Most of the time, I don’t care one way or another. The exception was that it happened that the photographer and videographers at my wedding were fairly devout Christians. I didn’t pick them because of it, but I think it played a factor in the fact that they saw the ceremony as very important, not just a stage setting for them to work on (even though it was an entirely nonreligious ceremony). As a result, they were very nonintrusive and didn’t get in the way. (I once saw a videographer have to be physically moved by the priest, who needed to stand in the space he had claimed).
This may be one of those exceptions that proves the rule, though - if the business has nothing to do with matters normally considered religious, then I don’t care who runs it. On the other hand, if they’re going to be proselytizing instead of doing business, or disapproving of my lifestyle, I’ll take my custom elsewhere.
Good points, GargoyleWB. The way it is handled may be different where you are as opposed to my neck of the woods. Of course, I’ve never seen a sign such as the OP mentions in front of the actual store, but I have glimpsed such statements in newspaper or Yellow Pages ads from time to time. If I did see such a sign, I wouldn’t go out of my way to patronize that store. As I said, they’re pretty pointless to me. I want the best product for my money, I don’t care about the religion of the person selling it.
I wouldn’t be offended by it, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to avoid going there. If they sell what I want at affordable prices, I don’t care if the store is owned by three foot high midgets with horns in their forheads.
I’d also like to add/clarify a bit to what I said…
This aggressive hard-sell behavior seems (to my experience) be something that is primarily in American Christian sects specifically. Having spent a couple wonderful long vacations in both Ireland and England I encountered none of the pushy proselytizing atmosphere or propaganda that goes on in America. The UK, in spite of being near-universally Christian and saturated with churches, takes a very matter-of-fact diff’rent-strokes-for-diff’rent-folks approach to religion, in precisely the same way that makes the local Jews, Hindis, Buddhists, et al here in America so inoffensive and wonderful to be around. Even when I was deliberately exporing and wandering around churches in the UK (I love the magnificent old archetecture) I was never pressured or canvassed by the clergy or parishioners. I even politely requested to attend a service at a couple of churches that weren’t open to the general public, just so I could see their wonderful interiors, and even then didn’t receive the slightest bit of pressure , preaching, or evangelism. A simple “no, I just wish to see your beautiful building” was all it took and I was graciously accepted within.
It would be impossible to do that in the US without having to endure a crushing armload of bibles and pamphlets.
I think that it’s a mistake to think that these businesses are saying that they will only welcome like-minded people, IMHO, this is certainly not the case; I think that what they’re actually trying to do is twofold:
Firstly I think they are trying to impress you so much with their integrity as a fair business that you will start to wonder if maybe there is some validity in their beliefs after all.
Secondly I think thy are hoping that like-minded people will choose to use them out of some sense of duty (this isn’t quite the same as deliberately discouraging nonbelieving customers, although of course it is likely to have that effect.
This whole thing is a bit like bumper stickers as a means of witnessing (pointless); The driver who you let pull out of a side road in front of you(good deed) doesn’t get to see your bumpersticker, but the driver that you impatiently overtake does, so the net effect is negative. Likewise in business, I think the negative impressions are more likely to be long-lasting, think about it;
“He overcharged me and he’s a Christian, how could he?”
is more likely to stick in the mind for a long time than:
“He completed the job in a satisfactory fashion, like he was supposed to, and oh, by the way, he’s a Christian”.
I dislike seeing people trade off things like patriotism and religion. I am not religious, but if I saw a store advertising using biblical references or the like and the goods they sold had nothing to do with it, then I would not shop there because I would feel that they are cashing in on something people care about.
Dick Smith, Australian businessman extraordinaire, has released a range of products that he claims are Australian icons that are now foreign-owned. He says that national icons like Vegemite should belong to the people of Australia, not OS companies like Kraft, and so he’s put his own Australian-made versions on the market. I refuse to buy them. Dick Smith is singing the praises of national pride merely to sell his products, and I don’t like it. If he was claiming they were prducts inspired by God, it would be the same thing - a cynical marketing exercise. I’m sorry, but I just don’t buy it when people advertise in this fasion.
and I am somewhat offended by businesses that use Christianity as a selling point for their goods and/or services. I believe it is these sorts of elitist type tactics that separate people rather than bring them together, and promote an us vs. them type of mentality.
My interpretation of the Christian religion is “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you” and “Love thy neighbor as thyself.”
I have never heard it said in this way:
“Do unto other Christians as you would have other Christians do unto you” or “Love thy Christian neighbors as thyself.” But it does seem that some Christians interpret things this way, and perhaps those are the people to whom the “Christian” businesses are catering.
