This one is for the Harding alums and students out there in readershipland. Remember the tale of the Gospel Gun?

A Japanese company has developed a device that shoots teddy bears into the air, which then parachute gently to the ground. Apparently it has become popular to fling teddy bears at weddings in Japan, and shooting things is always more fun than throwing them, hence the innovative device. (via BB)

The implications for conservative Christians everywhere are obvious and staggering. It is now possible to re-introduce, yea, even mass-produce, that Christian urban legend, the Gospel Gun. Not for shooting teddy bears at weddings, the Gospel Gun is purported to have been used to lob bibles at unsuspecting passers-by as an interesting (to say the least) form of street evangelism.

My hypothesis is that the Gospel Gun legend is a misunderstanding of the slogan “If you want to see the devil run, shoot him with the gospel gun!” or something similar. You know how stuff gets repeated, and people don’t understand that it was a figure of speech? I think somewhere along the way, the “gospel gun” (e.g. the power of the gospel when proclaimed) became, in someone’s mind, an actual scripture-launching device similar to a potato gun.

But if this Japanese company can produce teddy bear guns, why not Gospel Guns? And if the teddy bears can have parachutes, why couldn’t a bible? That would certainly reduce the risk involved in firing a 4-lb hardbound projectile at someone’s torso.

I can’t wait.