Slogans are for the Initiate

Driving back from the bank this morning I couldn't help notice the slogan board of a local ELC church* - one that often has slogans that leave me upset or puzzled. This time I came away thinking "what the heck does that mean?" The slogan said: "Christians must come apart and rest or they just plain come apart". At first it sounds like it might be ok, but it doesn't weather any amount of thought. "Come apart" how? Do you mean go to church? I know lots of really screwed up people who go to church. And what about the people who don't seem to ever stop and are healthy and sound? I think I know what they are getting at - but it doesn't work on the outside.

I am not Mr. Antislogan. I think slogans can be helpful in a community. But they belong to the community. I bet that slogan is just packed full of good insights for the creator and maybe his/her community. But it means squat to the average person driving by. We have developed slogans to help communicate our purpose and vision, for example we often talk about drawing people "one step closer to the Father". Imagine that on the billboard? It only works in the context of a community that qualifies all the parts of the slogan. We often talk about the steps or movement or journey towards God in our community. We share our own stories and encourage everyone to look for those opportunities to partner with God in this process. See already there is a depth to this slogan that the uninitiated cannot appreciate. Now I will use this slogan with new people in our community - but I do so when I have the opportunity to unpack it.

This mornings musings left me convinced that slogans are for the initiate. I would encourage good sloganeering, but please, I beg your mercy, don't inflict your catchy sayings on the greater community. Most won't have a clue what you are saying and many of the rest will derive a meaning you might not have intended. If you must have a slogan - make it something we can all understand like, "God loves you" or "have a great day" or even "If you have a need let us know, we might be able to help." It'll just make the world a whole lot saner.

Thanks.

*To be completely fair there is a PAOC church in the other end of town that has a similar collection of inane thoughts displayed on its front lawn. And I am sure I can find representation from every denomination including my own.

[EDIT] OK so tonight I passed a BCOQ (Baptist, I used to be a lay minister in this denomination) church that had this sign :"To know the truth is to be set free". Think about that for a minute. Say I'm an addict, I can know quite clearly I'm an addict and still be bound by my addiction. I know what they are trying to say but the average person isn't going to be able to cut through the Christianese.