Final Project

What follows is the Intro Religious Studies Final Blog. Because of troubles uploading some of the images, I ended up posting it as 19 short chapter-type posts instead of 1 long post, though it is one entity. Enjoy!

Final Project Part 1- Religious Bumper Stickers

Bumper stickers are kind of funny. It’s always interested me to see what people chose to divulge in this one-sentence sound-bite format of personality expression, that others often see without any connection to the person inside the car, or at such a high speed that it is often read only for a second. It is a quick and anonymous design, but is used to show support, opposition, or general affiliation with all manner of political, philosophical, or commercial groups or ideas.

Bumper stickers conveying religious preference (or lack thereof) take the issue in a whole different direction. Why is it that people feel the need to express the importance of their personal beliefs in 6 inches of space on the back of their car? Is religion so heavily polarized an issue in our society that people feel the need to defend it the same way they would a political candidate? Or is it simply an instance of our current society capitalizing on religion, selling slogans about Jesus that are “perfect for your car, truck, van, motorhome, motorcycle, helmet, notebook, cubicle, or office?”

 

 Whatever the reason, religious bumper stickers are vary vastly, from those with a Bible verse to those with a catchy phrase. Though most prominently Christian, examples representing other faiths (and atheism) certainly exist as well.

Final Project Part 2- Bumper Stickers and Religion

Many religious bumper stickers have a straightforward, serious message. I have put these into three categories: “Christian How-to,” “Christian Spiritual,” and “Defensively Christian.” (A large percentage of the bumper stickers pertaining to other religions, particularly Buddhism, would fall into the spiritual category; however, since the great majority of the stickers relate to Christianity there will be a section later exploring the contexts in which bumper stickers from other religions are seen at all, since they are comparatively rarer).

In the context of Clifford Geertz’s definition of religion- “a system of symbols which acts to establish powerful, pervasive, and long-lasting moods and motivations in men by formulating conceptions of a general order of existence and clothing these conceptions with such an aura of factuality that the moods and motivations seem uniquely realistic-“ bumper stickers and other such “popular religion” items play an interesting role, allowing the system of symbols of a religion a new mode of expression with which to permeate the consciousness of the general public.

Final Project Part 3- Christian "How-To" Stickers

The common feature of all the stickers in this category is that they create slogans to explain the idea they seek to convey. In this way, they are very conventional bumper stickers- boiling down a deeply held and complex conviction of some sort to a simple, easily understandable phrase.

Despite the similarity in format, there is quite a bit of variation within this category. Some of them (“Pray the Rosary,” “Read the Bible for Life,” or “Life is Short, Pray Hard”) are very direct advice. “I Can Because He Can” and “Yo Quiero Jesus” are structured as more personal statements of faith. Others (“Truth is One, Paths are Many,” “God Promises a Safe Landing, Not a Calm Passage,” and “Don’t Worry God is in Control”) may be interpreted as either personal expressions or words aimed more directly to those reading the back of the car.

Final Project Part 4- Spiritual Christian Stickers

These stickers are all very clear statements of faith.  All either quote or reference particular passages from the Bible or words of major Christian figures. The passages used are very carefully chosen- the words on these stickers are all advice about how to live one’s life according to the Christian teachings.

Like the stickers in the previous section, these very spiritual stickers attempt to reinforce the “conceptions of a general order of existence” of the religion that they represent. The “Christian How-To” stickers and the “Christian Spiritual” stickers have very different ways of presenting their respective “aura[s] of factuality,” however; the “How-To” stickers seem to create their factuality in modern-day terms, by using modern-day jargon. The “Spiritual” stickers gain their sense of legitimacy and factuality by using words straight out of the scriptures, albeit in an unexpected locale.

Final Project Part 4- Defensive Christian Stickers

These stickers are very reflective of religion’s place in contemporary American society. Religion is a major political force, which also makes it a very divisive topic. This heavy polarization is exemplified in these stickers, which have a very defensive tone. It is easy to get the impression that the people with these stickers on their cars feel attacked because of their faith; they want to express pride in their beliefs and opposition to those who disagree.

Final Project Part 5- Snarky Christian Stickers

These stickers are in some ways very much like the Christian “How-To” stickers, only they are sillier and more catchy. Often (though this is most likely unintentional) they are more ambiguous about the depth of their intent, due to their choice of words and styles much more commonly aligned with popular culture than with tradition (for example the psychedelic “God Rocks”). Often using puns (“truth decay”, “faith lift”), clichés (“Real Men Love Jesus”), jokes (“Next Time You Think You’re Perfect Try Walking on Water”), and irony (“My Boss is a Jewish Carpenter”) to get their point across, they express religion with a goofiness very rarely seen in our society.