• Culture,  Music,  Politics,  Theology/Bible

    Who’s afraid of Derek Webb? (part 3)

    (Click here for Part 1) (Part 2) As I said in part 2, there is much to commend on Derek’s new album, “Mockingbird.” But as I also indicated there, I will now address some items that I think are not so good. First, pacifism plays a big part on this album. That Derek embraces pacifism as the only Christian alternative comes through loud and clear in the song “My Enemies Are Men Like Me.” I don’t know how else to understand the following lines except as condemnation of anyone who might argue for the possibility of a just war:     peace by way of war is like purity by…

  • Culture,  Music,  Politics,  Theology/Bible

    Who’s afraid of Derek Webb? (part 2)

    (Click here for Part 1) When I got home from the Derek Webb concert on Tuesday night, I shot off a blog that was in protest of what I thought was an overtly left-wing political message on Webb’s new album “Mockingbird.” But I later deleted what I wrote because I came to the conclusion that Derek’s message actually deserved a little more serious consideration than I had given it. So that is why this has turned into a three part series. My initial response, however, was provoked in part by how the concert-goers received Derek’s lefty-friendly message. Consider, for example, the response from the crowd when Derek sang these lines:…

  • Culture,  Music,  Politics,  Theology/Bible

    Who’s afraid of Derek Webb? (part 1)

    I just returned home from a Derek Webb concert. Derek’s venue was the Gypsy Tea Room near downtown Dallas in the area known by locals as Deep Ellum. Deep Ellum used to be the hip part of town, the place where all the young urban twenty-somethings would descend every weekend for dining, music, and club hopping. This once very popular center has declined over the past several years as most of the nightlife has moved to the new and trendy “uptown” area. If you have ever been to a Christian concert, you might have been surprised by this one. When I saw and heard the Marilyn Manson style death-metal band…

  • Culture,  Music,  Personal,  Politics,  Theology/Bible

    Scratching My Head at Derek Webb

    I love Derek Webb. I first started listening to his music in 1994 when I was in college and when he was in Caedmon’s Call. I will never forget the first time I saw Derek perform live with Caedmon’s (circa 1995). It was at Tulane University in New Orleans, and I and the other hundred or so people were mesmerized for the entire concert. When I heard Derek sing and play “Bus Driver” that night, he became my favorite of the group. It was one of the best shows I’d ever been to. Caedmon’s Call was supposed to be playing Christian music, but it didn’t sound like any of the…

  • Culture,  Music,  Politics,  Theology/Bible

    Bono’s Remarks at the National Prayer Breakfast

    Can a rock star preach? Apparently those who head up the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. think Bono can. Last week, he spoke at the annual event with President Bush sitting close by (for a transcript click here). I would argue, however, that although there was much to commend in Bono’s remarks, there was also much to be concerned about. We can all appreciate and affirm Bono’s desire to see the Christian church get more involved in addressing poverty and disease in Africa. We welcome the challenge that he gave to Americans to be more generous in their giving to charities that help bring relief to those who are…

  • Culture,  Music,  Theology/Bible

    Emerging Irony

    The cover story of the most recent issue of Touchstone magazine is about Johnny Cash, and it’s written by Russell Moore. This is an excellent piece, and I highly recommend your reading it. Scot McKnight, however, does not share my enthusiasm about Moore’s article and has criticized it here. Moore has responded to McKnight’s response here. Now McKnight has responded to Moore’s response to McKnight’s response here. If that all sounds confusing, then let me sum it up for you. McKnight thinks that people like Moore should have been more supportive of Cash’s Christian conversion about twenty or thirty years ago. For McKnight, supporting Cash now is too little too…

  • Culture,  Music,  Theology/Bible

    Russell Moore’s Review of New Johnny Cash Movie

    One of the things that I love most about Russell Moore is his taste in country music. He is not nearly as much a Dixie-Chick-Keith-Urban country music fan as he is a George-Jones-Loretta-Lynn kind of a fan. He likes the old timey stuff. That’s why I enjoyed reading his review of the new movie about Johnny Cash. Moore discusses the movie Walk the Line and generally gives it a good review. He also talks about Cash’s conversion which is not featured explicitly in the movie. The last paragraph of the review sums up Moore’s admiration for the late Johnny Cash. My sons know Johnny Cash quite well because they hear…

  • Culture,  Music,  Politics

    Kanye West’s Race-Baiting Tirade

    Hip-hop star Kanye West went on a tirade during NBC’s disaster relief fundraiser tonight. West and Michael Myers were paired together during a segment so that they could appeal to a nationwide TV audience to donate money to the Red Cross. After Michael Myers opened with a few remarks, Kanye West began a meandering monologue that was clearly not written on his cue card and was very difficult to understand. However, a few things came through loud and clear. First, West made the outlandish claim that the government had given the troops in New Orleans permission to shoot black people. Second, he accused the media of racist coverage, alleging that…

  • Culture,  Music,  Politics

    Pro-Life and Hip-Hop: Nick Cannon’s Amazing Video

    Nick Cannon and His Mother It’s not often that a rap video brings a tear to your eye. But my wife and I watched one tonight that did. Some of you may know Nick Cannon from the hit movie “Drumline” or perhaps from his new show on MTV, “Nick Cannon Presents Wild ‘N Out.” What you may not know is that he released a music video this summer that is powerfully pro-life. The lyrics to the song tell the true story of Nick Cannon’s mother. When she became pregnant with Nick, she was an unwed teenager. She made it all the way to the operating table of the abortion clinic…

  • Culture,  Music,  Theology/Bible

    Interview with Bono in CT

    For you rabid U2 fans, I thought you might be interested in an interview with Bono appearing on the Christianity Today website. The interview appears under the title “Bono: Grace over Karma.” Among other things, Bono is able to articulate a fairly clear profession of faith in Christ. “I’m holding out that Jesus took my sins onto the Cross, because I know who I am, and I hope I don’t have to depend on my own religiosity . . . I love the idea of the Sacrificial Lamb. I love the idea that God says: Look, you cretins, there are certain results to the way we are, to selfishness, and…