Friday, July 26, 2013

Gray Matters, by Brett McCracken

I have to admit, I am a pretty voracious consumer of culture.  I watch a lot of movies and read a lot of books, some good, some bad, some edifying, some not.  Christian approaches to the consumption of various media range from teetotalism to unrestrained embrace, and most guidance for Christians tends toward legalistic black and white evaluation.  Brett McCracken, author of Hipster Christianity, offers some guidance of a different sort in his new book Gray Matters.

McCracken's main target is younger Christians who come from the teetotalism end of the spectrum: no drinking, no secular music, no movies, or at least no R-rated movies.  He notes that Christians, especially 30 and under Christians, have become much more open to such cultural expressions.  Given that openness, McCracken wants to provide guidelines for "consuming culture well: discerningly, maturely, thoughtfully . . . a more mature consumption of culture, . . . to help us think about how a healthy consumption of culture honors God, enriches the Christian life, strengthens community, and advances the Christian mission."

Covering four major areas of consumption, food, movies, music, and alcohol, McCracken holds to some solid scriptural benchmarks.  First of all, "whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."  But, he continues, we should always be aware of the "weaker brother" so that we don't cause him to stumble, as well as paying attention to our own weaknesses, while acknowledging that what is permissible may not be beneficial.

I enjoyed his take on food and alcohol.  Think about what a kind and generous God we serve, who created such a variety of plants and animals, gave us the acuity to put them together in creative ways, and supplied us with the capacity to taste and enjoy them.  Scripture is full of admonitions to enjoy creation.  McCracken does warn against the temptation to, as we refine our tastes, succumb to pride, as we disdain common tastes in food and beverages.  However, he seems to lean towards a superiority complex himself in his discussion of alcohol, dismissing "Coors, Bud Light, Heineken, and Shock Top" as "swill" that people drink only because "it's a cold beverage and gives them a buzz."

At this point, I have to question his discussion of alcohol.  He talks about enjoying it as a blessing, enjoying the smell and taste, but then points out that "alcohol has never existed without the accompanying problem of drunkenness."  He argues that when we drink, we should no do so for the buzz, only for the taste and experience, "a richer experience of a well-made beverage."  So you're only drinking for the taste, not the buzz.  I don't know, this sounds like someone who reads Playboy for the articles, or maybe to appreciate some of God's beautiful feminine creations. . . .

On music and film, McCracken challenges especially those Christians who won't listen to secular music or who limit their movie viewing to only "Christian" movies or to movies without cursing, nudity, etc.  In music, great truth and experience of the divine can be experienced even if there are no lyrics, or if the lyrics don't point specifically to God or quote scripture.  Surely anyone who has been moved by a classical piece or a rousing drum solo will attest that music alone can point us to God.

Likewise, movies can, as a work of art and/or entertainment, communicate important messages, even without explicit Christian or biblical themes.  Of Christian films he laments that they sometimes suffer from "a prioritizing of content over artistry and an emphasis on message over excellent craft."  The Christian film guides that enumerate the number of cuss words and provide details of sexual content can be helpful, especially for parents who wish to limit their children's exposure to such content.  But those guides alone can't and don't point to what films may be edifying or not.

In spite of my mild criticisms, I found McCracken's approach to be spot-on.  He's not a checklist guy (like the movie guides) but I did find his "20 Questions for Christian Consumers" to be a most helpful and insightful summary.  In sum, Christians, he writes, must be "first, foremost, and passionately consumed by Christ" to be good consumers.  Only then can we eat, drink, watch, and listen "for the purposes of knowing and glorifying God."  



Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

P.S.  On Monday I posted my review of Tim Chester's Good News to the Poor and mentioned that I had not heard of him before.  Lo and behold, McCracken quotes Chester favorably, especially in the food section.  I looked up Chester's blog, and it happens that his most recent post is about cultural consumption and creation.  He points out that while Christians often talk about engaging culture with a focus on consumption.  That's fine, he says, but we also need to be creating culture, as part of "a fulfillment of the cultural mandate."  I wish McCracken would have gotten into culture creation more.  He does in the food section the most, but little if any in the film and music sections.  I encourage you to take a look at Chester's post, not in opposition to McCracken, but as a brief supplement.

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