Apathetic Christians strike again

As we all know, advances in technology during the last few decades have made it easier to receive information.

Whether it is on television, in a newspaper, or in cyberspace, news spreads rapidly. This is a good thing because a person can never have too much access to information.

However, for public figures, it means every word they speak is analyzed and re-analyzed until it is ground into a fine powder. This isn't a problem when times are good.

The big problem for them comes when they say something stupid. A slip of the tongue or a lapse in judgment can turn a person's life upside down as their mistake becomes cannon fodder for the media.

And as we have all seen before, once the public shows an interest in a person's mistake, the media will beat the topic to death until it is time to move on to the next issue of the day.

Recently, one of the biggest gaffes of this type was made by somebody who is a member of the media.

ESPN personality Dana Jacobson put her foot in her mouth when she spoke at a roast for two of her colleagues at the network.

Usually, roasts are a forum where people come to make jokes at the expense of those who are being honored at the event. Unfortunately for Jacobson, she went too far and the fallout had to have been a public embarrassment for her.

According to The Press of Atlantic City, she was "swilling Vodka" and "cursing like a sailor" while speaking at the event.

However, her biggest mistake was when she allegedly starting dropping f-bombs and made an anti-Jesus slur. When speaking about the University of Notre Dame she allegedly said "F--- Notre Dame. F--- Touchdown Jesus. F--- Jesus."

Notice that I said "allegedly" because ESPN has failed to release video or a transcript of the event so this can be officially verified. Apparently, ESPN has no problem pointing its white hot spotlight at others when they make mistakes, but they are willing to close ranks to protect one of their own.

Jacobson was suspended for one week, and she has already returned to the air.

However, the one aspect of this controversy that caught my attention was that no uproar was created by it.

For example, radio shock jock Don Imus lost his lucrative morning show last year when he made a derogatory slur about the Rutgers University women's basketball team. As offensive as Imus' comment was, it pales in comparison to the slur that Jacobson made against Jesus.

However, she appears to have gotten little more than a slap on the wrist from her employer.

Let me be clear -- I don't have that big a problem with ESPN letting her keep her job. Forgiveness is critical, and showing mercy toward somebody who is genuinely sorry (as Jacobson appears to be) is something we need to see more of these days. However, I thought her suspension was too short.

My main beef is that her comments generated little outrage. Suppose she had said the same about Mohammed or Jews or African Americans or homosexuals.

Given the climate that we currently live in, I believe the reaction would have been far more hostile and Jacobson would have been in a lot more hot water.

So, who is to blame here?

I suppose we can blame ESPN for her relatively light punishment, but it was only doing what most corporations do when faced with this type of situation.

ESPN downplayed the incident, punished the person who made the mistake, and then prayed that nobody would make a big stink about the matter.

And that is exactly what happened. The situation came and went fairly quietly.

I guess my frustration should be directed at Christians. A public figure made a shockingly insulting comment about Jesus, and believers barely uttered a peep.

Christians like to complain that their faith is under attack, but when an opportunity comes along to stand up for their faith, they sit quietly like a puppy.

As a Christian, it makes me sad to realize that my brothers and sisters don't mind rolling over and being a punching bag.

I guess it's just a sign of the times.