Religion and Cars

When I lived in Virginia, one of the cultural quirks that irritated me was the frequent use of vanity plates. I confess to owning several, but I tried to keep mine clever. Most people, it seems, chose rather to put Biblical verses or theological statements (reduced to seven letters and numbers, of course) on their cars. Often the plates were so confusing that I would have to look at the car's bumperstickers to get a clue as to what they were trying to say. It usually wasn't worth the effort. Variations of "SAVED" or "BLESSED" or even "PRYD4IT" (Seen on a Cadillac) were common.

Well, out here in Tennessee, vanity plates are very expensive, and are only seen on really expensive cars driven by wealthy owners. Not to say that the messages are any better, though. One Ring saw "MID LYF" on a convertible yesterday, for example. So what's a religious minded person in Tennessee to do? Check this out:

Why "Jesus Wept"? I have no idea. Is it the answer to a trivia question (Name the shortest verse in the Bible?)? Is it to point out that there are only two points in the Gospels where Jesus shows emotion? Is it a commentary on the war in Iraq? Is it meant to refer to the story of the raising of Lazarus, where Jesus was moved by the emotions of his friends, or is there some modern reason where Jesus is still weeping?

As when I lived in Virginia, I really don't have an issue with people putting religious messages on their cars and trucks (Heck, tattoo them on your forehead if you want!). But if you are tempted to put a religious phrase or scripture verse or theological viewpoint on your vehicle, please at least put a clue as to why it's there and what message you're trying to get across. It's really irritating when patients ask me, "Why's that there? What's he trying to say?" and all I can say is "Dang if I know!"