The Brand of Bernie

“Oh my God”

“Oh, for Christ’s sake…”

“Jeeeeeesus Christ!”

These simple phrases seem meaningless. Some might say they’re harmless words that are just casual expressions. What’s the big deal?

They’re poisonous.  It’s not just the obvious vitriolic words of blasphemy, spoken with  intention and defiance. It’s these “simple” ones, too. Because little by little, they casually break into our lexicon seamlessly. The sensitivity is lessened with each utterance, devaluing the holy name of God. When we were young watching prime time TV, why were words like “hell” or “damn” bleeped out? Because those words meant something at one point. But now?

For Bernardine of Siena, these words cut, and burned, and bruised him. Along with other foul, stinging words or “shameful speech,” he couldn’t shrug off their impact.  He understood that if these words are to be truly taken as flippant, empty expressions in disappointment, then the holy name of God shouldn’t be a suitable substitute.

So he set out to protect it. He wasn’t necessarily built for it, though.  Sickly from a throat affliction, weak in voice, and lacking confidence, he didn’t have the obvious makeup to play a bold defense. What he had, however, was a keen sense of intuition and faith.

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His reputation for peace (and sensitivity to foul speech) preceded him in Italy. Once in a busy marketplace, a man needled him with abhorrent language just to provoke him in front of a crowd. When Bernardine uncharacteristically slapped him in the face, however, he slunk away in public humiliation—mistaking  meekness for weakness.

He had boundless energy and joy. He was all-in on anything he committed to doing, even volunteering at the largest hospital in Siena to tend to victims of the plague. A Franciscan for 12  years, he devoted his life to study and prayer in the background until a powerful mission trip to Milan launched him into a captivating preacher. His sensibility, his intuition, his ability to connect, and his ATTENTION TO THE POWER OF WORDS left crowds wanting more—even refusing to leave until he promised to return.

He traveled throughout Italy, delivering brilliant and persuasive sermons that often lasted hours. His charisma in word was renowned, and thousands would come to hear him speak. He preached about peace, the perils of gossip, about the punishment of sins, the rewards of virtue, devotion to The Eucharist, the mercy of Jesus, and the love of Mary. People were so moved by his dynamic preaching that merchants would close their stores, universities would cancel classes in order to hear him speak. 

Logos?  Billboards?

Bernardino had a special devotion to he holy name of Jesus. He devised a symbol (a logo, perhaps) of IHS—the first three letters of “Jesus” in Greek—in Gothic letters encircled with 12 golden rays and surmounted on a cross. This “logo” was to honor Jesus, but also helped to displace the superstitious symbols of the day. The symbol spread throughout cities and communities. When he entered a place to speak, a sign bearing this symbol was carried and made visible to announce his appearance to all. As a way of marking where he would be coming to preach—like a billboard announcing a coming concert. It was held up while he was preaching. More than merely a billboard, though, it was a way to illustrate the tangible devotion to Jesus. A visual aid for preaching The Word.

Once in Bologna, he introduced what could be termed a freelance design gig.  His preaching against gambling was so persuasive and effective that many gamblers stopped needing/buying playing cards. This cut into the profits of a card painter who complained to Bernardino that it was hurting his livelihood. The man had an obvious talent, so Bernardine persuaded him to use his artistic gifts for good—paint the IHS signs.  The man then made a living painting tablets, medallions, etc. honoring the holy name of Jesus, and he ultimately made more money than ever before. Other accounts indicate that he was not the only one. Bernardine made it a point to pull talents out of the depths of despair and into commercial arts; launching careers, converting people to Christ, and evolving the use of art in communicating and messaging the Gospel. He famously preached, “Direct all you do purely to His honor,” calling to mind Matthew 6:33.

He wrote treatises on theology.  He founded over 200 monasteries. He intervened to bring peace between two factions – Guelphs and Ghibielline. When he fell ill and saw his life coming to an end, he committed to preaching 50 days in a row. That was 1444. 

St. Bernardine (also St. Berarndino) — the patron saint of advertising, communications, and lung and respiratory suffering.

Today, he’d be known as Bernie:   Director and Owner of Bernie Advertising

Today, Bernie might look like this:

• Short, thin, and looks older than he really is. Quirky, but never off-putting.
• An inviting presence, he’s seen as approachable yet special.
• Joyful, energetic, and charismatic; charming and enigmatic; he can play all day
• Speaks differently, dresses differently than most
• He quickly becomes consumed with whatever project is at hand; dependable, pleasant
• A humble person, despite his larger-than-life/celebrity status or reputation. Patient.
• He’s mostly quite, but gets loud when he’s excited about new ideas or creative endeavors.
• Despite his smooth, effortless outward appearance & performances, he’s a thoughtful, hard-worker
• Men find him interesting and non-competitive. Women find him to be a playful “cute, old man”
• Extroverted; the larger the crowd, the more social he becomes; but time alone is precious to him.
• Lives by a strict code, sets rules for himself that no one else really knows
• Loves what he’s good at:  wordplay and storytelling, visual arts
• Loves small talk, Irish tea, and good finds on eBay; he likes mixing casual and business attire
• He listens to St. Paul & the Broken Bones, Portugal. The Man, The Hollies, Dean Martin, Lauren Daigle, and R.E.M.

Bernie would be the Owner and Executive Creative Director of his own advertising agency. His agency would be known for transparency, honesty, and building integrated campaigns with simple, clever ads and fast-paced commercials. But his agency would be loved for their involvement with non-profits and service initiatives—using their tools, talents, and spotlight for others. He would employ creative people and assemble temporary project teams to attack big, complex ideas. Bernie would routinely emphasize why they do what they do:

Truth and Advertising.

Bernie would be very disciplined.  Part of his mystery and charm is that it all appears so fluid and off-the-cuff. But this is actually a product of his privately strict, self-imposed rules and routines. Bernie would read and rehearse more than anyone would ever know. He’d take notes and re-work ideas over and over until they were memorized and ready to deploy at the right time and place.

Sacrifice is part of Bernie’s way of life. He would fast 2 days a week (Friday and Saturday).  The agency’s Friday work calendar has a standing 2-hr appointment marked “HNG consultation.” This is when Bernie and a rotation of willing employees serve lunches around town to the homeless. It’s not discussed or well-known, but it’s non-negotiable.

The logo is a tall, bold, tightly kerned type of BERNiE in all caps, except the “i.”  This is his visual indicator to (A) catch attention and (B) to humble himself. He had reservations of naming his agency BERNIE after his name, but that is how people knew him so he had to embrace it. The lower case “i” is his way of doing something about it.

The contrast of the bold, aggressive main title with the thin, unintrusive support wording of “ADVERTISING” in Letter Gothic helps to give weight and attention balance overall with guiding the eye of where to look first for focus. Icon is an oversized pencil with lightbulb on the end of it, vertically displayed and pointing down. The lightbulb has thick contour lines, while the inner wire is thin with a small, centered cross.  The lightbulb is more than just the ideal symbol; it’s the shining light with Christ at the center (Matt 5:16); the bulb icon represent the creativity and the pencil as well, but the pencil is pointed down for getting down to business.

A take on pop art (bit of a retro style) in font and old-school lightbulb cliche image, but done with a twist here as the pencil-lightbulb combo. The minimalist style illustration modernizes it, rounded edges and soft curves add to this and further symbolizes the creative service.  The yellow accent is a bright, energetic emotive element for the heavy amount of black and white. The yellow is off-set for further creative slant and metaphor to color outside the lines or think outside the box.

Bernie would be as much of a cheerleader as he is a creator. He’d believe in empowering others. He wouldn’t have any trophies or awards for himself—those would be spread among the team. He’d introduce them as heroes, captains, and other leadership names as a way to encourage them and instill confidence in clients working with them.

During LENT, Bernie Advertising would want to evangelize and promote this sacred season visually. So during these 40 days every year, their logo is displayed with the strikethrough of “SIN” in the word “ADVERTISING” shown in the logo.

Bernie would use “light” in many of his presentations, often recalling this sermon:

When a fire is lit to clear a field, it burns off all the dry and useless weeds and thorns. When the sun rises and darkness is dispelled, robbers, night-prowlers and burglars hide away. So when Paul’s voice was raised to preach the Gospel to the nations, like a great clap of thunder in the sky, his preaching was a blazing fire carrying all before it. It was the sun rising in full glory. Infidelity was consumed by it, false beliefs fled away, and the truth appeared like a great candle lighting the whole world with its brilliant flame.

By word of mouth, by letters, by miracles, and by the example of his own life, Saint Paul bore the name of Jesus wherever he went. He praised the name of Jesus “at all times,” but never more than when “bearing witness to his faith.”

Moreover, the Apostle did indeed carry this name “before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel” as a light to enlighten all nations. And this was his cry wherever he journeyed: “The night is passing away, the day is at hand. Let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; let us conduct ourselves honorably as in the day.” Paul himself showed forth the burning and shining-light set upon a candlestick, everywhere proclaiming “Jesus, and him crucified.”

And so the Church, the bride of Christ strengthened by his testimony, rejoices with the psalmist, singing: “O God from my youth you have taught me, and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds.” The psalmist exhorts her to do this, as he says: “Sing to the Lord, and bless his name, proclaim his salvation day after day.” And this salvation is Jesus, her savior.  — from a sermon by Saint Bernadine of Siena

The website would be an active digital presence to showcase work and offer bite size tips and valuable assets. The website would display the character of him, of the team, and boldly tout the why more than the what.

Bernie’s agency takes on the task of turning something small into something big and noticeable. The foundation of Bernie’s business is absolutely a David vs. Goliath mentality. He preaches that it’s not about the power tools (though they make it easier), it’s about the talent to do what’s different, what’s right, what’s important…  This would cause him to turn down some heavy hitters as clients, but that isn’t a problem, as indicated on his website.

“Whenever the divine favor chooses someone to receive a special grace, or to accept a lofty vocation, God adorns the person chosen with all the gifts of the Spirit needed to fulfill the task at hand.”

“The last degree of love is when He gave Himself to us to be our Food; because He gave Himself to be united with us in every way.”

Saint Bernardine has been my favorite saint for many years. I discovered the layered history of the saint around 2010 at a critical time in my head. Learning about what he endured, what he achieved, and how he saw his life as a mission to carry out the Gospel really impacted me then and every day since. The corner of art and commerce involves a lot of ideas and choices that battle each other out. Working in this field can consume me in more ways that I’d like. It’s hard to find a way back to normal when you’re swimming in a sea of exciting options and tight deadlines and unrealistic clients. It’s important to direct it all. I’m no pastor or preacher, so how can I evangelize or play my role in carrying out the Gospel?  St. Bernie has helped me make sense of some of this and I ask him to pray for me in my work just about every day. With honesty and effort amid sanctifying challenges, we can do what He calls us to do.

The simple clarity is this: Whatever you do, do it in the holy name of Jesus.

God gave us time, tools, and talent. Use it. Give it back to him. U2 has a terrific song that illustrates this very thing in Magnificent. When I stopped long enough to really hear the lyrics, I recognized St. Bernardine’s message in it. “I was born to sing for you…to lift You up and sing whatever song You wanted me to; I give You back my voice…”

This is why I love Saint Bernardine.  I believe he’s an intentional link in my personal connection to Jesus. I believe that God loves us so much that He gives us all sorts of roads, lines, side doors, and other connections to lead us to Him through Jesus. To find the Son is to find the Father, and we’re a family. Families belong together.

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