Now that the Super Bowl has come and gone and a champion has been crowned, odds are people out there are talking to one another about the funny and not-so-funny commercials they saw on Sunday. However, what’s intriguing is the commercial that no one saw.

Fixed Point Foundation, a Christianity advocacy group whose mission is to “”promote a confident Christianity in the public square by fortifying the minds of Christians and challenging the faith of skeptics,”” sought to show a 30-second advertisement during Super Bowl XLV but was eventually turned down by Fox Sports.

The commercial shows a simulated football game with several fans in the stadium holding signs with “”John 3:16″” written on them, a reference to a bible verse. Then it shows the quarterback of the game with a bible verse written on his face in grease paint, serving as eye-black. The commercial then shows two men watching the game at home on their television with confused looks on their faces. One of them then says that he will look up the verse, and the commercial ends by suggesting the television audience go to a website that tells them the words and meaning of the verse.  

According to The New York Times, Larry Taunton, executive director of the Fixed Point Foundation, said it was only fair if the foundation took advantage of the massive audience.  “”Corporate America uses its creativity and millions of dollars to come up with 30-second blasts to get you to buy a beer or Coke or tennis ball … I thought, ‘If I had 30 seconds to speak to a billion people, what would I say?'””  

So in other words, if Coke gets to sell their product, why can’t the church?  

The only problem is that Jesus Christ is not a product, nor is any other deity or practice of any faith. If players want to wear their religion on their sleeves (or faces), that is absolutely understandable and acceptable. If they want to pray at the beginning or end of a game, or even make an expression of faith after a great play, that too is fine. However, we need to keep the steeples separate from the Steelers, keep the padres away from the Packers and, most importantly, let’s not bastardize religion like it’s a tasty soft drink. Commercialism and corporate advertising are things we knock for a reason. They force-feed us Doritos, Pepsi, Gap clothing and countless terrible movies. The advertising is notoriously irrelevant to the product it’s selling, and it later becomes fodder for mockery. So, is that something we really want to see religion become a part of?

Religion is not Frito-Lay, and Jesus Christ (or any religious figure for that matter) is not the newest tasty chip product. So please, to those who wish to purchase bus advertisements or billboards, just stop. Religion is a lifestyle that we’re all free to choose on our own. We ought to find our own reasons and answers for committing to a faith, not be persuaded by a 30-second commercial. I don’t think Jesus, God, Moses, Mohammed or Brahman care one iota about the Super Bowl, or its funny and clever commercials.

— Storm Byrd is a political science sophomore. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.