At this year's Traverse City Film Festival, anyone in downtown Traverse City inevitably saw a poster with this year’s slogan: “One Great Movie Can Change You.” I completely agree. This is not a new insight, of course. People have recognized the power of entertainment for thousands of years. However, the slogan has encouraged me to revisit how the arts and entertainment both … [Read more...]
Why Apologists Need Artists
The imagination of the human mind is a fascinating thing. With it we formulate ideas grand and terrifying; we solve complex problems with creative solutions and dream up ways of executing great evil; we get lost in the visions of a good book or in the notes of a song or in the horrors of death and terror. Our imaginations are a great tool for good and evil, not to mention an … [Read more...]
Living Sacrifice's "Nietzsche's Madness": Metal and the Moral Argument
Living Sacrifice, a four piece metal band from Arkansas, has been around for the past two decades. One of the first openly Christian bands to gain acceptance and popularity in both the Christian and secular markets, the band has never been the one to play for safe lyrical topics or themes - some having potent apologetic content. … [Read more...]
Playlist for an Apologist
A good song can go a long way into brightening your day. Don’t believe me? Just ask King Saul about the songs David would play and how they caused an evil spirit to depart from him. In fact, even God loves Himself a good melody. Psalm 150:3-6 mentions the many musical ways we can praise Him. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. … [Read more...]
Theology's Limitations (And It's Greatest Strength)
The Ember Days' More Than You Think has not left my earbuds since I started listening to it a few months ago. It gets better and better with each listen. The entirety of the album contains some incredible lyrics, but there is one line in one of my favorite songs, "Real Jesus", that deserves to be written about, mainly because I can relate to the people who might be put off by … [Read more...]
Sho Baraka, The Gospel, And N**** Island
I wrote in my review of Sho Baraka's Talented 10th about the song "Chapter 9: Jim Crow", a song that featured several unedited use of the word "n*****". A few months have passed since the album dropped but now Sho Baraka is starting to get some heat for this controversial stance. Several bloggers have weighed in with their opinions about the controversial song, some supporting … [Read more...]
How Do We Know What We Believe? A Response To Britt Nicole's "All This Time"
I was driving home from work one night and I turned on the radio just in time to catch the start of a song. While I normally do not listen to Christian radio stations, I was content to leave it there for a bit. Soon, Britt Nicole's "All This Time" began to play (at the time I didn't know the name of the song). I'll admit, it wasn't my cup of tea, but when the bridge came and … [Read more...]
Some Thoughts on Hell
Imagine there's no heaven It's easy if you try No hell below us Above us only sky Imagine all the people living for today - John Lennon (1) John Lennon asked us to imagine there’s no heaven. I’ve tried, but all I come up with is hell. Many things occur on this planet that demand judgment and punishment, but many go unpunished. If there is no certainty of punishment, there is … [Read more...]
The Light that can be found – reflections on a lyric by 3 Doors Down
The song "When I'm Gone" by 3 Doors Down begins this way: There's another world inside of me That you may never see There're secrets in this life That I can't hide Somewhere in this darkness There's a light that I can't find Maybe it's too far away... Or maybe I'm just blind... What struck me about this lyric is the comparison with light and darkness. The Bible uses this same … [Read more...]