Ode
March 2007
Preaching to the choir—and beyond
Reverend Billy has performed exorcisms at America’s
biggest shopping mall and baptized children in a Toys “R”
Us parking lot. He has also done time in the Mickey Mouse jail at Disneyland—for
crashing the annual Disney Christmas parade.
He is a preacher of a most unusual sort. Part hell-raiser, part windmill-chaser,
Rev. Billy spreads the gospel that our growing addiction to shopping has
profound consequences for people and the planet. His sermons raise the
moral dimension of seldom-asked questions. What labour and resources went
into the creation of that product? What sorts of social structures are
we supporting by throwing down our cash for that shiny new thing?
While Rev. Billy does have a license to perform weddings in New York state,
he is not an ordained minister. Raised by strict Dutch Reformed parents
in the Midwest, Bill Talen describes himself as “a traumatized Christian.”
He had a background in theatre before donning a vintage white tux and
hitting the sidewalks of New York City’s Times Square in 1995 as
Rev. Billy to confront the evils of consumerism, Disneyfication and sweatshop
labour.
“Retail interventions” soon followed. He and his “Stop
Shopping Choir” began showing
up at cathedrals of consumerism such as the Disney Store, Starbucks, Wal-Mart,
and Victoria’s Secret, to witness for a more fair and sustainable
economy. He’s seen success as part of campaigns to keep Wal-Mart
out of New York City and to convince Victoria Secret’s parent company
Limited Brands to stop clear-cutting old growth and endangered forests
for its more-than-a-million-a-day catalogues—the majority of which
end up immediately in the trash.
Rev. Billy and his choir, many of whom are PKs (preachers’ kids),
have now established the Church of Stop Shopping in Brooklyn’s St.
Mark’s Church where they regularly perform on Sunday evenings—for
crowds that can top 500. “Post-religious and pre-spiritual”
is how he describes the services.
His book What Would Jesus Buy? is due out in March 2007 and a docudrama
(produced by Morgan Spurlock of Supersize Me fame) featuring the Church
of Stop Shopping’s cross-country “super mall” tour will
be released in theatres just in time to slow down shopping for the 2007
holiday season. The film is subtitled “Rev. Billy Saves Christmas
from the Shopacalypse.” Change-a-lujah!