The Sad Decline of the Christian Retailer's Convention
Tuesday, July 22, 2008 at 08:13AM 
Apparently, the International Christian Retailers Convention (it used to be known as the CBA convention) is in a sad state of decline. Attendance at this year's convention in Orlando was half of what it was in 1999. Click here: Low
Numbers at Christian Retail Show - 7/21/2008 7:16:00 AM - Publishers
Weekly
There was a time when attending the annual Christian Retailer's Convention was truly the social highlight of the year. The reason--the entire White Horse Inn crew was turned loose in a gigantic convention where every Christian publisher (heroes and heretics) and purveyor of "Christian merchandise" was on hand to sell their wares.
My favorite CBA incident was in Orlando in 1999. Mike Horton, Rod Rosenbladt, and I were walking down one of the aisles when we were passed by R. C. Sproul and Bob Ingram (going the other direction). R. C. says (loud enough for us to hear), "Look at that . . . Horton's got a Lutheran. I gotta get me one of them . . ." Rod has never heard the end of that one. Listening to Rod and R. C. playfully spar with one another is one of the highlights of my life!
And then there was the time when Mike Horton approached the dear little lady selling "Christian" bed sheets with Bible verses on them. Mike asked her, "what book of the Bible are the verses from?" Without missing a beat she answered, "Oh, the Song of Solomon, of course." We should have known . . .
When CBA was held here in Anaheim, Jan Crouch from TBN showed up in all her glory. Rod couldn't believe his eyes. Jan had on some bizarre hot pink outfit that included leggings, culottes, a hoop-skirt, and a bib-apron. Rod followed Jan around in utter disbelief trying to get my wife (like she would know) to explain to him what all of it was and why anyone would wear such a thing. It was hilarious . . .
Yes, I miss the days when our producer (Shane Rosenthal) would take his video camera and ask people basic theological questions. Even better, was the time Shane filmed a noted televangelist gorging himself on pancakes in the cafeteria while he was pushing a new book on dieting, or the time Shane caught another televangelist flirting with an attractive young lady in front of his booth, and the time Shane filmed another wearing a shiny royal blue suit which was so bright it had to glow in the dark. . .
Oh yes, CBA . . . What fond memories . . .
Reader Comments (22)
Needles to say, even some to the pastors had a hard time with it!
As for Jan's outfit, I'll bet if asked to defend it she'd say something like, "The Holy Spirit told me..." Yeah, right. ("God is not a God of confusion..." comes to mind.)
WWJD? I think it fizzled someplace between designer jewelry and designer clothing -- didn't even make it to a good line of cosmetics. And beverages! Don't even go there! After the gathering at Cana of Galilee, "What Would Jesus Drink" leaves most evangelicals cold -- and pretty sober ;-) .
If ICRC fails, we can always fall back on Concordia Publishing House where we can still get our "Here I Stand!" sweat socks (in navy blue), complete with the Lutheran rose.
http://www.cph.org/cphstore/images/product_images/products_xlarge/360769.jpg
I think they are for pastors to wear in the pulpit on Reformation Sunday.
Or how about the young woman who when asked if she could name the Ten Commandments said something like "You shall not commit adultery" and that was the only one she knew [revealing what was on her mind].
In exasperation she then blurted out into the mic, "God, what a quiz" totally oblivious to the fact she was breaking the third commandment at that very moment. Apparently she spent a lot more time thinking about sex and the God's law saying don't do it, than she thought about God being holy and not messing w/ his name.
Great memories on the WHI!
When asked he simply said, "I might not know them, but I sure obey them".
Yes, sure buddy. Like you think anyone with half a biblical literate brain would fall for that one? How much less your Creator?
Speaking of Shane and the videos...Kim you gotta post them! That would be greatness.
Regarding the WWJD ware and other gadgets: at the X-tian Bookstore I worked at as a teenager, we called it "Jesus Junk" or "Holy Hardware."
Kim,
If you think Jan's clothes were wild, you should come out to Colleyville, Texas and get an eyeful of the Crouch's three story pink mansion behind their Shiloh ranch! The guys from Set Free Christian Fellowship (who used to be featured on TBN) worked the ranch and attended my first wife's grandmother's church, so naturally, we were buds back then--for a while--until they all got kicked out for violating city codes for having too many people staying in the ranch hand's house.
Horton a Lutheran? Ask Rod how much of a Lutheran he thinks Horton is!
http://www.natreformassn.org/statesman/01/retreat.html
However it does seem that some of Horton's work on Justification and Union with Christ tend to be a little more Lutheran than Reformed. He does take the view that Union with Christ is grounded in Justification.
Rather than Union being the hub or foundation of all the benefits of Christ including justification.
I don't mean this to be a knock on Horton, he is a great benefit to the Church and I pray will continue to be for many years.
I'm not at all sure how his views on justification can be said to be more Lutheran than Reformed; maybe you read the same sources that ascribe the categories of law and gospel to the Lutherans, even in light of something seminal like the HC. But if union being grounded in justification is "more Lutheran than Reformed," then I suppose there are worse things than being Lutheran. Like Baptist. Good thing justification and two-kingdoms really aren't sole property of Lutherans. Otherwise Sandlin would actually have a point.
PMS, he-he, yes, yes. Sandlin sure seems to have his panties in a bunch.