McDonald's in the Vatican

Have you ever received Communion from the Holy Father and thought, "This would be better with a McDouble?" Apparently someone had a thought like this. Sure enough, if you find yourself walking the cobbled streets of Vatican City long enough, you will see the Golden Arches branded into marble. While headlines recently shared this news with the whole world, Roman Catholic leaders and residents openly complained about McDonalds on Vatican grounds. Nonetheless, there is a McDonald's in the Vatican. The Golden Arches carry a brand around the world, with three within as many miles of my home. Here, I wish to discuss the reality of the Golden Arches stamped into Vatican marble, brands in a world of symbol.

I remember attending my first rodeo near San Antonio. With Bill Miller barbecue in hand, I wandered with my parents until I stumbled across a cattle branding station. Men were buying and selling cattle, and the more eager among the cattlemen positioned workers to brand their newly-bought beef before leaving the rodeo. When I think of branding, I can't help but remember the moment I first saw men searing cow flesh with their brand. Today, Branding is a buzz-word of sorts. A friend in advertising crafts his portfolio around, what he believes, is his personal brand. Whether you're an individual or a Fortune 500 company, our world encourages us to create a brand.

From what I can see, the strength of a brand comes from consistency. When you see the Golden Arches, you know what your fries will taste like whether you are in Singapore or Seattle. Branding ensures the customer associates a particular experience with the brand. You can only find this experience from this brand, and advertising attempts to make that experience an essential part of your story. If you go to McDonald's in the Vatican, the Golden Arches will greet you with the same Oreo McFlurry you've grown to love back home.

Around the corner from the Vatican McDonalds stands St. Peter's Basilica. Designed by Michelangelo & Bramante among others, the Vatican is the home of the Roman Catholic Church, a tradition known for its rich symbolism. Even if you didn't know Michelangelo's ceiling of St. Peter's Basilica weaves in Neo-Platonic symbolism, it takes all of three seconds in a Catholic mass to discover yourself out of your depth. The robes, the incense, the bread & wine. Symbols & symbols upon symbols (even the architecture of St. Peter's was designed to resemble the Cross). The McDonald's finds itself branded in the city of symbolism.

But what is the defining feature of a symbol? In The Relevance of the Beautiful, Hans-Georg Gadamer addresses the Greek roots of symbol. "The word 'symbol' is a Greek term for a token of remembrance (tessera hospitalis) that could be broken in two so that should a descendent of a former guest enter his house, the co-joined pieces would kindle into an act of recognition." Symbols were used to keep at the forefront of one's mind the remembrance of someone. They were preserved so that, when the time for reunion came, you would be able to recognize the wholeness & community now achieved. What is beautiful about the Greek origin is symbols were passed down from one generation to another. Symbols kept communion alive where time & distance could only separate.

The Golden Arches, apart from representing a corporation, contrast the Church more pungently when one considers the difference between brands & symbols. Brands offer a recurring experience & the appeal they offer only goes as far as the experience. Brands are a seared impression on something profoundly common: experiences. Symbols never give you the full experience. They are anticipation of the fullness to come, keeping the memory & reality alive from generation to generation. Symbols, at their root, point to something beyond the act or token itself. Symbols exist so that, when the reunion comes, you have a context to know who it is you are finally meeting. Any critique of the Roman Church aside, you cannot deny the contrast between the brands the world offers and the hope symbols point to: holy reunion & community.

-HGM