: loving people.
I am not saying create propaganda. What I am saying is this: the world has its qualms with the church, and rightfully so. What we create only perpetuates the mentality of what a “typical” Christian person looks like. In our practice of religion, in each of our human interactions, we should remember that impressions matter. We need to remember Who, and Whose people, we are doing this for. We need to be in touch with our audiences. We need to do what the first Creator did: get down in the dirt and breathe life. The better we know those He created, the better we will be able to meet audience needs.
The world already has one idea of what a Christ-follower looks like, and with it, a distorted view of Him. What will you do to change that?
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