7/22/11

Backlash Against "cru"

Re Campus Crusade for Christ renaming: This effort at 'relevance' and 'rebranding' is causing the faithful to grumble. Go here and here, and read the comments.

Christianity Today explains that "Crusade" sounded too militant to Middle East sensibilities. I guess "Christ" did, also.

8 comments:

Allan Wall said...

This doesn't even make sense. They decide not to use the term "crusade", but the term "cru" is simply a short form of "crusade". If somebody asks them what "cru" means, what will they say?

TCC said...

Allan, See 8, 9, and 10 for the tortured explanations to your simple question.

http://www.ccci.org/about-us/donor-relations/our-new-name/qanda.htm#8

Allan Wall said...

Thanks, I followed that link and, their explanation still doesn't make sense.

TCC said...

Agreed.

Kenneth said...

"Like, Google, Starbucks and other abstract names we expect to fill Cru with meaning as it embodies all that we are as we go to the world with the gospel."
Wow! Now I understand completely. Seriously, this sound like the marketing babble. Sounds like they hired a hip marketing firm to give them a makeover.

And: "We were not trying to eliminate the word Christ from our name." So, they dropped the word "Christ" by accident? Are these people on drugs?

TCC said...

Jesus Christ was plain spoken. That mumbo jumbo does Him and His cause a disservice.

Allan Wall said...

When churches and ministries try to be "cool" they wind up compromising their principles and in the end they may not even increase their numbers. It's happened to several mainline Protestant denominations.
I've read that the
fastest-growing denomination in the country today is the Seventh Day Adventist Church. Now, I don't agree with all their doctrine and practice. However, it is a church that stands for its principles. It's not really a "cool" church and it's not a church that seems to be trying to fit into society. Nevertheless, they're growing. There may be a lesson there.

TCC said...

That's true that the Adventists are a 'back-to-the-basics' group as opposed to being trendy. I think immigrants, interestingly, are very drawn to the denomination.