Trendy Christianity
While sharing a meal with some friends in the Dining Commons of MVNU, the conversation centered around the type and quality of food that we put in our bodies. Someone was eating hummus, which led us to begin trying to list the Top 10 Most Trendy Foods. With the help of Nate Okuley, John Ballenger, Scott Lomasney, Ryan Schmitz, and Lyndsey Oldham, I landed with a list as follows:
1. Sushi. Suddenly, everyone likes raw fish wrapped in seaweed. For those that don’t really like sushi but still want to be trendy there is the standby California Roll.
2. Dunkin Donuts. This one is for the trendy people that don’t want to be trendy because Starbucks Coffee is too trendy for their need to be different and edgy. Starbucks is better. So is Cup O’ Joe. So is Nevin Street.
3. Guacamole. It’s very green and very tasty. I have yet to have this avacado concoction quite like that in Juarez, Mexico, handmade by Hermana Elodia, la pastora de La Iglesia Del Nazareno Juarez.
4. Yogurt. There used to be TCBY. Now there’s Yagööt.
5. Fish Tacos. Apparently it’s an acquired taste and/or is popular with the folks in the southern California area. I’ll take my taco with no fish unless I’m really trying to be trendy. I’ll eat my salmon grilled on a cedar plank with Ben Winkler.
6. Hummus. The word is transliterated (like the word “baptize” from the Greek “baptizo”) from Arabic. It’s really not fancy. Just smashed chickpeas with some pepper, oil, garlic, and/or salt.
7. Burritos. Even though Chipotle is starting to become or already is mainstream it still counts as trendy along with Noodles and Co.
8. Sweet Potatoes. Often found in a fry version complete with fresh-ground sea salt, this orange delicacy is prepared in many forms and has found itself overshadowing the Idaho original.
9. Hibiscus. Green tea and pomegranate tea (or pomegranate anything) have been around long enough. It’s time for them to move over for hibiscus.
10. Local, organic vegetables. Let’s be honest, anything organic could have made the list, right? Organic is taking over.
The local, organic, and fair trade consumption trends are proving that “trendy” is not always bad (take note Dunkin’ Donut coffee lovers). But when does “trendy” turn bad? Are there trends in Christianity that are counterproductive to the Kingdom of God? Could one unhealthy trend possibility be the “megachurch movement,” where congregants desire to attend the sexiest, stylish production that is primarily a place for personal consumption and conscience appeasement? What about the “house church” model? Is it just a trendy phenomena for those who despise the megachurch model and want their own homogenous self-owned gathering or is there worth and substance behind it? At what point are our practices of Christianity just cultural adaptations and pleas for some type of desired relevance? Do we do the trendy Christianity thing because its trendy or because it really represents the Kingdom of God?
subversiveREFORMATION.com 
I think many churches are doing trendy things, just within the worship service or church building. Many churches are putting in HD TV’s, putting a solo in every praise and worship song, and not talking about the tough issues. Why, because it draws people in to churches and its what people want to see in church, they don’t want to be challenged spiritually, they want to be catered to physically. This is one trend I’m very afraid of.
I have forfeited my ability to be trendy (it’s too much work) haha. But, I do love the taste of California Rolls, Coffee, Guacamole, Yogurt, Hummus, Burritos, Sweet Potatoes, and Local foods. (Fish tacos are gross. Hibiscus is too hard to spell).
For the same reasons, I practice my Christianity. I love reading, writing, and attending different church services. I guess I do these things because they are what I enjoy, and they are productive to my relationship with Christ.
Interesting post there Travis.
My mom stayed at home with my sisters and I when we were all very young. My Dad took our only car to work so if she went anywhere with us it was either by foot or by bike. She grew and canned a lot of food from an organic garden in our backyard. She used cloth diapers and line dried them year round because we did not have enough money for a dryer. We rarely bought new: toys, books, clothes all came from yard sales in our neighborhood. Her best friends she saw everyday: the shut-in, stay at home mom, and other people that happened to live on our block. In those early days, there wasn’t money to fly on vacation but we did make good use of our tent. We didn’t go to the mall and out to eat; we made pizza from scratch and played board games.
In trendy terms, we were a Christian family that lived a frugal, eco-friendly lifestyle in community. Our carbon footprint was small and our veggies homegrown. My mother wasn’t trying to intentionally live a more sustainable lifestyle, but she did and I’m not sure most people would be willing to trade for her life even if they tip their hat to it. I don’t know of any mom today that has three children in cloth diapers and doesn’t use a dryer.
I don’t think we need to be ascribing a moral value to any of these choices. Most of our grandparents lived truly “green” lives out of dire necessity, not out of religious conviction. I just think that it’s hard to take any of the more “trendy” terms, foods, and ideas seriously because people don’t usually stick by them when it actually costs them something. Whether we shop at Aldi’s or Whole Foods, convenience is still number one in our (Christian) culture. Our attention span is weak, wait one more month and you’ll be able to compile a whole new list.
HERMANA ELODIA!
Hibiscus was so November 11th, now you need to try Pitaya, it’s the real deal