The Gospel Coalition

A few years back, T.M. Moore wrote a book entitled Redeeming Pop-Culture. The title took some Christians by surprise because it had long been assumed that many Christians deem pop-culture un-redeemable. So my friend Jimmy Davis interviewed T.M. soon after his book came out (T.M., Jimmy, and I all worked together at Cedar Springs Presbyterian Church in Knoxville a few years back) to find out not only what T.M. means but how Christians can go about redeeming pop-culture. Here is that interview:

Kudzu, Culture, and the Kingdom

Jimmy:  T.M., you begin your book by comparing pop culture to kudzu.  First, for our non-southern readers, tell us what kudzu is.  Then tell us why you think it makes a great metaphor for pop culture.

T.M.:  Well, kudzu, as you know, Jimmy, is a rather tenacious vine which was imported to the south in the hope that, since it grows so quickly, it might prove useful as cattle food.  It did not, however, although it is used for erosion control and even some landscaping.  Unchecked, however, it grows over everything – trees, whole copses, telephone poles and wires, even homes – so that the shape of those things is recognizable still, but all you can see is kudzu.

Jimmy: Let’s ask the obvious question right up front, so we’re all on the same page:  What is Pop Culture?

TM:  Pop culture is a form of American and world culture which cuts across all other types of culture and features a variety of forms, all of which are designed to deliver an entertainment of one kind or another.  Pop culture forms include TV, film, music, various types of literature (romance novels, magazines, and so forth), and even sports.  Its principle characteristics are its ubiquity, diversity, short-term longevity, dedication to entertainment, and concern for a healthy bottom line.

Jimmy:  Why do so many people seem to be concerned about pop culture?

TM:  Probably because they perceive pop culture as subversive of traditional values and a serious outlook on life.  While I wouldn’t agree with that assessment – at least not entirely – I think there is some truth to it.  However, since as Christians we can’t avoid pop culture, we need to be able to deal with it in a manner consistent with our Biblical worldview.

Jimmy:  Should a Christian approach to popular culture differ from the way other people approach it?

TM:  Yes, very much so.  I would say that our approach to pop culture should be similar to our approach to everything else in life: a Kingdom approach that is consistent with our Kingdom calling as followers of Christ.

Jimmy:  Before we talk about that, explain what you mean by our “kingdom calling”.

TM:  Instead of thinking about our discipleship in purely individualistic terms – what the Gospel does for me, for instance – Christians need to realize we are called to the experience and advancement of the Kingdom of God.  That Kingdom is a unique sphere of existence, with a destiny, character, and daily outworking that are determined by God’s glorious plan for His creatures.

Jimmy:  How should this kingdom calling inform our approach to pop culture as youth workers and parents?

TM:  Well, if, as the Scriptures teach, the Kingdom of God is unfolding around us, exerting violence, as Jesus put it (Mt. 11.12) against the existing domains, whatever they may be, then we should expect that Kingdom to have transforming effects on everything in its path.  We are the citizens of that Kingdom, and we bear it violently against the powers and principalities – spiritual and human – that we encounter around us.  We should therefore expect that our Kingdom experience will transform all we touch according to the glorious plan and purposes of God.  But unless we lean to think like Kingdom people, live like Kingdom people, and pursue the Kingdom as our first priority in every area of our lives – including our involvement with pop culture – then we will never realize the full and abundant life Christ has promised us, nor will we turn the world upside-down for Him.

Jimmy:  Part of our approach to pop culture, it seems to me, would be to exercise some critical judgment on the various forms we might choose to enjoy.  First, is it OK for Christians to enjoy pop culture?

TM:  It is always OK for Christians to take joy, delight, and pleasure in anything God does.

Jimmy:  But not all pop culture does that.

TM:  Certainly not.

Jimmy:  So we need to make judgments.  In making those judgments, what standards should we use, and teach parents and students to use?

TM:  Scripture speaks in terms of such ideas as beauty, goodness, and truth.  The idea of beauty relates to the aesthetic value of something, the ability an artist demonstrates in combining forms, using the various elements of genre, and so forth in ways that reflect the beauty of God and His creation.  The idea of goodness relates to the end for which something is created.  Can we discern in a pop culture form any kind of end that might, for example, be pleasing to God and beneficial to people?  Finally, the notion of truth gets at consistency with the teaching of God’s Word.  If we can teach people to discern beauty, identify goodness, and ferret out truth, we’ll be helping to equip them to deal with pop culture effectively.

Jimmy:  Can you give us an example?

TM:  Let’s take the “Matrix” series of films.  These are beautifully made movies, albeit somewhat dark (reminiscent of the film noir productions).  I prefer the first move to the others, but that’s usually the case with sequels.  They make a good use of characters, dialog (at least in places), plot, and imaginative shooting and settings.  Their purpose seems to be to cast doubt on the idea that this material world in which we live is the last word in reality.  There must be something more, something beyond this “matrix” of getting and spending (our temporal/material existence) that is determinative of everything else.  I would describe that as a good purpose, to get people to think about this as a real possibility.  Truth?  To some extent the “Matrix” movies touch on issues of truth – good vs. evil, the existence of God, the reality of prophecy, the limits of technology, and so forth.  These issues are broached, but not considered very systematically.  There’s plenty of room for people discussing such issues to inject their own thoughts and ideas.

Jimmy:  All of us have our own “tastes” or personal preferences when it comes to consuming pop culture.  I have different tastes than some of the students I work with.  Am I wrong to say that some of what tastes good to them is distasteful to me?

TM:  No, not at all.  The key is to be able to understand both our own tastes and those of others, and to regard one another with deference and respect in talking about our tastes.  Taste should be regarded as a kind of spiritual discipline, according to Frank Burch Brown.  That is, we can raise the bar of our tastes, broaden our ability to understand and appreciate many different kinds of cultural forms, but we need to work at it.  We should look to our Christian past to see what represented good taste in the areas of beauty, goodness, and truth among believers in previous generations.  We should also let Scripture guide us, as it teaches us how to direct and develop our affections, for example (Scripture does not, for example, glorify violence the way pop culture does – we should nurture our affections accordingly).  And we should look to Christians who are involved in pop culture – as well as to developments in pop culture generally – in order to discern what “new things” God might be doing by His Spirit in that realm.

Jimmy:  What will a “kingdom approach” to popular culture look like in our postmodern society?

TM:  It will look like Christians growing in grace, taking seriously their calling to follow Christ in every area of their lives, talking with one another about what in the world is going on around us, working to understand the times in which we live, as these are expressed in pop culture (among other things), enjoying and creating pop culture forms that are pleasing to God and can advance His Kingdom, and using pop culture as a vehicle with which to initiate dialog with the people around us.

Jimmy:  Sounds like a lot of work.

TM:  Yes, but then the Christian life is a lot of work (Phil 2:12, 13).  We can’t choose not to work hard at being Christians.  There is a yoke to wear and a burden to bear.  We can choose to work hard and smart, however, rather than in a way that has no purpose or bearing on our citizenship in the Kingdom.

Jimmy:  What do you mean by “redeeming pop culture”?  How do we do that?

TM:  Pop culture is a gift of God (Ps. 68:18), but much of it is currently in the hands of the enemy.  We need to “liberate” pop culture so that it can join us in the service of the King and His Kingdom.  We need to pray about pop culture and those who create it.  We should become more intelligently and spiritually involved with pop culture.  We should encourage those Christians who are trying to create pop culture forms of real beauty, goodness, and truth.  And we should enjoy pop culture in a way that helps us realize more of the fullness of Kingdom life as we journey together to our everlasting home.

Jimmy:  Why should youth workers, parents, and students think so hard about pop culture?

TM:  Because pop culture is, above all cultural involvement, the culture of young people.  It will either overwhelm them and “kudzuize” their entire lives, or we will teach them to enter the arena of pop culture as conquerors and liberators for Christ, ready and able to reconstruct the fastest-growing segment of our culture in a way that reflects the honor, glory, goodness, beauty, and truth of King Jesus.
 

Pop Goes the Wizard
For me, reading this book was like watching Dorothy’s dog, Toto, pull the curtain to reveal the Wizard of Oz was just a little man turning knobs and throwing levers.  Many Christians are cowering in fear before the smoke, fire, and thundering intimidation of today’s pop culture, while the world, the flesh, and the devil are urging us to pay no attention to the little man behind the curtain. Redeeming Pop Culture fearlessly pulls back the curtain and shows us that there’s nothing to fear.  Better yet, we can reach out to and redeem pop culture with the confidence that God is our Father and this is our Father’s world.  In this postmodern era we’re definitely “not in Kansas anymore”, but the Author is still big enough to use even pop culture to help us and our students find our way Home.