Good News Song

Dear Eugene,

I can't quite get this song out of my head.

Not that I like it; quite the contrary.  It is as banal as a Costco line-up, but in the same way it speaks about our time.

The words go like this:

"I am unwritten, can't read my mind, I'm undefined
I'm just beginning, the pen's in my hand, ending unplanned

 Staring at the blank page before you 
Open up the dirty window 
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find 
Reaching for something in the distance 
So close you can almost taste it 
Release your inhibitions"

This piece of elevator music forces itself into my ears everyday.  It played by itself in my head even as I was looking at the news and pictures of chemical attack in Northwest Syria.  The juxtaposing of sight and sound creates an obscene movie.

There you see a character losing 22 family members in this chemical attack, including his wife and nine-month-old twin babies, but the movie director told him to speak these lines:

"I am unwritten, can't read my mind, I'm undefined
I'm just beginning, the pen's in my hand, ending unplanned."

 The director says, Stay positive.  Your future is up to you.  Go define yourself and shine shine shine.  (Dance number follows.)

Then to the attacker he gives these lines: Release your inhibitions.

 Just be yourself, the director continues, Go for it.  Nobody can be a somebody without letting loose of what is inside of him (or her, or whatever).  Do what you need to do to fulfill your destiny, write your story, find your path.  Dance if you must.

 I don't think it is unfair to connect the words of this song with the horrific images.  The song makes a claim of universal truth, and it happened to play in my head as I stumbled upon a piece of bad news playing out at a tiny corner of this universe.

The little bad news takes the big truth claim to court, that's all.

In the same way when Christians make big truth claims--especially that Jesus is The Truth--it is only reasonable that this bad-news world would take us Good-News people to court.  If the juxtaposing of our music against every and any picture at any and every corner of this world creates a nonsensical or even obscene movie, then it is only fair that we should be taken to task.

I am not just talking about apologetic.  I am not saying faith is merely about proving the validity of an argument, a doctrine.  Truth is more than being intelligible or logical or even sensible.  Truth is all these and much much more.

One journalist said, "Now, it seems complex world events are forcing some re-evaluation of Trump's agenda while complicating his vision for a domestic-centred 'America First' presidency."

I say, "As always, it seems our gloriously complex lives are forcing some re-evaluation of Christians' agenda while complicating their vision for a self-centred 'Personal Salvation First' religiosity."

How can our Gospel song be elevator music?  It is Easter again; what do Christ's dying and resurrecting have to do with chemical warfare, poverty, hunger...everything?  Or anything?

I pray to learn how to sing better everyday.

Yours, Alex


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