What Madison Avenue Can Teach Us About Sabbath

My first spoken word, according to my mother, was “Coke”.  Apparently I was watching the television and during a Coca-Cola commercial I repeated after the voice on the TV “Co… Co…” (I wasn't able to make the ‘k’ at that stage). How sad that rather than saying “Ma” or “Dada”, either word indicating the significance of my parents and their care and love for me, I instead reflected the corporate message machine with my first word. Coke has been an ever-present part of my life since then.  I am constantly reminded of this soft drink – advertising for Coke abounds. Knowing that this sugary drink is not good for my health I keep making attempts to cut it out of my life, but it’s hard to ignore it.

What advertisers know is that in order for their message to shape people’s lives, the message must be continually reinforced, repeated and referenced.  It is not enough to hear a message once in order for it to influence our behaviour, it requires repeated listenings. Thus the advertisers make sure the message of Coca Cola is repeated over and over, the slogans may change with the passage of time, but the underlying message is hammered home.  This is what Madison Avenue can teach us about Sabbath.

Sabbath is a reminder that in order to not be overwhelmed and unduly shaped by the messages of the culture around us we need to regularly hear a different message.  There are few places in our current culture that encourage a life of loving others, rather than being self-focused and self-serving. Advertisements tell us “Do this for you” or “Buy this because you deserve it”or most insidiously “Become the you that you want to be.” More for you, YOU, YOU, YOU – that’s what it’s all about. At the same time advertising is designed to make us feel inadequate, putting us in a state of perpetual disappointment, and susceptible to retail therapy. This is the message that surrounds us most of the time.

In order to not be consumed with this approach to life we must take time, regularly, not occasionally, to hear some good news – thus a weekly Sabbath. It is not enough to hear once and a while that meaning is found in a lived out life of discipleship, that we are called to a higher purpose than gluttonous consumerism. This is a message that needs to be received on a regular basis in order to counteract the other voices trying to influence us. Sabbath, one day in seven, is a chance to reset our direction, rest from the grind of trying to keep up with the expectations of a stressed and hyper culture. Sabbath is a chance to hear ‘the old, old story’ once again, and have it draws us back into relationship that restores and revives us, regardless of what surrounds us.