Pastor Mark Driscoll
Seattle pastor and Christian “superstar” Mark Driscoll has been accused of plagiarism after a radio host, in preparation for an upcoming interview with Driscoll, discovered several passages that were lifted verbatim from another author. Driscoll has received his share of criticism, but surprisingly, so has the radio host, who was allegedly pressured into making an on-air apology for confronting Driscoll about his plagiarism.
It seems that “Thou shalt not steal” doesn’t apply to celebrities. Plagiarism is a sin of pride. Driscoll could have saved himself from this headache by supplying attribution. He didn’t because he figured the reader would think more highly of him if the reader assumed Driscoll was the original author of these thoughts. Authentic Christians give credit where credit is due.
I have mixed feelings about Driscoll. He’s known for “working blue,” even swearing in the middle of his sermons. He’s focused his ministry on young adults who, like me, believe that coarse language is sometimes needed to convey the depth and breadth of a Gospel that is not always nice. By the way, so did Jesus. So did Paul. And although it’s not codified in scripture, the fact that Peter, James and John were hard-boiled fishermen tells me that they used their share of expletives when confronting others.
But Driscoll is also known as a misogynistic hate-monger for his views on women and homosexuals. That makes him, in my mind, an asshole.
But this issue of plagiarism is indicative of the problems with American Christianity in general. Some estimates put the annual revenue of Christian book stores at more than $4 billion annually. The pressure to maintain his superstar status must have been considerable for Driscoll. Tyndale publishers, the firm responsible for publishing Driscoll’s book in question, failed to do its due diligence, presumably under the same pressure. An assistant to the radio host, Ingrid Schlueter, resigned over the pressure placed on her boss. She explained her thoughts on the matter this way: “All I can share is that there is an evangelical celebrity machine that is more powerful than anyone realizes. You may not go up against the machine. That is all. Mark Driscoll clearly plagiarized and those who could have underscored the seriousness of it and demanded accountability did not. That is the reality of the evangelical industrial complex.”
That’s not an excuse, but it is one possible explanation. Let’s face it, as a culture, Americans has an insatiable consumerist appetite, and makes no exemptions when it comes to religion. We acquire our faith, we hire our faith leaders, and we try to buy our way into heaven. If leaders like Driscoll want to maintain their standing in society, they have to continue to produce, and with billions and billions of dollars on the line, Tyndale is, I believe, more interested in producing product than in the integrity of that product. Tyndale, of course, would argue with that, but I would counter by asking, “Why couldn’t your staff spot the plagiarism when this radio host could?”
Let’s face it, Jesus was right about the problems of serving God and money (Matthew 6:24). I suspect that, if he saw the industry that has built up in his name, he’d be kinda pissed.
The Irreverent Preacher 