Consumerism and Faith - 979 Words

In today’s world, people in general like to keep up with the latest things such as gadgets like the iPhone. They tend to spend an ample amount of time on their gadgets or whatever the latest item is instead of dedicating their time to the more important things. During family dinners, everyone is usually on their phones. People may prefer to spend a day at the mall instead of volunteering. High credit card bills can result from spending so much money on the new things rather than paying bills. The social pressure to keep up with these material items has an effect on quality bonding time which has an effect on money. Consumerism actually sets a person against oneself because of the never-ending mission to acquire material objects†¦show more content†¦When faith is dynamic, the individual needs to understand that the future is uncertain and is taken over by faith. When faith is non-dynamic, the person is not considering the uncertain future. When a person has fai th in an object or an idea, the person’s main concern is that same object or idea. For instance, football players may have faith that their team gets a win therefore their primary concern would be winning the game. People need to have faith in things that have some moral value to it that ultimately builds better character values in an individual. Winning a football game would be something that has moral value because it inspires the team to come together and work as a group in order to attain a win. Something like acquiring the latest pair of sneakers would not qualify for having some moral value. Having faith in such materialistic objects does not necessarily increase a person’s integrity or sense of honor. Self-esteem may increase, but overall their morals remain unchanged. An object or idea that a person has faith in has great value to them; however, that person’s definition of great value does not match the amount of moral value that faith requires. Tillich says, to have faith in something, one must know the dynamics of faith (270). A person’s definition of faith does not always match up with what faith actually means. The object the person may have much interest in has a great deal of meaning to them, but it is actually irrelevant when itShow MoreRelatedThe Christian Disciple, A Follower Of Jesus1217 Words   |  5 PagesThe Christian disciple is a follower of Jesus who pursues morality through a life of faith and obedience to Christ and His teachings. The faithful disciple places absolute trust in God while he embarks on a quest for a fulfilling life rich in virtue and happiness. Discipleship specifically emphasizes a simplistic lifestyle focused on rejecting consumerism and giving to those in need. In practicing asceticism, however, a follower of Jesus is faced with the decision between two separate Christian lifestyles:Read MoreThe Mall Of America By David Guterson Essay1680 Words   |  7 Pagesraw numbers, it w ould seem malls have the biggest global congregation of all, beating out Christianity, Islam, and, yes, even Disneyism. The Mall is one of the primary locations where devotees of the religion of consumerism practice their faith. To be honest, I really should say â€Å"my faith† here –I admit I am not immune to the lure of a good mall! Anyhow, while mall shopping has been supplanted by internet shopping and other cultural trends since the 80’s, or the ‘era of the mall’ (view Valley GirlRead MoreConsumerism Essay1620 Words   |  7 PagesConsumerism – Bruce Dawe Poetry || 2009 Every society has mythology. In some societies, it’s religion. Our religion is consumerism. As we are constantly exposed to mass media and popular culture in our modern society, the insidious nature of consumerism has allowed it to penetrate into every aspect of our lives, dictating our very beliefs, values and wants. Nearly every individual in our society subconsciously conforms to the shallow and superficial mindset that characterises our consumerist cultureRead MoreConsumerism in Children1448 Words   |  6 PagesFelicia Gardner HMXP 102 Dr. Matthew Fike October 13, 2010 Consumerism In Children Introduction When I was two years old my mother enrolled me in gymnastics. Gymnastics was a huge part of my life for the next four years. After moving up to be with the fourteen and fifteen year olds my mother realized that something was not right, because I was having body issues at the age of six. In the text â€Å"How Do Our Children Get So Caught Up In Consumerism† by Brian Swimme he addresses the issue of how deeply affectedRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald1113 Words   |  5 Pagesswept americans to become part of a â€Å"consumer society†. Throughout this period of time, F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote many modernist novels, including The Great Gatsby, in which he critiques the downfall of the 1920’s society through religion and consumerism.†¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¨Ã¢â‚¬ ¨ Fitzgerald adresses the idea of spirituality and religion in a very subtle way: the characters’s actions and qualities convey the lack of morals and their unbalanced values. Society’s m iddle and upper-class lives in excess, pleasure, and madnessRead MoreEssay about 1950s in the U.S.1172 Words   |  5 PagesThe 1950’s in the United States of America were characterized by a strong fear of communism, growing consumerism due to a healthy and fast growing postwar industry and the belief that the nuclear family is the heart of the American society. If we examine these three ideologies closer and oppose them to Stephanie Coontz opinion expressed in her essay â€Å"Leave It to Beaver and Ozzie and Harriet: American Families in the 1950s,†, we see that many myths existed about the 1950’s. After World War TwoRead MoreEssay on Consumerism526 Words   |  3 Pageswalk through Macys or Lord or Taylor or any major store in Oct. and notice the Christmas decorations. Thats right, Christmas decorations. `Tis the season to break the bank. Our capitalistic society is always looking for a reason for driving consumerism and what better reason than a holiday! If theres a month without one, well make one up...just so we have some reason to put some useless piece of crap on sale. What ever happened to all the traditional values that are at the core of all or mostRead MoreEthical Implications Of Ethical Consumerism1552 Words   |  7 Pages â€Æ' 1.0 Ethical Consumerism 1.1 Definition The term Ethical consumerism, means that more customers prefer to purchase goods that are obtained ethically, made ethically and distributed ethically. According to Jacqueline Payne (2012), â€Å"An ethical consumer is someone who buys things that are produced ethically. Depending on the context, ethical production may mean producing something that is recycled, using labour that is produced in facilities without the use of slavery and child labour, or processingRead MoreEssay on American Culture: Individualism1091 Words   |  5 Pagesthe â€Å"American culture,† images of Coca-Cola, hot dogs, baseball games, big cars and suburban mansions come to mind. But there is a deeper side to American culture than Hollywood and Disney World. Underneath the layers of TV advertising and hyper-consumerism, there is a cultural DNA that makes America what it is. Here is a brief look at several cultural â€Å"genes† that influence the way Americans think and act. Individualism Individualism is a way of life by which a person places his or her own desiresRead MoreThe Prisoners in Platos Allegory of the Cave1116 Words   |  4 PagesAt the worker level, there are many hardships. They are forced to work and pay taxes. Like the prisoners in Platos Cave, they dont know what is capitalism and consumerism. They might have heard of the word but the level above them have kept a strict circulation of information about it. Happiness is success to them. They think of success as being promoted to the upper level. It could be done by producing an heir that helps them escape or through their own hard work. Platos Cave refer to this level