A Part of Something

I've been tossing around in my mind people's fascination with celebrities. With all the recent law troubles with people like Paris & Nicole, Michael Vick, et al., we find ourselves bombarded with news coverage of their every step, while other news gets pushed to the back pages and is considered small news. I see record companies having to go to great lengths to stop people from stealing music, while they continue to promote artists with little to no talent. These artists, however, still seem to be able to sell millions of copies and sell-out concerts while their fans drone their tuneless anthems along with them. I see brainless movies being made with no plot and gratuitous violence and sex made into jokes that make millions in mere days yet we wonder why there are no good movies to see. So why is this? Why are we fascinated with celebrities? Why do we pour money into people that care only about making money and less and less about making art and changing lives?

I think one thing that we like is having something to be a part of. I have found many of my conversations turn into how many applicable movie quotes I can come up with or thinking of songs that fit the conversation. Casual conversation can turn into talking about the latest news of such-and-such celebrity in trouble and not about our own problems and lives. I think people long to feel that they are a part of something. People want to feel wanted. This is where God intersects with the culture.

The church, since its inception, has struggled with one of its purposes in connecting with people. Look at Acts 11, when Peter found out after making mistakes that, because of Jesus Christ, God accepts all people to come to Him. From the beginning, the church was good at excluding people, but this doesn't mean that we can give up on welcoming and accepting people as they are. What better place is there for people to feel a part of something than God's church?

Until we give people a glimpse of something better, they will continue to look for acceptance in celebrities and rock stars.