Hello everyone! It's me, Chris! Obviously seeing as how this IS my blog.
I wanted to let everyone know about a project that I plan to do! I am very excited to be doing this project, but I am going to need some help.
Financially, I could use the help in getting some of the necessary gear for the project. Mostly one item in particular. Here is the URL: http://www.deluxecctv.com/catalog/hidden-cameras/1080p-hidden-covert-sophisticated-glasses-dvr-hd-spy-camera-2503.html?gclid=CMKk__Snj78CFYQ-MgodmgEAuw.
I will also be trying to raise money to buy multiple copies of "How To Quit Church Without Quitting God" by Martin Zender, to leave behind at each church for those that God gives ears to hear and eyes to see!
My idea is simple. Wear these camera glasses into a different church every week for at least 6 months. I will interview people that are just attendees or "sheep", and also the pastor/priest/etc or "shepherd". I will be recording answers that I receive to simple questions about the doctrines of "hell", immortality of the soul, the trinity, salvation of all, etc. I will also ask them about verses such as 1 Timothy 4:10, 1 Corinthians 15:22, Romans 5:18,etc. I understand that due to privacy issues and things of that nature, I will need to ask the recorded individual for permission to use the footage or I will have to blur them out in the video.
Now I know most of you will not be able to help financially and that is okay. Here is what else you can do:
1. Message me a list of some questions that you think I should ask. (If you aren't friends with me on Facebook, feel free to add me!)
2. If you know anything about video editing and software that would be useful for this project I could use your help there!
3. Message me to encourage me! I know this project will test me, mostly it will test my patience with the silly answers I will be receiving.
If there is anything at all that you guys can think of to help me out in this, it would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!
Update: I looked up the laws for recording in the State of Missouri! As long as I am in a public place with no reasonable expectation of privacy, I CAN record legally!
ReplyDeleteHey man,
ReplyDeleteI was pretty excited by the idea at first, but the more I thought about it, the less enthusiastic about it I became. While I would certainly be interested in hearing some of the responses you'd get, I also think this approach could end up producing a lot of frustration, both for you and for those being asked. If you do end up doing it, I would probably stay away from asking questions about specific verses that you know you’ll almost certainly get “silly answers” to, and which may be perceived by those being questioned as attempts to “trip them up” and make them look foolish. Just being asked such questions and "caught off guard" will make some people pretty defensive, and when they find out they are (or were) being recorded via your glasses, it will likely only make them even more defensive. Assuming that your project is (at least partly) evangelistically-motivated, I would instead engage people in a way that might invite more introspection on their part. Here's an example:
You: “Imagine that everyone's life is a chapter in a book called God's Redemptive Plan For the World. Now imagine that God is going to let you write the ending. What's the greatest, happiest ending that you can imagine?"
If they answer, "Everyone gets saved in the end" (or something to that effect), then you could ask them, "How would you feel if that were the same ending that God wrote?" If they answer, "I'd be happy," then you could say, "What if I told you that, because of Christ's death, burial and resurrection, this is how God's story is actually going to end? Would you be interested in knowing more about this?"
On the other hand, asking people how the "second death" can be eternal if death is going to be abolished by Christ - or how God can be "all in all" while most people remain eternally separated from him in a state of rebellion - would be pretty amusing!
Haha. Yeah, my intention isn't to upset anyone or make them look foolish. Only to get them to think! I don't intend to argue or pick fights at all. Just an interview with honest questions and honest (though most likely ignorant) answers. If it gets them to think, then it will be a success. If the person being interviewed doesn't think, maybe someone listening will. The whole goal isn't to frustrate only to reactivate some minds that have been shut off by religion. :) I will definitely keep what you have said in mind and choose my words carefully as to not upset anyone if possible.
ReplyDeleteI definitely like the idea of interviewing people, and asking questions to promote critical thinking and reflection, and it sounds like you’ve given this a lot of thought and have the right approach in mind. At the same time, I can’t help but share the concerns of others that this project might prove to be too draining and exasperating for you to be worth it! But then again, if you’re able to reach just one person and "reactivate" their minds (as you say), and they end up coming to a knoweldge of the truth, then your project will have been worth it!
ReplyDeleteI just read Kristina Lawson’s comment to your post on Facebook, and I like her idea as well (i.e., interviewing people in a non-religious setting, such as on a city street). Any Christians you might encounter in this more “neutral” setting might perhaps feel less threatened, and more willing to engage you than they would at their church (where your presence might be felt as more of a “challenge”). Perhaps you could devote half of the time you plan on working on this project to interviewing people at church, and the other half interviewing people in a “secular” setting (you could even ask people beforehand if they’re religious or not, and try to get a sampling of each group). Would definitely make for an interesting contrast, I’m sure!
Oh, and do you plan on interviewing Christians as they’re leaving their church service, and trying to catch them on their way out? And is your plan to do this by yourself, or will Kali be accompanying you?