He's on His Way

At first glance it's a familiar image of an ultra-sound scan. Look again and you can clearly see that the baby has a halo and the caption reads He's on His Way - Christmas Starts with Christ.

It's a simple message with a powerful image - designed to evoke feelings of immediacy and anticipation. What's more, there is an underlying theme of humanity combined with divinity that is embodied in the person Jesus Christ.  

Make way for the 2010 Christmas billboard campaign by www.churchads.net, a registered charity that consists of a collective of advertising gurus who want to replace consumerism as the driving force of Christmas with a message of Christ at the heart of humanity.

The advertising poster has been displayed at prime locations such as bus stops and high streets across Great Britain. The target is to display 2,010 posters in the run up to Christmas Day.

Francis Goodwin, chairman of churchads.net, said: "There is no doubt that this poster campaign will capture people's attention, generate headlines and create countless conversations about the true meaning of Christmas."

The charity, founded nearly 20 years ago, is asking churches and individuals to sponsor specific poster sites as well as donate to the national campaign. The campaign is complemented with a series of advertisements that will be aired on commercial radio during the festive season.

The adverts take the form of Joseph announcing the expected birth of baby Jesus on December 25. One is recorded in the style of a tannoy announcement at an airport and the other as an answer-phone message.

Mr Goodwin adds: "Research shows that 85 per cent of people agree that Christmas should be called Christmas. But just 12 per cent of adults know the facts of the nativity story in any detail. So if we really want to keep Christmas focused on Christ, we must re-tell the story of his birth in ways that engage positively with the public's interest."