Chick Tracts: The Little Booklets That Used to Give Me the Willies
In my youth I remember stumbling upon a pamphlet titled This Was Your Life! I think I found it in a public restroom. I read the tract several times, and it caused me hours of anxiety about the fate of my eternal soul.
Last night, I found the source of these little booklets. Jack Chick has been drawing them for forty years and has produced titles on a host of subjects. Before I raise the obvious objections, I'd like to commend Chick for two reasons:
1) I like that Chick tracts are strategically left in public places. It's a little creepy, but a good idea nonetheless. Before I got into websites, I seriously considered using this method to distribute essays and short stories. People are intrigued by what they find lying around.
2) Every time I read This Was Your Life! I spent time reflecting on my life and seriously evaluating my priorities. Though I think that Jack Chick's theology is dangerous, he definitely makes his readers think about their own beliefs.
Looking through the list of booklets, I was shocked by the number of anti-Catholic tracts. Chick considers Catholicism a false and idolatrous faith. I was less surprised to find that he preaches against homosexuals, Harry Potter, Palestinians, and teachers of evolution. He also caricatures heretics like me (who read Harry Potter, don't hate gay people, think that the theory of evolution has merit, and so on) as those who subversively use the public school system to attack Christianity.
Some of the Chick tracts are unintentionally humorous; some are frightening. At any rate, now I know where they come from.
Last night, I found the source of these little booklets. Jack Chick has been drawing them for forty years and has produced titles on a host of subjects. Before I raise the obvious objections, I'd like to commend Chick for two reasons:
1) I like that Chick tracts are strategically left in public places. It's a little creepy, but a good idea nonetheless. Before I got into websites, I seriously considered using this method to distribute essays and short stories. People are intrigued by what they find lying around.
2) Every time I read This Was Your Life! I spent time reflecting on my life and seriously evaluating my priorities. Though I think that Jack Chick's theology is dangerous, he definitely makes his readers think about their own beliefs.
Looking through the list of booklets, I was shocked by the number of anti-Catholic tracts. Chick considers Catholicism a false and idolatrous faith. I was less surprised to find that he preaches against homosexuals, Harry Potter, Palestinians, and teachers of evolution. He also caricatures heretics like me (who read Harry Potter, don't hate gay people, think that the theory of evolution has merit, and so on) as those who subversively use the public school system to attack Christianity.
Some of the Chick tracts are unintentionally humorous; some are frightening. At any rate, now I know where they come from.
posted by Tinley | 5:45 AM
1 Comments:
As a former role-player, I found his tract about Dungeons and Dragons hilarious.
Post a Comment
<< Home