“Saint” Sarko; Toronto’s Own Cultural Icon?
It’s a busy, warm, weekday afternoon at Yonge and Dundas square. The intersection is packed with students, tourists, mall employees, and others who are walking in a hurry. Amidst the hustle and bustle of the square, a familiar phrase can be heard over the car horns and loud music; “BELIEVE IN THE LORD!”. In rain or shine, the freezing cold or sweltering heat, he is always there, day after day. Some refer to him as “The Jesus Guy”, but I know him now only by his name (or the name he told me, at least); Sarko.
Sarko has stood on the northwest corner of the Yonge and Dundas intersection for approximately 15 years now, almost always with a crimson “Holy Bible” in one hand and a wad of pamphlets in the other. He is known to bellow 2 or 3 phrases every other minute at the people walking by on the sidewalk in hopes of spreading his love of God. Although there are several other religious groups that lobby outside the mall across the street from him, Sarko works independently of the rest, promoting his belief in his own unique way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8V6yEkZgOGM
I never really thought much of Sarko until now; he’s rather harmless and he doesn’t seem to offend anyone that walks by. A few months ago, I discovered the meme pictured above, while surfing the web late one evening. This lead me to find that Sarko has a moderate cult following on the internet. Not only are there many YouTube videos of him in action with several thousands of views and comments, but there is also a Facebook page dedicated to him (https://www.facebook.com/DundasSquareJesusGuy) and even a Yelp review page (http://www.yelp.ca/biz/jesus-guy-at-dundas-square-toronto). This modest fame of his leads me to wonder a) whether or not he is aware of it and b)does it cloud the message of God that he has been trying to deliver? How are our attitudes about religion affected by the representatives who preach to us? Are we simply being educated through a skewed perspective?
Sarko is a man of very few words when it comes to spreading the word of God. If people decide to confront him on his street corner, whether it is sincerely or maliciously, he always responds in calm manner and always wishes a good day to whoever speaks with him. This is very different from the Christian group that lobbies from across the street. The preachers rotate between 3 men who stand above the crowd and speak of God through a microphone. Their speeches, however, are almost always negative and they often attempt to shame people into following them. There are often people in the crowd who will begin arguments with whoever is on the microphone. Few videos can be found on YouTube of some of their “sermons” but unless the viewer is from Toronto, they wouldn’t know that the video takes place away from Internet’s rising star, “The Jesus Guy”.
Sarko is received positively both in person and on the web, but is it for the reasons he would hope? Although his work is mentioned, his fans seem to praise him generally because he is a nice old man or that he makes them laugh when he goes into his “routine”. He is simple and doesn’t go into great detail about God; his interactions are brief but memorable to the people that walk by him. People come to watch him, take a picture or video of him not because they want to hear about why they should choose God, but just to see Sarko in action. To tell their friends that they saw “The [Toronto] Jesus Guy” in action.
Whether or not Sarko is actually aware of his moderate fame, this has not changed anything about what he has done and continues to do day to day. There are no “Jesus Guy” t-shirts to buy, nor has he been embraced by the City of Toronto (yet) as a cult attraction. But again, I reiterate the question; are we getting an accurate representation and information from the Christian church or are we simply being educated through a skewed perspective? Perhaps Sarko and the 3 gentleman from across the street should debate it out.
