I replied, “It isn’t Amway, is it?” Surprisingly that was the last I heard of the business opportunity. =)

Regarding Koorong, yes it is a delicate issue, and yes it is a reputable business, and yes I’m sure that the proprietors and employees are well intended, but what is it about overpriced “slogan laden” posters and t-shirts which allude to some Scripture verse, thereby justifying the label “Christian”, that makes me want to run through the place with a whip, overthrowing tables? It also amuses me to see a book by Brian McLaren side by side with a book by Chuck Colson debunking the Emergent Church, in a section labelled “Christian Ministry”. There is something “intrinsically weak” about a person of organisation that won’t commit, and profits from opposing sides of an argument.

“Money changer’s table” allusions to such an outfit (of course Word is on the same hook), because many seem to consider the collecting of “Christian Trinkets”, to be directly relative to one’s holiness, as if sanctification is conditional to whose Study Bible you endorse (let alone whether or not you read the KJV because “It was good enough for St Paul.”) After all, those guys were selling the animals to be sacrificed, so that no one had to kill the ones that they were attached to.

Jesus said, “My house will be a house of prayer, but you have made it a den of robbers”…and you can read all about it, in my new book on “How to keep the poo stains off of your Dove Selling table”, for only $49.95, this week only, at any Koorong store. You’ll find it in been the “John MacArthur” and “Keneth Copeland” sections, while stocks last.

(Book is entirely ficticious)

I never mentioned Nigerian philanthropists or general email spammers. They are annoying, but aren’t what I bring into question here. Of course Koorong are not in the same boat as these. Koorong is a legitimate Australian business.

Koorong could almost be called spammers, though, as they take every opportunity to send direct postal and email marketing within the law. I personally make it very clear to Koorong that I don’t want direct marketing from them -every time- that I make a purchase, but they still continue to find me and ‘advertise’ to me. Spamming IMHO is not about legality but about permission - and I have never given Koorong mine. But as I state in my article, that is for another forum, and also not what I am talking about here.

The business I critique in my post is a legitimate Australian family owned business who supports ministry (all good), but they specifically targeted churches for their products, and essentially treated the church as a market, or ‘marketplace’. This is the main concern I have, as Jesus specifically says not to do it.

How can I critique this small business and totally ignore Koorong’s (a family owned business) persistent and aggressive church marketing tacticts. Just because they sell ‘Christian’ products, their business model is no different that that of the telecoms business mentioned in my article. And honestly, no, I cannot see the difference in either of their marketing strategies to the sellers that Jesus drove out of the temple. Can anyone point out the differences to me?

We assume that the selllers in the temple were all greedy, sleezy people. But this is not in the text. They could have been ordinary families with a great idea to make an income (directly profiting from those going to worship) - one which Jesus was clearly against.