Interfaith Theologian

Monday, July 7, 2014

Billboard Wars


There’s a war going on outside…

And it all started when a billboard went up on I-895 asking one simple question: Who is Jesus?

Soon after that, traveling down I-95 South through Baltimore, an even larger billboard had the words simply: “Got Jesus? Got Islam.” And so the gauntlet had been thrown down , now a full-blown billboard war of competing religious affinities is about to explode between South I-95 and North I-895.
Advocates for Jesus are from the Christian Aid Ministries, a group of self-described Amish, Mennonite, and Anabaptist groups that have a campaign according to their website to put up billboards in every state. Funny, however, the first two groups don’t get around to preach in urban areas much. I wonder if they’ll put their mouth where their sign is and come down to the Pulaski highway corridor and see what people think of their sign. Out of touch with culture, out of touch with people, and now out of touch with their own evangelism, it is this kind of vicarious evangelism always bugs me.

I have no idea who the Muslims are at this point, and quite frankly I don’t understand their sign, unless to say that there is a variation of Jesus (Isa) in their tradition as well. This sign did not go over well with the CAM group, at least I am speculating here, because a new sign has gone up. Where the old sign asked if you have Jesus, the new sign up today tells us bluntly “Jesus is the only way to life” showing a bloody depiction of Jesus on the cross. I can’t wait to see what’s next, but considering the very real problems and tensions in the world, with Palestinians and Israelis fighting again, seeing these kinds of doctrinal war distractions going on is a bit mind-numbing.

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