Life 360

Ah yes, in the now grand tradition of using a company's successful marketing campaign to disseminate religious iconography without too much seeeming  to defy that whole not worshipping false idols thing comes the Life 360, a flier from CrossWalk Lutheran Ministries in Phoenix, Arizona. They encourage their parishioners to "admit it -- life is not always fun and games," and that "you don't get to 're-start' at the push of a button." Not bad, guys, but how about a religious metaphor for intense wireless online gameplay, huh? Oh, prayer, got it.

[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]

[Qubit @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:05PM]

Connect to God using the new WiFi 802.11g prayer-standard.*

* requires access to at least one Jesus 802.11g gateway

[Richard A. @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:05PM]

Well, it seems that imitation is the best form of flattery -- I have to give these guys credit, it's clever.

At first I thought MS put something new out, then I was like, "ohhh, hahah." What does worshipping false idols have to do with religious marketing?

[Ed Gordon @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:05PM]

And wouldn't a '360' result in no change at all? Just spin around then keep heading in the same direction? Seems like 180 would be what they were shooting for.

[MrHoju @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:07PM]

This is all with MS consent? How are they not getting sued?

[furtim @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:13PM]

Fair use? You know, that crazy old thing nobody cares about anymore.

It's not like they're selling a competing product or anything, so really MS wouldn't have grounds for a suit. Even if they did... Honestly, would you want to be known as the company who SUED A CHURCH?

[Brandon @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:17PM]

They are probably going to sue, but they dont have a hard copy. This was picked up a few weeks ago, I don't know how you guys were so late with it....

[Jesse J. Anderson @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:17PM]

It's completely legal as the ads are considered parody. It's covered by free speech protection. The same thing as to why Weird Al can get away without getting sued (although he chooses to get permission out of respect for the original artist, do some research on "Amish Paradise" - the original by Coolio who publicly displayed his disapprovement of the song).

[billg @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:18PM]

Have no fear, I have already dispatched my "lawyers" to issue a "cease-and-desist"

[DG @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:18PM]

Well, unfortunately, it'd be considered bad form to sue a church. Not only do they get to brainwash millions, make their administrators rich, elect our presidents, live off government land tax free, and force Kirk Cameron away from bad TV and into bad movies, they also get to usurp video game logos without too much fear of consequence.

American religion is big business -- these guys are no fools.

[PodMonkeys @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:28PM]

#3, I think 540 would be the number to use, since its 360+180, plus its still sounds larger than (PS)3. On the plus side 540 might capture the hipness of skating. :P

I was wondering about the lawsuit thing myself, but I forgot the whole parody thing. Not to mention what DG just said.

[daschupa @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:33PM]

At least it's better than the "got (insert word here)?" ads that people are STILL using. I mean, I've seen Got Sand?, Got Home Refinancing?, and Got Gas? It must END!

So the church already has a one up on the rest of the world. I think it's funny, now if they only let 20 people in on the opening day, they'd be like the real deal.

[kuist @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:33PM]

Is it just me, or does the 'X' in the logo form an upside-down cross here?

[portorikan @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:36PM]

at # 9 aka DG.

As a member of a religious camp, I'll have to say,

That was funny and made me laugh. Thank you.

PS: No sarcasm intended at all, really.

[Brian @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:45PM]

Replace the globe thing with the image of Linda Blair in the Exorsist and you've got a great parody. Anybody?

[JR @ Feb 22nd 2006 2:54PM]

#12:

I'll be damned (heh), it sort of does.

[MikeS @ Feb 22nd 2006 3:02PM]

The "X" looks to represent a dove.

[sam @ Feb 22nd 2006 3:09PM]

I don't think this will be considered "fair use" since it directly steals MS logos and copyrighted material. It doesn't matter that it's not being used to sell things. Would you let Nazis or al Queda use your logo??
MS will and should put a stop to it. If they don't then there is no reason Nazis couldn't do the same.
Sue a church?! Hell yeah, go for it. Just ask all those kids who were molested if it's bad to sue the chuch!

S

[DG @ Feb 22nd 2006 3:18PM]

Man, that's not even Coolio. It's Stevie Wonder's "Pastime Paradise." Coolio and Weird Al are just as worthless as one another.

[Chaos @ Feb 22nd 2006 3:42PM]

First time poster, long time reader

Doesnt the X part look like an inverted cross?

[Chaos @ Feb 22nd 2006 3:44PM]

First time poster, long time reader

Doesnt the X look like an inverted cross?

sorry if double post, didnt look like the first went through

[jeremy @ Feb 22nd 2006 3:49PM]

"Would you let Nazis or al Queda use your logo??"

Why don't you just ask would you let Nazis or Al Qaeda have free speech?

"MS will and should put a stop to it. If they don't then there is no reason Nazis couldn't do the same.
Sue a church?! Hell yeah, go for it. Just ask all those kids who were molested if it's bad to sue the chuch!"

Umm, the church is Lutheran, not Catholic, read, and THINK before you speak.

[R0U53 @ Feb 22nd 2006 4:31PM]

Major Nelson is trying to get a hard copy of this to put on J Allard's desk. Lol I saw this ages ago.

[eskimo @ Feb 22nd 2006 4:55PM]

Alas, final proof that Microsoft wants our souls.

[mikey @ Feb 22nd 2006 5:32PM]

haha the three cores: the father, son, and the holy spirit!

[Wonderflex @ Feb 22nd 2006 5:47PM]

I work in the Business Law Group of my firm, and we come across stuff like this all the time.

In 1994 the supreme court ruled that under fair use a copywrited material may be used if it added new meaning or expression to the material. By changing the 360 over to a metaphor for life morals a different outlooks is brought about.

And, as far as making money off of an image, you can make money, just so long as it doesn't deprive the origional company of income.

For more information check out this site:

http://fairuse.stanford.edu/Copyright_and_Fair_Use_Overview/chapter9/9-b.html

[Brian @ Feb 22nd 2006 5:47PM]

I bet the author, Ryan Block, isn't willing to put up a modern Muslim attempt to proclaim its faith and rip on it as well.

For the record, I follow Christ, and I think this is a LAME attempt of the church to proclaim its faith. The world should be copying what the church does, not the other way around.

Oh, and sue? I'm not sure the headline "Microsoft sues church" would be real good PR.

[Brian @ Feb 22nd 2006 6:16PM]

FYI: The Nazis stole the swastica symbol.

[inseminated? @ Feb 22nd 2006 6:43PM]

Uhm. Engadget... I think you mean "disseminate". I think if one tried to "inseminate religous iconagraphy", one would probably be kicked out of the church.

[Trenton @ Feb 22nd 2006 6:55PM]

This article was misinterpreted, They had not claimed to worship it and did not show any sign of worshiping it. The thing you have to understand is the preacher used the xbox 360 as an example for life not something to worship.

By saying you may not always be able to hit the reset button he was meaning that if you screw up, you can't reset and go back. Also with the life is not fun and games is the same exact point. You can't play around with life you die, it's not a game. I STRONGLY recommend you RECONSIDER, and do NOT make FALSE accusations! Thank you.

[jason @ Feb 22nd 2006 7:20PM]

#9, wow. How does it feel to wake up everyday being that ignorant?

That's right; those missionaries who go to third world countries and live without anything and put their lives on the line everday are just all about trying to make a buck. Or maybe the Cristians in the Middle East, who are murdered for their faith, are just trying to brainwash their communities. Unbelieveable.
Even here in America, being a minister, preacher, or evangelist is hardly a luxurious lifestyle. Comparing them to the guys on TV is like comparing NFL stars to high school varsity players.

[yeah @ Feb 22nd 2006 8:04PM]

31: For what it's worth, my girlfriend works at a brokerage firm and is consistently opening up mutual fund accounts for pastors, priests, rabbis, etc. Not for churches, mind you, but for church leaders pulling in excess of $100,000 a year. I'm pretty sure that doesn't jibe with Jesus, but I could be wrong.

And how do you defend megachurches requiring W2s and automatic bank drafts in order to become members of their congregations? Of course, this isn't indicative of all churches, but enough to be a cause of concern.

And finally, one need not follow Christ or whatever to do good works. If Jesus takes people to desolate lands to build infrastructure and schools, terrific. Peace Corps does the same without the religious pretense. Just a thought..

[Brian @ Feb 22nd 2006 8:20PM]

32: The Bible says that we're saved (forgiven of our sins, etc.) NOT to do good works, but that good works are a RESULT of our faith. And about making money. It's a common misconception that the Bible says that 'money is the root of all evil'. In fact, it says 'money is the root of all KINDS of evil', but not all evil itself. Christ isn't against making money, even if it's a RIDICULOUS amount (think Bill Gates). The problem comes in when we put money above Him, or are stingy with it, or use it to make ourselves powerful, etc. etc. That's why Jesus said that 'It's harder for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven than for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle' (a comparison that resonated much more with his Middle Eastern audience than us, I'm afraid, but the point is still taken).

I agree that religion is big business in America. That doesn't prove Jesus to be any less, just that those money-seeking 'Christians' are hypocrites.

[mike @ Feb 22nd 2006 8:36PM]

In fact, it says 'money is the root of all KINDS of evil', but not all evil itself. Christ isn't against making money

----

LMFAO...

look up the word "all" in the dictionary

this is hilarious..


WHY BOTHER READING THE BIBLE IF YOU'RE just going to pick and choose, and interpret as you see fit?!

[Ruegen @ Feb 22nd 2006 8:39PM]

For a second there I thought it was another M$ rip off of an Apple product (iLife)!

[Jesse J. Anderson @ Feb 22nd 2006 8:45PM]

actualy the bible says (In 1 Timothy 6:10) "The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil"

The LOVE of money, not money itself... sobasically what you said about putting money above God, that's basically what this is saying.

And for the comment about Mega Churches requiring W2's and other such stuff to become a member... I gotta call your bluff on that one. It's easy to spout off some nonsense like that and for people to believe that it's true... and maybe somewhere in America, of the hundreds of thousands of churches (millions? I have no idea how many there are) I'm sure you can find one or two wack job churches that do happen to lean a little bit on the "cult" side involving this.

I bet you can find even more churches following such principles as the KKK and yet you certainly couldn't get away with grabbing their twisted controversy and applying that to all churches.

[jason @ Feb 22nd 2006 9:13PM]

"That's why Jesus said that 'It's harder for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven than for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle' (a comparison that resonated much more with his Middle Eastern audience than us, I'm afraid, but the point is still taken)."

Haha, when I was a little kid, I used to think that meant the hole on a sewing needle! I got freaked out (my family wasn't RICH, but well enough off) until I found out that the "eye of a needle" was a small opening in city walls so people could get in after the gates were shut at night.
Anecdote aside, I get really frustrated when people claim that "money is the root of all evil." It's the LOVE of money; obsession, greed. Just because someone is financially sucessful doesn't mean he or she is corrupt!

[Q DuB @ Feb 22nd 2006 10:35PM]

I'm glad you guys caught that before I did about money. It is about the love (worship of) of money, not the medium itself.

[Richard A. @ Feb 23rd 2006 12:10AM]

We have to keep in mind, people -- that this kind of parodying happens everywhere -- all the time.

- Apple sues those people who make fake iPods because those items are a cheap, although horribly fake, alternative. They can deprive the company of money. In this case, it's not a parody -- it's an illegal wielding of the iPod design to actually make money and sell an alternative.

- Coolio can say something against Weird Al for his "Amish Paradise", although he technically couldn't sue because under the Fair Use policy from 1994, the song actually adds material or changes the whole meaning of the original product. Both the original song and the parodied song are similar, yet so different in content and material that the basis is weak for a lawsuit. It's free speech.

- The Adidas logo and brand was parodied on t-shirts that said "Addicted" and had their logo as a cannabis leaf. Did people sue?

- Microsoft could sue the church if the church was actually making its own entertainment console, and called it LIFE 360...

but the parodied flyer is for a CHURCH SERIES SERMON, not an entertainment console... the church parodied the design only out of relevance to the popular culture's affection of the 360. One look and you're like "Ohh! MS and Xbox!" but another glance, and it's on something totally different.

So yeah, Microsoft COULD sue the church -- because it can -- but the arguments are legally weak to do anything about it. If anything, I'm smelling a religious bias for something one church did.

and by the way, let's stay on topic. This doesn't need to get into an argument about American religion or Christianity in general. This isn't church bashing, it's about what rights an entity has vs. fair use.

[DG @ Feb 23rd 2006 8:24AM]

And even still, Coolio ripped off "Pleasure Paradise" by Stevie Wonder. He and Weird Al are equally no-talent hacks.

[Jerry @ Jul 16th 2006 9:32AM]

Quote
And for the comment about Mega Churches requiring W2's and other such stuff to become a member... I gotta call your bluff on that one
Unquote

Yes, many Word of faith type Churches want to see W2's before they make you a Deacon,Elder or some other position in their Church, I know from family experience.

[Volsfan91 @ Jul 1st 2007 12:33AM]

What a cruddy situation for Microsoft.

Either:
1)Sue, as they should for BLATANT stealing of their logo and get criticized by closed minded Christian conservatives.

2)Sit down and be quiet.