ADVERTISING AND RELIGION

Advertising and Religion

Advertising and Religion

Introduction

The Use of religion in advertising is righteous depending on what religion is used to advertise. By examining the use of religion in an advertisement for people for ethical Treatment of animals, various advertisements for religious groups, and the use of religion in Funeral home ads for comfort, one can see that religion is used in many ads.

An Apologetic for Advertising from a Biblical Worldview

In human nature, there is a tendency to use religion in advertising. Points: - for Instance, a local church in Ottawa advertises with a billboard posting its mass times asking people to come out. (Alter, 2006) People for ethical Treatment of Animals, one can see the use of religion as an aid in this specific ad.

Furthermore, the Kingdom Hall of Jehovah's witnesses have numerous advertisement schemes using religion to help conversions. Roman Churches want the warship of God to be widespread, for that reason, they use bible passages in an ad in the newspapers as a way to influence the reader.

Many principles used in businesses today can be traced to the Bible. Albeit subtle, often paraphrased, and even quoted in part, biblical principles play a valuable role both in society and in today's workplace. Without question, there are legal and ethical grounds for not mixing work and religion. While some believe that “religion” in any form has no place in a briefcase let alone the boardroom, others achieve success by incorporating biblical principles personally and professionally. (Alter, 2006)

Founder and CEO of World Wide Technology, David Steward, is a living testament to success found in applying biblical principles in the workplace. Both company and owner have amassed an extensive list of accolades over a fifteen-year period. World Wide's accolades include fastest-growing company in the St. Louis region, world's largest African-American-owned company, and “Company of the Year”. Author of Doing Business by the Good Book, Steward's personal accolades include, “Entrepreneur of the Year” in technology (Alter, 2006) and “SBA Business Person of the Year” (1997).

According to Steward, the foundation of a business is made up of “trust, integrity, [and] faith in one another, teamwork…” These core principles are also biblical. In addition to using faith, success in business entails defining purpose. Steward believes that the primary purpose of a business is to serve others. How businesses serve others can be seen in the outcome. “At the end of the day,” says Steward, “People do business with people who they like and trust.” If a company's core values are right, selfless, and service-oriented, “profits will come….”

Naysayers argue that religion in the workplace biblical or otherwise hinders workflow and work performance. For example, praying before meetings averts attention from the purpose of work, as does Bible study and “witnessing. (Alter, 2006) Therefore, incorporating biblical principles is not a necessary part of conducting business.

A Christian and president of Ferguson Media, Andrea Ferguson, would not readily apply biblical principles in the workplace the same way it is openly expressed in a church or ...