How do you do it? For example, if you're a believer and own albums by:

Nine Inch Nails
McLusky
Ministry
Rolling Stones
Placebo
Biggie Smalls
tupac
or anything that suggests sex, violence, drug use, hate, etc.


how are you able to reconcile that? Serious question.

There is a spiritual side to The Stones, listen to the last 1/4 of Exile, and you see immediately what I mean.

Biggie and Pac both rhyme about this same conundrum, and getting right with God/Trying to do right when they know they are wrong.

I think a similar mindset is required to reconcile God and the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes - there is value to understanding the less savory side of the world and even immersing yourself in it, ostensibly in order to understand its worthlessness in the face of the alternative.

Seriously, read Ecclesiastes. It's the best book in the Bible.

I don't listen to Amy Grant. Consider me reconciled.

haq - again you take the words from my head.

ecclesiastes should be required reading for most.

kudos.

np: ike reilly - Hip Hop Thighs #17

99.9% percent of christian music sucks. thank god for bringing us sufjan stevens and pedro the lion. ive always thought marilyn manson is probably more christian than most christian musicians. hes just a closet christian. anyway, im an atheist, so it doesnt affect me.

What about the vice-versa?

I am 100% atheist and yet I have alot of God botherers in my record collection. And I really love hymns.

I say lyrics or vocals have no real meaning as words and simply contribute to the overall sound of the music. When someone sings they are no longer conveying ideas or beliefs in a traditional sense.

I'll explain a little why I'm suddenly so interested. I accidently went to a religious studies class at my Catholic church that I attend once every 2 months last night. There was a discussion about the holy spirit and people in the group kept mentioning music as helping them feel the holy spirit. Which eventually led to my proposed question.

Like I said, put on the last 1/4 of Exile. Especially Shine a Light, and those hedonistic bastards will help you feel the holy spirit.

I'm pretty a-religious, and anti-religion as an entity, but music definitely helps me feel the word and power of a Higher Being.

I have been thinking of starting a movement based on the fact that Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash are/were modern day prohets.

When I move to the Pacific Northwest sometime later in life, will you be my friend?

i dont think much of religion, but some gospel music is just undeniably amazing.
so it goes either way, i think.

Small problem. I don't have exile *ducks*...I have beggars banquet, let it bleed, and 40 licks. I don't know about prophets, but I can see where "the holy spirit" can be found in Cash and Dylan.

you need to remedy this immediately.

trust me: prophets

haq - of course, but i'll have to re-escape the bible belt first. ah, again i'm a yankee in King James' Court.

< - - - - note current location

OH YEAH. I forgot about the move. I don't think I'm probably ever moving to TX. We'll work it out.

I know, I know

Someone on the new waste/cactus thing must have it. Yail doesn't have wireless yet, or I would be posting/connected to my laptop and could hook you up via AIM. But, to tell you the truth, you may want to lay down the ducats for this one. I can't think of an album I have listen to more, or is more associated with good memories for me.

(It is the soundtrack to post 2am parties of my wasted youth)

That's an album I think I should probably buy. The waste/cactus things sounds cool, but I'm not suppose to d/l music at work. I probably shouldn't even be doing it on AOL. It makes me very nervous everytime I do an ichat d/l. I don't have "the internets" or even a computer at home either so I'm kinda high and dry on that.

Then get thee to a music store, my good man. If you like Beggar's, etal you are in for a treat. If not, feel free to disregard everything I say, for the rest of the life of this board.

Just listen to the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack.

BAD ASS.

that would be Jonah actually.

I'm not terribly religious (though I'm Christian) but I am pretty spiritual. I have dealt with this a lot over the years. And there are some artists/records that I've avoided or gotten rid if they just outright offend me or something. But as has been said, not all that's under the sun is shiny and happy. And furthermore, I dont think one should try to avoid those things that aren't the prettiest--one, cos it's impossible and you'll go mad trying, and two, you can learn from everything and anything around you, and by doing so enrich your own life. If one only looks for the sterile, they've only lived half a life. I can't tell you how many times I listen to "secular" music and absolutey hear God speaking through people or melodies. Similar to what Gar was alluding to earlier about the Stones. Something about the way thoughts are melded with melodies that hits people and lets you know, oh yeah, I'm alive, and sometimes I even enjoy being alive. I think that a pretty powerful spiritual realization. And it's not like the artist has to know they're doing that either. I'm sure many of the artists I absolutely love aren't "believers," but I cannot deny what they do to my spirit when I listen to their music.

Maybe this wasn't even the direction you were going with your query..sorry, my brain is fried from my Pathology exam.

i think it's much more likely that an atheist will listen to jars of clay or pedro the lion than a deeply-religious church attender will listen to nine inch nails.

i've only recently decided that i need some form of spirituality in my life, and started calling myself a humanist instead of an atheist.

but i've always said that music is pretty much the closest thing i'll ever have to a religion. a really good album, when listened to in ideal situations, gives me a feeling that nothing else can. and i'd have to say that the feeling is at least somewhat spiritual.

hey the Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack fucking rocks!

Your reply is the type of stuff I was hoping to see.