Black Friday: Reign or Ruin

I think Black Friday is aptly named on several levels. Originally, the intent of the term “Black Friday” meant that a store was expected to go from operating “in the red” to operating “in the black”, financially.  One day a year of Christmas shoppers can make a big difference in a store’s financial stability for the whole year.

Until a few days ago, the economic meaning of Black Friday was unknown to me.  I had never thought of it like that. To me, the “black” is a negative, not a positive because I dislike shopping any day. To go when people are showing their greediest, most aggressive behaviors sounds absolutely black to me!

This year, it has gotten worse. A bright day, a holiday (derived from “Holy Day”), a day of Thanksgiving, a day when most of us have been trained to thank God for the blessings He has poured out on us in this nation and in our own homes, has gone “black”!

This year, many stores are opening on the evening of Thanksgiving Day. What?!?! Discounts, door-busters, one-day only sales, and all of the “Black Friday” deals are now being extended by some retailers to include Thursday evening? Why? Do we really need one more opportunity to make their bottom lines go black?

It seems like we, as a nation, are always pushing the limits. Like the local horror house that this year proposed (and mercifully were not permitted by their township) to have a “nude night” in the haunted house at Halloween. One more step down the ladder of perversion.

We don’t tend to think of shopping as a perversion. But, as we look for the next bargain, as we covet it enough (even if we plan to give it to someone else) that we will leave our families on a traditionally family oriented day, to go get it, and then, while shopping we are willing to push, shove, fight, and cuss to get what we want, haven’t we just stepped down that ladder of perversion? We are certainly perverting the ways of Christ!

Black Friday for some time has been a black day by Biblical standards. On that day, from what the papers tell me, greed, discontentment, coveting, envy, and rage rule the day for some and ruin the day for others. If we participate in it and look just like the rest of the world, there’s a problem with our faith. We are not being conformed to the image of Christ on a day like this.

I am not objecting to shopping on “Black Friday”, I am objecting to shopping  on Thanksgiving Day but it’s more a principle about protecting what few days the world has left us to honor God and be with the families He has given us than a real Biblical objection.

I am not opposed to a store making a profit. The higher the numbers they can write in black ink, the more jobs they create, the more money people have to spend, the more jobs are created. It’s a virtuous circle that benefits all of us. But are a few extra hours going to change the bottom line that much?

As we (Christians) move toward our Christmas celebrations in general, I think Black Friday is the tip-off to our behavior being God-honoring or not. Any day that we go into the world we need to be different. Do we look like everyone else as we shop till we drop? Does our behavior, do our words, and our love for others set us apart? Is there any Christ in our Christmas shopping?