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Holy Cow! You got your Jesus in my hamburger!
From our top-rated guide to the secret menu to Eric Albertoni’s stomach-churning pictorial on surviving the ingestion of a 20×20, In-n-Out has long been Badmouth’s favorite fast-food establishment.
But the secrets of In-n-Out don’t stop at the menu. Sharp-eyed patrons have noticed that there are biblical passages inscribed on the wrappers of In-n-Out’s burgers, sodas and milkshakes. How did they get there? What do they mean? Can a Double-Double technically take the place of a Communion Wafer? We’ll attempt to answer these and other pertinent questions on the following pages.
Why are there biblical passages on he fast food wrappers at In-n-Out?
In-n-Out is a privately held corporation. They are still completely owned by the Snyder family. And the Snyder family is down with the G.O.D. And that’s OK with me. The Snyders can do this because they own In-n-Out lock, stock and barrel — and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
Since the Snyders own the entire chain and have refused to franchise, they don’t only get to slip Bible passages into your cheeseburgers. They also get to demand that all of their hamburger is ground at their own plant. They get to decide that none of their food will ever be frozen (so all locations must be within a few hours drive of Southern California.) In short, the Bible passages are just another sign that In-n-Out is owned by real people, and not a soulless corporation.
Do the Bible passages mean In-n-Out supports radical anti-abortion groups, intelligent design, anti-homosexual agenda or ground-beef-based faith healing?
We have no idea what the Snyders do with their money. It’s possible that they spend it in ways that we wouldn’t approve of. But hey, McDonald’s is mowing down the rainforests, Carl’s Jr. employs Paris Hilton and we have it on good authority that the guy in the Burger King outfit molests sheep. (OK we made that part up.)
The point is it is entirely possible to be religious without being intolerant. We know that In-n-Out makes great hamburgers, they pay their employees well and provide them with full benefits and paid vacations. Sounds like they are Christians in the good sense of the word to me.
What are the biblical passages and where can I find them?
We’re so glad you asked. There are four different Bible passages. We’ve took photos, looked up the passages and provided a brief analysis, complete with grading below:
1. Burger and Cheeseburger Wrappers
Revelation 3:20
“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.”
This is my personal favorite. It’s religious. It’s food related. And it’s from the book of Revelation, which was obviously written while the apostles were dropping acid. A+
2. Double Double Wrapper
Nahum 1:7
“The LORD is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him,”
Good solid Christian message. I feel I have to deduct points because I had to look up the so-called “Book of Nahum” to prove to myself that it was actually in the Bible. B
3. Milkshake Cup
Proverbs 3:5
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;”
I would give this message more credence, but people if it was that easy to know what God wanted you to do, everyone would do it. In fact. the people who seem most certain that they are doing God’s will tend to be the biggest assholes. Evidently God wants us to hate fags, kill the Western infidels and invade Iraq. If that’s the case, I’d rather “lean on my own understanding.” God gave me that, too. C-
4. Soda Cup
John 3:16
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
This is best line in the Bible. It’s like the Cliff Notes version of Christianity. It may be a little overdone, but you can’t beat a classic. A-
Conclusion
So there you have it. Everything there is to know about the Bible passages on the wrappers at In-n-Out.
I’d argue that the people who seem most certain that they are doing God’s will tend to be the ones who are “leaning on their own understanding”.
“My personal savior”, my ass. Don’t go hoggin’ all the Jesus, dude.
Jesus ain’t no hamburger!
Rouver: That’s my point. You and I can say, “Well, they are not speaking for God.” But they will tell you that they are. People who believe strongly that they know exactly what God’s will is are dangerous. You know who had unwavering faith that they knew the mind of God? The people at Jonestown.
Doubt is a wonderful thing, even in faith. If you never examine your beliefs, how do you know they are correct? Blind faith leads to tragedy.
You need some doubt, but if you’re not careful, you find yourself with a wad of papers & a hammer at the church door in the middle of the night.
(although, let’s not really get into that because it did bring some needed changes into the church)
I grew up in a christian house hold and went threw alot of things that made me question “faith” so i tend to not pick a sised oppinion with issues such as these.. but i do have to say that it looks to me like they are doing a good job at promoting what they are passionate about and sill have a long like inside and outside every day so thewy arn’t hurnting by it.
Hey, if you don’t like their religious wrappers and containers…don’t eat there. Otherwise, pass the mustard.
Where did you get the impression that anyone here was bothered by the bible passages?
@Rouver
lol!
@Proverbs 3:5
Now that is confusing if you even try to think about it.
This is exactly why I will never eat at In-n-Out Burger, or even worse, Chick-Fil-A. When I go to a restaurant, I want to buy dinner, not dinner with a side of religious hogwash.
And I definitely don’t want my money going to support anti-women, anti-gay christian extremist hate groups like Focus on the Family, which is what you get when you eat at Chick-Fil-A. While In-N-Out Burger don’t announce explicitly which far-right hate groups they might support, when the president was a self-described born-again christian, you can bet there’s some support of extremist evangelical causes going on.
Just because they believe in God and support the only good thing doesn’t make them a hate group. All this crap going on in the world is nasty bs and if your a supporter of that I’m sure they don’t want you in their establishment anyways. I sure wouldn’t.
Zakariah: I’m not aware that the owners of In-n-Out discriminate against anyone, but it is obvious that you discriminate against them.
Both In-n-Out and Chick-Fil-A are owned by Christians, true. And those Christians pay their employees a very good wage plus benefits, do lots of charity work and make some great food.
I’m no Focus on the Family fan, but to focus solely on that while ignoring the good that they do is unfair — and on In-n-Out’s case, you are wildly guessing that they must support far right causes simply because they are Christian.
I LOVE the food at In-N-Out Burger! I am happy they put benign, positive scripture references on their stuff… a little joy in our world is a GOOD thing! People who only eat food prepared by people with their own exacting beliefs will soon go hungry (Zakariah – spread your hate elsewhere). Not eating here because the owner’s are Christian is obsurd and discriminatory!! Chow down and enjoy! I sure will be!
Obviously they’re not trying to force their religion on anyone.
The passages are in inconspicuous places and it’s not the actual passage. Just where you can find it if you’re interested or a friendly message to those who know the passage.
I’m not a religious person nor do I condone those who are, forcing their beliefs on everyone. I feel that In n Out is just letting the people who care know that they care.
First off, I never heard of the book of Nahum??? I’ll have to open my bible and check that one out!
Second, regardless of what bitter, frightened Athiests think a big company owned by strong, moral Christians is most likely a plus for society and not a negative. If you think you can live life happier “knowing” your legacy is to be worm food I feel sorry for you.
Watch the movie documentary “The Corporation” to see how horrible corporations can be when the ONLY thing they care about is their stock going up.
Of course there are some nutty religous groups out there but in reality most Americans claim to be christians although a good chunk aren’t devout.
Even if the Bible is false nobody can convince me that if everybody lived according to the laws of the Bible we would be worse off. How could life on earth be worse with no murder, no theft, no adultry, no abortions (a.k.a people taking responsibility for their actions), treating each other with respect, no gluttony, no money hoarding etc.
I am also so disgusted with people being labeled “gay bashers” who are uncomfortable with it. 1. It’s not natural or beneficial in nature, a gay species produces death not life 2. The gay groups want society to believe 10% of the population is gay but how many of you REALLY know 1 gay/lesbian for every 10 people you know??? My guess is 1-in-100 or more. 3. Research shows a large percentage of gays have MANY partners, do drugs and have a lot of emotional issues.
I’m not saying all gays are like that but a LOT of them are! You don’t see that image on TV where most gay couples are well groomed, well dressed and well mannered. They almost NEVER look like the freaks in the parades.
The gay rights groups are little chihauhas that like to bark a lot like they are bigger than what they are. That and the fact that almost any show/movie I watch has to have at least 1 gay character are starting to get really annoying to me.
With that said, I can’t imagine any gay people feel intimidated eating at In & Out Burger!
[...] holy french fries. no really, they are. [...]
Ummmm, NJ…not all atheists are bitter or frightened by “strong, moral Christians”. I could care less that they print bible verses on their packages, their food is amazing!
Also, I can’t believe a discussion about bible verses turned into a discussion about gay bashing. People have every right to be terrified of homosexuality, that’s their prerogative, but claiming that its unnatural is just silly. Even a few of my cats perform homosexual acts and I don’t think its because they “chose” to be gay. Any species produces death no matter what orientation it is, I mean, so far everything that has ever lived has or will die. Its kind of a fact of life. In fact, whole communities of species that were heterosexual have died out completely due to competition, we call it extinction.
Please state the “research” that “shows a large percentage of gays have MANY partners, do drugs and have a lot of emotional issues.” I have not been made aware of any scientific studies in this regard.
Thanks for your time.
-Kaytee
Everybody has a right to their own religion in America. Isn’t that great?! If the Snyder’s want to spend their financial capital encouraging people to read the vrses that inspire them, God bless them.
However we should be aware of the fact that these are the verses inspirational to American capitalists and I would guess more precisely the Evangelical movement. Are they really encouraging people to open their hearts to the Bible or their own particular worldview?
Here’s some Biblical verses that won’t appear on any fastfood wrappers in the near future; Vegeterian-Genesis 1:29, Isaiah 11:8, Economic Justice-Job 31:16-25,Psalm 103:6, Psalm 12:5, Amos 4:1-2, Amos 8:6, Micah 6:8 Peace-Job 31:29-30, Psalm 7, Psalm 11, Psalm 91, Psalm 120:7, Proverbs 10:12, Isaiah 11:9, Matthew 5:9, , Sexual delight and Gay rights-II Samuel 1:26, anything from Song of Solomon, Tolerance-Proverbs 3:27, Matthew 9:11, Matthew 7:1 .
I could go on, but my point is that we all select the verses that please us and justify our own lifestyle. I have never met anyone anxious to quote the Bible to others that is truly anxious to submit himself to everything the Bible has to say. Never.
Sorry but IIsamuel 1:26 is translated as the death of a friend who he would have rightfully inherited good things from and “the love of women” in the text meant the love women have for their husbands and children because women are known to have more of a natural compassion and nurturing spirit than men. Sorry! It had nothing to do with sex and gay rights and of course solomon talked about woman.You took it out of context. But I do agree with you that we have to examine ourselves against the entire Bible. No one is perfect, but we need to be perfecting ourselves everyday.You have to practice what the Bible tell you and then will it come naatural. I love gay people even though I dont agree with the lifestyle. I love my children and dont agree with some things they do in their life. You can actually not like the lifestyle and not be a “gaybasher” or ” homophobic”. Traditional gay marraige is between one man and one woman. Lets keep it that way. Now you want to ban divorce. Divorce is wrong, but God allowed it because the people had turned away from God and wanted to make their own choices. Divorce was never Gods plan and when we want to “lean to our own understanding” we have detrimental consequences to our “choices” such as what happens to families through divorce. Never was there a gay marraige allowed. Sorry but lets stop being so radical and so me me me and help to eradicate poverty, unemployment, famines, crime, drugs, etc. While everyone is so focused on what they want the world is getting worse and worse. God bless!
I meant traditional marraige is between one man and one woman. Not traditional gay marraige. There is no such thing. Please retract that comment in my first reply. I overtyped.
I find it hard to give any value to a man’s opinion against gay marriage, when he cannot for the life of him spell the word “marraige” in the first place. Unfortunately, these are the people that are making decisions for our country. How sad.
Sorry DomJot. You took one misspelled word (and it is on the frequently misspelled word list) and came to the conclusion that I would be incapable of running the country. I am not even competing for that job especially since I will lose for spelling “marriage” incorrectly. Did I misspell anything else. If so i am truly sorry but my view of what traditional marraige oops “marriage” is still stands.
I cook. I might eat fast food once in a blue moon and am worrying more about my health than if they’re thwarting my ability to marry a girl. I mean, the same people who said “if you love it so much, why don’t you marry him/her/it” are the same ones against gay marriage…
anyway, I think the quotes are on there handy because you’ll need a quick reference to pray to God right before you die of a massive myocardial infarction from the amount of solid food mass in the shape of chewed up hamburger that will be filling your veins.
Just never get the Animal fried.. or animal anything. Ugh, I’d rather have had a regular cheeseburger with grilled onions…
Well, children, Elmo’s word of the day is “homophobia.” NJ, relax with a shake, dude. None of these posts vilify In-N-Out for their messages. Nor do I, as a Pagan (from Utah no less), in any way resent, boycott, or otherwise hold it against the corporation. Didn’t Jesus preach tolerance?? Hmmmm, last I looked that wasn’t a secret menu item….
@ NJ above:
1. “It’s not natural or beneficial in nature, a gay species produces death not life”… Homosexual behavior is documented in many species other than humans. Penguins, most farm animals, look it up. Were these creatures recruited or taught this behavior? And how does a “gay species” (whatever that is) produce death, exactly? Life, in general, produces death, does it not?
2. “The gay groups want society to believe 10% of the population is gay but how many of you REALLY know 1 gay/lesbian for every 10 people you know?”. Well, being gay, probably 50% of the people I know are gay, so that kind of evens out your 1% or less theory. Again, look it up; there are reliable sources.
3. “Research shows a large percentage of gays have MANY partners, do drugs and have a lot of emotional issues.” Research by whom? Some homophobic evangelical, no doubt. I’m certain there is plenty of research to the contrary, just depends who you want to believe. Lots of heterosexuals fit these criteria too, had you not noticed. And among those gay folk who do have these issues, how much of it can be blamed on their trying to fit into a society that pressures them with attitudes like yours?
I’m no biblical scholar, but there’s a “love thy neighbor” in there someplace and I don’t think it specifies “only if they’re straight”.