In the space of two days –
Went into Marks and Spencers for a coffee – presented the loyalty card and got a free coffee.
Went into the UWS Canteen for a coffee – presented the loyalty card for a free coffee next time.
Went into Cafe Nero for a coffee – presented the loyalty card and got a free coffee.
Went into Costa at Waterstones – nobody mentioned loyalty card. Might not go back there!
As an habitual theological reflector I sat and thought about the profound implications of retail adultery, indeed retail promiscuity.
Just how many people can you be loyal to for life, if those people are competitiors and rivals?
And is loyalty conditional on reward or should faithfulness be that which we give to those we value, love and want to be with?
Are some loyalties limited and non-exclusive of others, and if so what does it mean to be loyal if there is, to put it nicely, a clash of loyalties – presumably someone gets dumped?
In Theistic terms, a Monotheist is faithful and loyal to one God, whereas a Henotheist is faithful to one God at a time, and can therefore be a serial monotheist. A matter of personal convenience and expediency which sounds like the kind of religion just made for consumers.
In ethical terms, is the loyalty card an invitation to a monogamous relationship, or an incentive to self interest? If so is it really a bribe which allows both retailer and consumer to benefit, to the exclusion of others?
In human terms, there is the comedy of standing at the till, flicking through the wodge of loyalty cards to find the right one, and the barista waits patiently because there's nothing new here – just customers after a free coffee, a good deal, and doing what everyone does.
These are reflections of a coffee drinking theologian wondering if churches should issue loyalty cards.
And then remembering that maybe that is what Baptism is –
a lifetime act of loyalty and only one card,
and at the Eucharist, every time, the bread and wine are free.
Because the card is stamped, the heart is given,
we love Him because he first loved us,
we are no longer our own but are bought with a price,
water has become wine,
bread is broken and we are fed,
and there are still twelve baskets full.
If any one will come after me,
let them deny theirselves,
take up their cross,
and follow me.
For what are we advantaged
if we gain the whole world,
and lose our own soul?
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