What would happen if a small animal (say a rabbit) convinced Eve to eat an avocado instead of an apple (assuming the forbidden fruit was an apple)? That’s the question the makers of a commercial for Super Bowl 2023 decided to take on for their brand, Avocados From Mexico.
If you didn’t see the ad, you can watch it below. It’s an interesting concept. As a naturist, it’s fun to see this type of playful and for the most part non-sexual nudity in the mainstream on TV. I had seen it before the Big Game, so I was looking forward to it coming on as I watched with my Christian small group. Unfortunately, most of them missed it when it came on and no one said anything about it. But I have some thoughts about it, and this is the place to chat about it. So I’ll briefly share a few thoughts here, and you can sound off in the comments section. Let’s dialogue!
It starts with darkness overtaking paradise and Eve with a mouth full saying, “I might’ve taken a small bite.” and Adam realizing he was naked and freaking out. Then to save the day a rabbit (not the serpent) offers Eve an avocado (from Mexico) saying, “They make everything better!” As she breaks it in half, it glows and she looks on in wonder and anticipation. The scene transitions to an alternate reality of present day in the “Big Avocado” (New York) where everyone is naked and going about their jolly day. Everyone is all smiles and traffic is smooth as always. Even the taxi drivers are paying each other compliments saying, “Yo, I love you!” and “No, I love YOU!” And in fashion news, naked continues to be all the rage. There’s an avocado-like phone being launched from a company similar to Apple. And the you can tell Lady Liberty is naked and Eve says, “Now that’s a tourist attraction.”
It’s a very funny and creative ad. Naturists might not like that all the body parts get covered up creatively. We have to remember, this isn’t nudist or naturist programming. It’s mainstream, and for normalizing nudity, I think it’s a win. Prudish Christian attitudes probably thought, “At least they covered up their body parts!” The irony is the half time show (as it usually is) was much more sexually charged and suggestive than this ad about a naked utopia. The bit I didn’t care for was them looking up at the Statue of Liberty and objectifying her a little. The rest is very non-sexual.
I love that the fashion show is all nude, because I’m not a fan of fashion. I get that even naturists like to dress up every now and then, but I’m very utilitarian about my clothing. It needs to be comfortable, and I don’t care much about the brands or the latest trends. True fashion shows and expensive clothing are laughable for me—pointless and silly.
The writers of this brilliant piece must be nudist or at least nudist friendly—similar to the new movie starring Allison Brie, “Somebody I Used to Know.” What’s surprising to me is the theology that goes into this ad. It’s ridiculous to think that another fruit could offset the impact of the forbidden fruit, but they were going for a crazy scenario anyway. But what they paint a picture of is modern day living if no one had ever sinned. We’d still all be naked! We’d be a lot happier! As the sign in the commercial says, “The end is NOT near!”
Detractors from Christian Naturism have claimed that you can’t have an after the end times experience this side of the fall. To do so would be immanentizing the eschaton. We wrote a post about that. This ad creatively supposes the fall never happened, or the rabbit and avocados saved and redeemed humanity. We know Jesus does that and can even restore innocence with faith like a child (Matthew 18:1-3).
Many people have never even considered what this scenario would be like or what the future (Eden restored) will truly be like. Most are too freaked out over their own nakedness like Adam at the beginning to consider such a life. But naturists love and enjoy this reality as much as they can, when they can. It’s unthinkable to the common person. The ad seems outlandish, but it’s really not too far off from a naturist existence. It’s not a perfect world, but for brief moments it pretty much can be.
What are your thoughts about the ad? What did they get right or wrong? How did others react to it at your Super Bowl party?
Aching for Eden 