It’s no secret that a lot of owners are identifying their businesses with their faith these days. Salon explored the trend in a piece called Verily I Sell Unto You.

The article names names (Curves, Dominoes, Chick-fil-A) of largish companies whose founders make no secret of their Christian faith; then turns to those who put something that sounds faithful right in the company name (Christian Brothers Automotive, Christian Blue Pages, Christian_EBuy.com):

Mark Justad, executive director of the Center for the Study of Religion and Culture at Vanderbilt University, attributes the growing visibility of "Christian" businesses to, on the one hand, "an increasing public awareness of Christianity and people’s comfort with identifying themselves as Christian." "Comfort" seems to be a gentle way to put it, though. "There’s been a concerted assault on this thing called ‘the separation of church and state,’ and the boundaries of where religion can and should be expressed are shifting," he
continues, noting that the explicit "Christianity" of particular businesses is related to the increasing acceptance of religious expression in secular workplaces in general. "There’s an aggressive assertiveness on the part of one aspect of the Christian church, charging that this is a Christian nation, our roots are Christian, and we shouldn’t have to pretend that we’re not. They see it as ‘pretending that they’re not’ if they’re not bringing their whole lives into the mix. I’m sympathetic to that, but it does beg the question of how to live in a pluralistic society with many viewpoints, which is also part of the American tradition."

On the other hand, the act of identifying a business as explicitly Christian is "part of the ongoing culture wars, a statement that the culture still isn’t Christian enough," says Justad. "You could see calling a business ‘Christian’ as an act of faith and an act of defiance at the same time."

Cynical readers may at this point be thinking, Faith, schmaith: Couldn’t calling yourself "Christian" be nothing more than an act of savvy marketing?

The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. Acts 11:26

If the writer Luke had his way, followers of Christ would be known as the Way — a term he uses five times in Acts. Luke says Christian just twice: In chapter 11 and in chapter 26 when king Agrippa says to Paul: "Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to become a Christian?"

"The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch." What’s not clear is whether it was the followers of Christ or those who observed them from outside the faith who did the calling. Was it, "We are Christians — we bear the name of Christ" or was it "They are Christians — they bear the name of Christ?" And what difference would that make?

As we approach the fourth quarter — including the celebration of Advent and what designers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers like the call The Christmas Season, it’s worth asking:

• What’s gained and what’s lost when companies self-identify as Christian?
• Left to their own observations and opinions, what would our customers, our competitors, our vendors, our employees and their families call us?
• Beyond relying on hunches and hope, how can we get reliable answers to these questions? And what difference might that make?