For the first time since 2011, two Christian ads will be aired during the Super Bowl, as part of the ‘He Gets Us’ campaign.
The price tag for this campaign came out to roughly $20 million, with major funding coming from the family behind the Hobby Lobby chain of stores, as well as other Christian groups and anonymous donors.
With the Super Bowl being almost consistently the most-viewed television program annually in the US, usually reaching about 100 million people, the ‘He Gets Us’ campaign hopes to spread its message about Jesus to as many people as possible.
“It fits with our target audience really well,” campaign spokesperson Jason Vanderground told the Associated Press. “We’re trying to get the message across to people who are spiritually open, but skeptical.”
According to their website, the ‘He Gets Us’ campaign is “A movement to reintroduce people to the Jesus of the Bible and his confounding love and forgiveness. We believe His words, example, and life have relevance in our lives today and offer hope for a better future.” The campaign has placed advertisements on different social media sites, and these ads direct viewers to their website where they are able to learn more about Jesus, find Bible reading plans, and have any questions answered by someone in-person or online.
THIS YEAR’S SUPER BOWL WILL FEATURE A MATCHUP BETWEEN TWO OPENLY CHRISTIAN QUARTERBACKS
In a time where the number of professing Christians in the United States is declining (down 15% since 2007), the ‘He Gets Us’ campaign hopes to extend an olive branch to those who are curious about faith, as well as others, such as those in the LGBTQ+ community who have previously felt unwelcome at church.
Two ads will be played at the Super Bowl; one in each half. The first ad will focus on how children demonstrate Jesus’ love, while the other will focus on dealing with anger, and how Jesus modeled it in a different way.
This is not the first time that Christian organizations have attempted to place ads in the Super Bowl. In 2010, the Christian organization ‘Focus on the Family’ aired an anti-abortion ad starring Pam Tebow, mother of Heisman Trophy Winner and former NFL Quarterback Tim Tebow. The ad featured Pam Tebow discussing the challenging pregnancy she faced while pregnant with Tim, and how she chose to give birth to him instead of having an abortion. The ad faced a significant amount of pushback from pro-abortion advocates at the time of release.
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