Look closely. I have for the past four years, and it’s paid off in a modest collection of Chick tracts. If you’ve never stumbled upon one or had one given to you, Chick bible tracts are the original sin of bible tracts. Most of the time, a bible tract is a small evangelical pamphlet with a conversion story, bible interpretation and a warning to repent for your sins. Chick tracts, created by Jack Chick, set witnessing on its head in the 1960s with his comic book style tracts.The story goes, “Bob Hammond, missionary broadcaster of The Voice of China and Asia, told Jack that multitudes of Chinese people had been won to Communism through mass distribution of cartoon booklets. Jack felt that God was leading him to use the same technique to win multitudes to the Lord Jesus Christ.”Forty years later, more than 500 million tracts have been sold according to chick.com. Besides being mini-comics, what makes Chick tracts so unique is that they are so hateful and offensive I’m sure they’d make Halifax’s own right-wing nut, Perry F. Rockwell, blush. These little comics are beyond ridiculous and are an eye opener to how backwards and ignorant this world can be. In the nine tracts I have collected I’ve learned that: hating gays isn’t a hate crime; the liberal media is biased against anti-homosexual persecution; as soon as you accept Jesus into your life nothing bad ever happens; not to have sympathy for ‘sinners’ when they die, because their sin is what killed them; your only real best friend should be Jesus; there word ‘prehistoric’ was created to brainwash us; evolution is the religion of scientists who laugh at God; homosexuals are inhabited by little devils; gays are changing the way our children think by being portrayed as ‘normal’ and ‘cool’; God hates homosexuality; etc.Many Chick publications have been banned in Canada as hate literature. Chick was also one of the first evangelists to call the Catholicism evil. The tracts also are ripe with conspiracy theories featuring Satan, Communists, Muslims, Santa Clause, rock musicians, scientists, politicians and more. Some suggestions Chick.com has for the best places to leave their one-of-a-kind bible tracts include: bowling alley shoes; magazines in hospitals; restrooms; inside movie boxes when you return them. But your best bet to find them is on the bus or lying in the street.I met another fan of Chick tracts on the bus once, and now I’m wondering if there are any other collectors in the HRM. If there are, please post a comment here and tell us what tracts you have, where you found them and what one is your favorite. People have been ignoring these tracts for far too long. It’s hard to believe, but I’m sure some idiot will read these things and actually believe the message. The best way to prevent this from happening is by opening a dialogue about these little devils and treating them as the ridiculous camp art that they are.
This article appears in May 31 – Jun 6, 2007.
