Religion is sold to the masses every day. In 1925 it was sold to the masses in the form of printed material by Bruce Barton. In 1960 it was sold to the masses through a film called Elmer Gantry. Bruce Barton sold a different idea of ​​Jesus than most people were familiar with. In the movie, Elmer Gantry sold religion with bravado and arrogance, which wasn't even the typical way to sell religion. In every work, religion is sold, but Elmer is a more emotional and relatable character than Bruce Barton's Jesus. Elmer Gantry sold religion in a similar way to Barton's Jesus, but did so in a more relatable way. In both works, each character was trying to sell religion. Although the main characters in each work sold religion, the reasons they sold it were completely different. When Jesus preached religion, his reasons were noble. In The Man Nobody Knows, Jesus sold religion to save people. He claimed to be the son of God and to do God's work. Not only did he preach to the masses, but he also apparently had superhuman powers that cured the sick. “A woman who had been ill for twelve years… said to herself, if I could only touch her robe, I would be well” (Barton, 1925). Not only could he heal people with a single touch, but his powers were so great that he didn't even need to touch them to be healed. An ordinary person cannot identify with superhuman abilities. Although Barton's Jesus has been described as larger than he was portrayed in the Bible, most people would be able to identify more with the biblical version of Jesus. Barton took Jesus and turned him into an even larger character . The Jesus in Barton's book is a very strong, muscular man who can use his words to influence anyone. ... middle of paper ... they ate it while remembering a time in their lives when they had done something similar to Elmer. People cannot identify with being the mighty son of God like Jesus was. They can identify with a normal person who uses his knowledge to get what he wants but who at the same time has flaws and is able to see and expose these flaws. Works Cited Bluestone, G. (1961). Adaptation or escape: "elmer gantry". Film Quarterly, 14(3), 15-19.Kauffmann, S. (1960). An old revivalist born again. Nuova Repubblica, 143(7/8), 20-21.Ribuffo, L. (1981). Jesus Christ as Business Statesman: Bruce Barton and the Selling of Corporate Capitalism. American Quarterly, 33(2), 206-231. Schultze, Q. (2007). The Man Everyone Knew: Bruce Barton and the Making of Modern America. Christian Century, 124(17), 38-41. Weiler, A.H. (1960, July 08). Elmer Portal. The New York Times.