Copyright and trademark abuse is no “petty” matter, especially for the church. In my personal experience, it often cuts to the heart of ministry, and that’s why I take it so personally. Let me give you some examples:

1. The coffee shop where some talented kids from my youth group used to play music was shut down because of copyright trolling.

2. The girl scouts of America were sued by ASCAP for merely singing copyrighted songs around campfires at their meetings.

3. Several churches across the nation were forced by legal threats from the NFL to shut down super-bowl parties, many of which were organized as fundraisers for local soup kitchens.

4. A musician friend of mine was sent threatening legal notices from a major CHRISTIAN publishing company because she recorded the public domain song “Amazing Grace” — the company said the legal burden of proof rested with her to *prove* that her version wasn’t the same as one from one of their artists. She couldn’t afford the legal fees, so she simply yanked her recording off the internet.

Margaret, things like this are absolutely INSANE, and standing up for a more just and equitable copyright/trademark/patent system in our country certainly isn’t petty. To me it’s a matter of social justice, and freedom to pursue ministry.

Let me ask you this: by using the phrase Theology on Tap, is Adam (or any number of churches who use it) in some way causing detriment or harm to the ministry of the group that owns the trademark? It isn’t likely.

In most cases like this, the ones who hold the trademark or copyright represent the legal “power” and those who are threatened with legal action are the marginalized, powerless, and victims of the situation. Sure, it may not quite rise to the level of AIDS or global hunger, but I suspect I know who Jesus would side with in cases like this one.

It seems petty to me.

Just reading their about page, I get annoyed with seeing RENEW every third word.. Reminds me of when I wanted a particular domain name. Turns out a Catholic had bought it and was squatting on it. I wanted it for non-profit, religious apostolate reasons, but he was asking for $$$. Give me a break! Some people..

Also, note it’s not hard to TM things, or at least try to. You just try to be the first to claim the TM and list it in your publications as such. It’s not even about being the first to use it.. just the first to TM (as I understand it).

Anyhoo, I salute you, Neal, for doing this, whatever it’s called. Maybe I can come a few times.

@IntrovertedOne — thanks for the comment. Unfortunately in this case, it’s not at all about the name, clever or not. It’s about trying to use a little bit of civil disobedience to break down a corrupt copyright system. That’s not entirely the fault of the organization who trademarked “Theology on Tap” but they certainly did take advantage of the system. BTW, I have confirmed (via a link someone posted on Adam’s site) that the term “Theology on Tap” dates at least back to the early 1900′s and it’s original use was not from a Catholic organization.