- Apr 9, 2002
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I'd just like to share with you an example of an "evangelism" technique I once witnessed. It stands in my mind as one of the most objectionable thing I've seen someone do.
The design is simple; a folded tract printed to look like a $10 bill.
It was left as a tip - as the *ONLY* tip.
To fully understand why this is bad, you have to understand that, in most restaurants in the US, waiters are paid *BELOW* minimum wage, because they get tips. The tips are what make the difference between eating and not-eating.
Now, there's two possibilities.
One: The waiter was already Christian. Someone just cheated a Christian out of the legitimate pay for his job, in direct contradiction to the Bible's teaching. ("The worker is worthy of his hire.)
Two: The waiter was not Christian. It is unlikely that the example set is going to persuade him that Christians are moral or decent people; all he knows is that they're cheating him out of his living.
I really disapprove of trickery as a basic principle. A tract labeled as such, sure. A tract disguised as money is simply wrong.
Yeah, yeah, "salvation is worth more than money". However, it's not *interchangeable*, and it's dishonest to present it as an alternative in this way.
In the specific case where I saw that done, the waiter spent the rest of his shift showing it to anyone who seemed friendly as an example of how clueless people get. Not the best witnessing I've ever seen...
The design is simple; a folded tract printed to look like a $10 bill.
It was left as a tip - as the *ONLY* tip.
To fully understand why this is bad, you have to understand that, in most restaurants in the US, waiters are paid *BELOW* minimum wage, because they get tips. The tips are what make the difference between eating and not-eating.
Now, there's two possibilities.
One: The waiter was already Christian. Someone just cheated a Christian out of the legitimate pay for his job, in direct contradiction to the Bible's teaching. ("The worker is worthy of his hire.)
Two: The waiter was not Christian. It is unlikely that the example set is going to persuade him that Christians are moral or decent people; all he knows is that they're cheating him out of his living.
I really disapprove of trickery as a basic principle. A tract labeled as such, sure. A tract disguised as money is simply wrong.
Yeah, yeah, "salvation is worth more than money". However, it's not *interchangeable*, and it's dishonest to present it as an alternative in this way.
In the specific case where I saw that done, the waiter spent the rest of his shift showing it to anyone who seemed friendly as an example of how clueless people get. Not the best witnessing I've ever seen...
