Hats off to Hobby Lobby
Well, it’s time for me to start spending more of my craft dollars at Hobby Lobby. I’m not sure how I managed to remain unaware of the company’s Christian foundations until now — probably because I’m always tearing at their ads to get the amazing 40 percent off coupon. But their full-page ad in my local newspaper yesterday certainly caught my attention. Basically, the ad’s Independence Day message spelled out in no uncertain terms that this country was founded on Christian principles.
Hobby Lobby apparently began placing holiday messages in the newspapers in which it advertises on Easter Sunday 1997. I don’t know when the company began placing these ads in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (my local newspaper), but I finally noticed one yesterday as I was preparing to go to bed.
I spent the July 4 holiday in the company of good friends. I enjoyed fattening food and interesting conversation. My teen had fun with her friends, my tween had a blast igniting fireworks and my toddler spent the day enjoying the lavish attention of several women whose children are no longer babies. Sadly, I don’t think a single one of us acknowledged the meaning of the holiday. And that’s probably why the ad placed by Hobby Lobby made such an impact on me last night.
Hobby Lobby chose to use that ad to demonstrate how intimately our Founding Fathers intended Christianity to be woven into our government and the fabric of our country. As I read the text of the ad, which quoted presidents, Supreme Court Justices and rulings, Congressional reports, Founding Fathers and even foreigners, I was reminded once again that the idea of “separation of church and state” was never intended to keep God our of our government, but rather, to keep our government out of our church!
So, thank you Hobby Lobby for taking the time and spending the money to remind us of that fact.
Now here’s my Hobby Lobby plug: I’m an avid scrapbooker and I’ve got more than 30 12×12 albums lining custom bookshelves in my family room to prove it. If you are also a scrapbooker, or you enjoy some other kind of craft or creative outlet, sign up for Hobby Lobby’s email list. Then that coupon will be delivered to your Inbox each week.
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Welcome back!
#1 Chris on July 5, 2009:
I too found alot lacking in 4th of July. Thank goodness they talked about it in church today. I have bought alot of things for our new home at Hobby Lobby, it is a great store with great pricing.
#2 Doug Indeap on July 5, 2009:
It is important to distinguish government from society. As the several quotations highlighted by Hobby Lobby illustrate, at the time of the founding, Christianity was a dominant religious influence in society. It remains so today, though perhaps not to the same degree. Perhaps too some of the founders even expressed preferences for American society to remain that way.
The nature of our government, though, is an entirely different thing. The Constitution established a secular government in that it expressly founds the government on the power of the people (and not any diety) and says nothing substantive of god(s) or religion except in the First Amendment where the point is to confirm that each person enjoys religious liberty and that the government is not to establish religion and another provision precluding any religious test for public office.
The First Amendment embodies the simple, just idea that each of us should be free to exercise his or her religious views without expecting that the government will endorse or promote those views and without fearing that the government will endorse or promote the religious views of others. By keeping government and religion separate, the establishment clause serves to protect the freedom of all to exercise their religion. Keeping god(s) out of our government is necessary to keep government out of our churches; they necessarily go hand in hand.
Reasonable people may differ, of course, on how these principles should be applied in particular situations, but the principles are hardly to be doubted. Moreover, they are good, sound principles that should be nurtured and defended, not attacked. Efforts to transform our secular government into some form of religion-government partnership should be resisted by every patriot.
#3 Mistie on July 6, 2009:
I was always a fan of Hobby Lobby, but when I found out their Christian foundation and began seeing their ads about a year ago, I became a huge, spend-dollars-whenever-I-can fan. We need to find and support more businesses like this – let’s face it, money talks!
#4 abunslife on July 6, 2009:
I’ve been meaning to sign up for the coupon….thanks for the link!
#5 Lisa B on July 7, 2009:
Hey woman,
Been thinking about you and wondering how the new endeavor is going!
#6 lipsticktocrayons on July 7, 2009:
Thanks, Lisa. I’m doing okay. Still trying to figure out the technology stuff, but I’m hoping to meet with Kristie again soon. It’s been a fun week so far!