The Church of Cultural Interpreters

I recently heard journalist Cathleen Falsani speak. Penning under the nickname "The God Girl", Falsani is possibly the most successful religion reporter of our time. Now on staff at the Orange County Register, she was the lead (read: "only") religion reporter at the Chicago Sun-Times from 2000 to 2010. In 2004, she conducted an interview with then-senator Barack Obama that remains the most in-depth audience the president has ever granted regarding matters of faith and belief. She has written four books, the most recent one — Belieber! — about the faith of Justin Beiber, and one I'm dying to read called The Dude Abides: The Gospel According to the Cohen Brothers.

So I was eager to hear her speak. Unfortunately, to be honest, I wasn't impressed. She seemed self-conscious, distracted, and maybe even a little pandering to the audience. But this article isn't about Cathleen Falsani's speaking abilities, nor even her writing. It's about her title. As a Christian in a staunchly secular business, Falsani has carved a niche for herself as a "cultural interpreter" — a translator in the halting conversation between Christians and American pop culture. When I first heard her say that, I thought, "How cool is that? What a great gig!" And Falsani certainly seems to be doing a good job with it. But the more I considered her self-proclaimed office, the less I liked it. It represents, I think, a failure on the part of the church.

Have we really become so insulated from our culture as to need a translator? I imagine a sort-of tour guide for Christians in years to come...

"Howdy Christians! Welcome to the Secular America Tour! I'm Simon and I'll be your guide. Glad to see so many of you coming out of the church building to see more of the sights today! Now, a few ground rules before we get started: here in secular America, we drive on the right side of the road and we all watch cable TV. Also, please refrain from any laying-on-of-hands while we're together. That's cause for a lawsuit out here."

I guess we're not that bad yet, but the need for a "cultural interpreter" seems to have us pointing in that direction.

Decades ago, Christians started to retreat from politics because of the corruption and excess there. Then there was a swing back toward involvement in an effort to bring a "Christian voice" to the political square. Something similar has been happening with pop culture, specifically the arts.

I read a quote somewhere that I can't seem to find again so I'm going to give you the meaning but butcher the prose. It was about how to conquer a culture, sort-of an apolitical Machiavellian scheme, and the author, the would-be conquerer, said "If you want me to change a nation, you can keep its politicians. Give me its songwriters." If the soul of our nation is going to change, it will happen because it has been captured by the beauty of the gospel. It will happen as we reach the songwriters and storytellers of our age. And I doubt that will happen if we can't speak their language.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get to work finding a way to keep my nine-year-old daughter from knowing that Belieber! exists.