McDonald's and the Gospel

Once, a French Christian we know asked me the following question (without a trace of cynicism in his voice, of course): If Americans are so good at exporting McDonald's all around the world, why do so many American missionaries fail so miserably at "exporting" the Gospel? I maybe took this question more seriously than it deserved, but I did take it seriously, and this is the answer I gave him:

McDonald's doesn't mistake the hamburger for the wrapper.

What I mean is this: McDonald's knows that their business is to sell you a hamburger. Fries, too, if they can, but for the sake of argument, we'll keep things simple. So, they want to sell you a hamburger. And they're willing to adapt whatever they need to in terms of how that hamburger is wrapped up in order to meet that goal. This is why in Paris there are McDonald's restaurants with walk-up windows. Why you can order a beer in McDonald's here. McDonald's is willing to adapt their marketing and packaging to the culture they're marketing to. I'm sure in India they even sell you a hamburger that's not even made from a cow.

One of the problems with American Christians living abroad is that we confuse the packaging with the hamburger. We have necessarily learned the Gospel and grown up spiritually in a certain religious and cultural setting. When we go abroad and attempt to share that same Gospel, we often wrap it up in the same cultural packaging we received it in. We then attempt to offer that package to a European (or Asian or South American or African) for whom that packing may be completely inappropriate. When they reject the package, we interpret that as a rejection of the Gospel when often they haven't even looked beyond the packaging to what's inside.

Some examples? French churches that celebrate Thanksgiving, for example. Or who feel the need to preach against Halloween (who celebrates Halloween here?). Or who insist on singing mediocre translations of English hymns. Or taking a stand on American politics. Do they use wine or grape juice for communion? And the list could go on...

So, what's my point?

The point is that here I am, with my own personal baggage. And I have two amazing gifts from God named Alina and Tassia. And there are things that I as a parent consider vitally important to pass on to them. And I'm wrestling right now with the question: Where does the hamburger end and the packaging begin? Once I've figured that out, then What is the best packaging for the hamburger?

I grew up in a small church. But Sunday morning was a 3-hour affair, and that's when there wasn't a potluck. We had Sunday School and Vacation Bible School. We went to summer church camp, had "sword drills," sang Sunday School songs, and got prizes for memorizing memory verses and the books of the Bible. And that's without mentioning the mid-week Bible studies, Ladies' Bible Studies, and Men's fellowship time that involved my parents.

My girls will not receive the Gospel in that packaging. In our context here in small-town western France, it's not possible. But we have the unique and challenging opportunity of inventing, on both a family and a church level, the packaging for the hamburger.

So, what is the hamburger? What is it that I would like to convey to my children, as much as is humanly possible? An understanding of personal sin and the redemptive work of Christ on the cross. An understanding of the love and unconditional acceptance of God. A familiarity with and love for the Bible. A realization that these truths affect every aspect of their lives. And, as an accessory, or the hamburger bun, if you will, a rooting in Christian history and culture. Knowing that for them, this will be as much about their French Huguenot roots as it will be about anything I'm bringing to the table.

This is the hamburger. How do I wrap it up?