Of Pop Culture, Coolness and the Cross

By Ken Canedo

I wrote this Spirit Spot in the summer of 2006, and I'm sharing it again in answer to some emails I have received about how pop culture has any relevance to the Christian life. I have updated the references to reflect what's happening today.

Pop culture has powerful appeal. The rhythms and imagery of rock, punk, and hip hop music excite our imaginations and influence our thinking. We can hold parties around the season finale of American Idol or the release of the new Jonas Brothers CD. We can stand in a movie line for hours to be the first to see the The Dark Knight. We follow celebrities and sports stars in magazines, websites, and tabloid TV shows, with particular interest in their clothes and relationships. There is an almost religious enthusiasm for pop culture, with its 24/7 accessibility. Pop culture fills us easily but, like popcorn, only leaves us faintly satisfied and hungry for something more.

Another way to find the meaning of life might be found in Luke 9:23-24:

Jesus said to all, "Whoever wishes to be my follower must deny his very self, take up his cross each day, and follow in my steps. Whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will save it."

Set in context between Peter's profession of faith in Jesus as the Messiah and the Transfiguration story that followed, Jesus outlines the conditions of discipleship. His focus is the cross. In simple and unequivocal terms, Jesus says that if we want to follow him we must deny ourselves and take up our cross daily. In other words, the way of Jesus is the way that embraces that most common of human experiences: suffering.

"Suffering? Don't talk to me about suffering!" some might say. "I don't want to face my suffering. I don't like suffering. Can't I just keep up with pop culture? It's easier, it's cooler, and it won't hurt." To which I say, "Exactly!"

It's easier to try to immerse ourselves in pop culture and come off as knowledgeably cool, rather than face our suffering. But no matter how cool we think we are, someday suffering will come. It's our human condition; it's inevitable and unexplainable. There's no right and wrong about suffering, and we can't blame God for it. By challenging us to take up our cross, Jesus asks us to face our suffering head on. To deny our hurts and pains and disappointments is to deny who we are. The challenge of the cross is the challenge of genuine growth.

Everyone has a different cross to carry, a different challenge. Jesus carried his cross alone to Golgotha. Abandoned by his friends and followers, Jesus walked forward in courage and dignity. Must we, too, be so alone in our path? We will never be alone in our suffering because we have each other. The great reassurance of Christianity lies in our ability to be like Simon of Cyrene, carrying each others' crosses and, in the process, making our own burdens lighter. More importantly, we know we can lean on Jesus. We will never know the reason for the sufferings that we endure. But we can find meaning and growth in the community we share as followers of Jesus Christ. This is where we find the strength to carry our cross every day.

Does following Jesus mean we have to give up our enjoyment of pop culture? No, but it does help us to place pop culture in context. Claiming the spiritual quest of Jesus will help us to transcend pop culture. Paradoxically, the way of the cross allows us to engage with our pop-cultured surroundings more meaningfully. We can't avoid pop culture, but we don't have to make it our religion.

As I look upon your cross,
so too must I die with you.
And with the death of my own desires,
I'll rise with you.
- I Will Choose Christ by Tom Booth