CONSUMERISM AND RELIGIOUS ACTIVISM

There is no doubt that the influence of neoliberalism affects all areas in the life of the so-called Western Christian world, including the spiritual, to the point of creating a new religious aesthetic. This political and economic doctrine, which defends the state's non-participation in the economy, has created a way of life marked by competition, selfishness, immediacy and consumerism. The human being was reduced to a mere component of the great production and consumption gear.

The meaning of life and happiness, now, are in the ability to acquire goods. The person then undergoes a rigorous educational effort to enter the labor market, even if that makes him someone he does not want to be. Prisoner of the system, became target of false needs generated by marketing that creates value in goods. These, however, because of profit and technological advancement, become quickly outdated what makes people crave the latest models, entering a vicious circle.

The objective result of this process is that people lose the themselves by assimilating the stereotype of the system. Dipped in activism, they do not look at themselves and do not know each other anymore. A sense of inner emptiness dominates and with it a constant sense of dissatisfaction, which is only satiated by the search for the new. This not only in relation to things, but also to people in such a way that the human being himself becomes disposable.

The strength of this social model holds the Christian himself unnoticed. Spiritual life, devotion to God is reduced to a mere item on the agenda. Consecrated life is replaced by the pursuit of success. It is the spirit of this ideology acting in people. The Church ceases to be the community of worship, the house of prayer to become a center of activity. In many groups, worship, whose center should be Eucharistic adoration, takes on the features of an audience program. Thus, the Church loses relevance and people, little by little, see no reason to attend it.

Spiritual life now consists of religious consumerism and activism. People go to church for sermons, songs, gospel shows, preachers, CDs, books. They transit among churches of different denominations in search of new, different and interesting styles. The inner life, marked by prayer, meditation on the Word and search for holiness is replaced by participation in events, lectures, meetings, symposia, seminars. Being a Christian no longer involves "the new birth" (John 3: 1-2), "life in the Spirit" (Rom 8: 1-17) and being "the light of the world" (Matt. 5:14), but in consuming religious goods and participating in activities.

Society has changed, it is true, but man's need remains the same: God. All this activism, all this consumerism, all this quest for something that satisfies you, is nothing more than the search for God. And only the Church of Christ has the message and the path that leads the human being to God: "the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all" (1 Timothy 2: 5). Having said that, self-criticism is convenient. How can we not trivialize the gospel of Christ? How not to demean the Divine Revelation? How to maintain the dignity of the Church's kerygma? How to maintain the relevance of the Church of Christ in this new capitalist society?

Antônio Maia – M.Div.

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