The word of God: Church signs speak to masses

LIMA - Moses had a burning bush.
David had his dreams.
And modern man, well, modern man has church signs.
Part marketing technique and part daily devotional, people have become accustomed to clever church signs dotting America's roadways. Many congregations across the country make a habit of posting quips, quotations and other messages on their outdoor boards, which motorists and pedestrians can absorb as they hurry by. Many times, they're funny ("Don't give up. Moses was a basket case, too"), while others are designed to make you think ("If you think it's hot here ...").
Several local churches and congregations are purveyors of the clever sign, and have been for years. Richard Cook, pastor at First Baptist Church on Cable Road, has been a fan of church sign quotes for the duration of his 40-year ministry career. At First Baptist, Cook said a custodian who works at the church picks many of the quotes from a book, while Cook sometimes gives him suggestions or input.
"Some are humorous, and some are on the more serious side," he said. "They're good to do, and we like to do it. It gives people something to think about."
At Elm Street Church of the Brethren, co-pastors Wes and Sue Richard like to have quotes on both sides of their prominent sign, which a church parishioner changes every two weeks (recent offerings include "We have a great prophet-sharing program" and "Parents are just babysitters for God").
According to Wes Richard, the sign lends itself to name recognition in the neighborhood.
"The interesting thing is, when we knock on doors in the neighborhood, the adults don't recognize our church name, but from behind them a kid pops up and says, ‘Oh, is that the church that has the sign out front?'" he said. "It's not frequent, but it's often enough. People are paying attention."
According to Richard, the quotes are a way to inspire people as they go about their lives.
"We hope that it stimulates somebody to have a spiritual thought that day," he said. "It's an interesting way to catch people's attention. It sneaks up on you when you're unaware, and suddenly, something is there that makes you think or remember something."
Church signs are also a way to compete for attention and interest in a loud and busy society, Cook said.
"It's a crowded world, and we're competing for attention," he said. "We're trying to get our message across and others are trying to get their message across, and hopefully, certainly, our message is different."
Church signs resonate with people in many ways, to the point where there are books, blogs and even school assignments devoted to them. Church signs are a big part of a sophomore religion class at Lima Central Catholic High School. Every year, teacher Frank Kill assigns his students his "morality photo project," which he has done for six years. Students are instructed to take pictures of advertisements, church signs, billboards and other things that display a Christian message and write their interpretations of what they mean. According to Kill, the point of the project is to realize that the message of God and Christianity is everywhere, and that OK to express Christian beliefs. Every year, Kill said he sees hundreds of church signs in his student's photo albums.
"Everybody is looking for a message and something to believe in," Kill said. "This is a way to get people in to the church. If it looks appealing from the outside, it will probably be appealing on the inside."
The whimsy and downright silliness of some signs caught the attention of Ryland Sanders, a blogger in Austin, Texas. Sanders began posting random church sign photos on his personal blog. In 2003, he launched a Web site, www.churchsigngenerator.com, which lets users create their own funny signs or submit their own photos.
"They come from all over," he said. "I've had about 520 (submissions) from around the country."
There are probably many reasons why the signs resonate with people, Sanders said, but he thinks it has to do with the element of surprise.
"It's kind of not what you expect," he said. "When you go to church, you think it's really serious and really heavy. Then you get there and find a joke on a big sign. It's kind of a non sequitur."
On the other hand, Cook said, sign messages might be more expected than in the past.
"People are looking to the church for something, and looking for some kind of message," he said. "They are looking for a message from the church, and they expect it, as well, so it's better to have something to say."