Wednesday 25 November 2015

Stop the shop early for Christmas!

Thinking about wasted food, dumped goods 
and spiritual priorities may enhance our Christmas
This is the time of year when most people’s thoughts turn to Christmas. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are almost upon us when it is estimated that UK consumers will spend some £2bn over the weekend on bargains and Christmas presents.

But there is also the news that one-third of consumers will borrow money for Christmas presents (the majority using credit cards), and one-fifth needing to borrow money for Christmas food. Somehow, that doesn’t feel right. Especially when one takes into account the fact that suicides and family splits tend to peak in December-January, as the dark cold days of winter exacerbate the dark cold facts of debt.

Along with that are the startling revelations on Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s recent TV programmes on waste. One third of all the UK’s edible food is dumped much of it by supermarkets and largely for cosmetic reasons (wonky carrots and the like).The rest is dumped by consumers whose eyes are bigger than their stomachs. Remember that when you buy the sprouts for Christmas that no-one eats (and there’s a bumper crop this year).

Hugh found a charity making 80,000 meals a day from just two per cent of the edible food dumped in the UK. And that at a time when it is said that 13m people live in low-income households1 (many of whom who are struggling to find enough to eat) and school meals are facing financial cutbacks.

He also highlighted the seven tonnes of garments dumped every ten minutes across the UK, with the associated energy, labour and transport costs wasted. Many clothes are only worn once or a few times before being discarded for something new that hasn’t featured in a selfie on Facebook. Charity shops and re-processors could give it all a new life.

Of course, at this time of year there is also a traditional chorus of complaint about the commercialisation of Christmas, but this isn’t part of it. We can’t blame the shops for that. They only stay in business if they sell us stuff, and it’s their business to sell as much as they can. But we can do four things: we can think about why we overspend (and not just at Christmas); we can examine some biblical principles about using our resources wisely; we can make a pre-Christmas resolution to be more careful and circumspect; and we can join Hugh’s war on waste (see below).

Why we overspend

Consumer spending is a political necessity. The west is locked into a market philosophy which considers that continuous economic growth is necessary for public welfare. To grow the economy, people need to spend money. So while government isn’t telling us what to buy, it sends regular subliminal messages that Spending is Good, and regularly talks about policies that put money into people’s pockets.

Added to that is the subtle social pressure of keeping up with trends. No longer do we wear clothes until they fall apart. No longer do we retain electric and other goods until they wear out, but we replace them with the newer and (allegedly) the better models just because – why? Because we want to keep up with “everyone”? Because we’ve lost the simple art of appreciating what we have? Because we’ve been conned by advertising that tells us we must have the new model? Why must we?

We binge-spend at Christmas because we always have, perhaps. It’s the thing to do, according to false social assumptions. Or because we think people expect us to (do they really?). Or perhaps we don’t want to be thought mean or reveal just how hard it is for us to make ends meet. Or because we think that children will be happier with the most expensive and “latest” craze toy than with something more basic. (Ever seen a young child play with the paper rather than the gift? Children of all ages need love, not luxury, and to learn that they can’t necessarily have what others also have.)

Perhaps it is time that more of us challenged false assumptions and stood up to the pressures even if we have to face down work colleagues or relatives who thoughtlessly expect more of us than we can afford. Perhaps we simply need to be upfront about what we can spend; truth is as important as prudence. Some others may be grateful that we have the courage to do what they would like to do but feel they can’t. We might even set a trend: shop wisely for Christmas. We certainly do not need to miss out on fun by being more frugal.

Back to basics

Social psychology studies have shown that the more we have, the less satisfaction we gain from each item. This is not a modern insight; it was recognised in Old Testament times: “Whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless”.2 Of course it is; as Jesus warned, there is much more to life than getting and spending. “Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a person’s life does not consist in the abundance of their possessions.”3 But somehow, over the past few decades especially, we have been conned into believing that more is always better.

Certainly what we have is intended to be shared rather than stored, handled wisely rather than being hoarded, used rather than admired.4  We can’t take it with us into the next life (although people in some cultures obviously hoped they could, to judge by the goods found in ancient tombs).

Just spend less

There are some simple things that we can do to buck the trend, reduce the risk to ourselves, and perhaps even make a small contribution to reducing waste and pollution.

·         Set a budget for Christmas – so much per person for gifts, so that you do not have to use a credit card or. If you have to use credit, budget in advance for what repayments (plus interest) you will need to make in the months after Christmas which will add to your monthly outgoings, so that what you spend now is affordable and the debt doesn’t drag on.

·         Use charity Christmas cards and local delivery arrangements organised by charities in many towns to reduce costs.

·         Avoid the pre-Christmas bargains unless you really do need a new gadget / dress / whatever because the old one is broken beyond repair (not just because it is so last year’s model). “Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.”

·         Plan your Christmas food needs carefully; rather than just piling lots into your trolley. Work out what each person is likely to eat and stick to that.

·         Likewise budget for alcohol so that you don’t have so much that everyone drinks more than they need to “because it’s there”.

·         Research creative and nourishing ways to use left-overs (Sainsbury’s is one of the supermarkets with specific ideas for this on their website).

·         Join the war on waste: http://www.wastenotuk which includes a petition to supermarkets and tips on how to avoid waste and how to recycle food and goods.

Think and talk

1.  Consider the suggestions above and ask yourself honestly what is realistic for you?

2.  Talk to family, friends and work colleagues about making a pact to reduce needless spending. The more people who do so, the happier everyone will be: it reduces stress and increases gratitude with what we do have on a community level rather than just a personal level.

3.  Do some Bible study and take the ancient wisdom seriously:

·         How to be content what you have: Psalm 62:10; Proverbs 22:1; 30:8; Jeremiah 9:23; Philippians 4:11-13

·         The negative effects of striving for, or getting, more: Proverbs 23:4-5; Ecclesiastes 5:10-12; Matthew 19:21-23; 1 Timothy 6:9

·         Put God before gain: 2 Chronicles 1:11-12; Proverbs 3:9; 15:16; Matthew 6:19-21; Luke 12:13-21

References

1.  “Monitoring poverty and social exclusion” report by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 23 November 2015 - https://www.jrf.org.uk/mpse-2015

2.  Ecclesiastes 5:10

3.  Luke 12:15

4.  See for example 1 John 3:17-18 and Matthew 6:19-21.

 
© Derek Williams 2015. Material in these posts may be reproduced for private of small group use.