Boycott!

I have never been an advocate for boycotting corporations. A few years back, I heard of a lot of Christians that were boycotting Wal-Mart because they contributed funds towards gay/lesbian causes. I considered joining the boycott because their reasoning made sense: I don't want my money supporting that lifestyle, which I am opposed to.

However, there are two reasons which made me reconsider. One was logic. Can you possibly track every dollar you spend and be sure that none of them goes to fund causes that you disagree with? If you shop at the grocery store, and the cashier is gay and his paycheck is paid by your shopping there, should you boycott that grocery store? What about your hair dresser, who may be secretly pregnant and planning to get an abortion? If you tip her, does that mean you contributed to what you believe is wrong? It's impossible to know where every dollar you spend goes. What about your tax dollars? Where do they go?

The second reason I reconsidered is because of the apostle Paul.  In I Corinthians 8, Paul writes that although he may have the liberty to eat meat offered to idols, he won't if it causes his weaker brother to stumble.  He never said that they should boycott the shops that sold meat offered to idols or not give their money to support such organizations.  He speaks of knowledge to know that what you are doing does not violate your faith.

While I won't donate to support organizations that I disagree with, I don't believe that it's necessary to boycott J.C. Penney or Wal-Mart or whichever corporation is currently served up on a platter on the altar of good intentions.