The March 3 Time magazine featured an article about George Clooney. I like him a lot. He’s got journalism roots, which brings a degree of open-mindedness, of considering both sides of an argument, plus a heavy dose of cynicism. Legions of celebrities think they’re smart, and flaunt their actual ignorance (Hail King Sean Penn!). Clooney is, indeed, smart, but he’s sufficiently wise to avoid over-using his celebrity platform. He views himself with realistic self-depredation.

This article (by the hilarious Joel Stein—I always read his articles) mentions "Not On Our Watch,” an organization Clooney founded to help Darfur ($9 million so far). He had recently returned from Darfur. But instead of trumpeting his adventures and good deeds, Clooney mused about the futility of using celebrity to spotlight world problems. “I’m terrified that it isn’t in any way helping. That bringing attention can cause more damage. You dig a well or build a health-care facility, and they’re a target for somebody.”

Then he said this: “A lot more people know about Darfur, but absolutely nothing is different. Absolutely nothing.”

Think about the church. We regularly hear sermons and attend Sunday school classes in which we are reminded of the importance of prayer, of Bible reading, of witnessing, of not gossiping, of serving, of giving sacrificially. And yet, look over your fellow parishioners, who have dutifully absorbed these messages year after year. Is anything, truly, different? And if anything is different, is that a result of the abundance of words, or because of other dynamics?

There are certain causes I tackle on this blog--the plight of poor people, factory farming, US-sponsored torture. My mindless harping might bring a tiny bit of awareness to the six people who visit my online abode. But even if thousands of people tuned in, would anything be, in reality, different? Harping doesn't work.

Barack Obama says the US keeps electing the same people to fight the same problems in the same way. Or something like that. It seems that we in the church spin our wheels in a parallel way, without behavior changing. Great things are happening in some churches, indeed. But it's, sadly, not the norm.