As the youth pastor finished his prayer, he put out the challenge to hundred or so young men and women gathered around the campfire.  “The time has come to get rid of all that is distracting you from going after God with all of your heart.  No more fooling around with secular math books and math teachers.  It’s time to take a stand for Jesus.  I want everyone to gather your secular math books and meet me down by the lake.”

The crowd dispersed to their cabins, reappearing ten minutes later to form a mob by the camp lake.  After the youth pastor had regained their attention, he spoke up.  “This may not be easy for many of you, but for most of you there are secular mathematicians and math books that have been pulling you away from God.  So I want you to be bold, and get rid of all your secular math books tonight.  On your way back to your cabins, your cabin leaders will give you a piece of paper that will give you Christian alternatives to any secular mathematicians that you may be interested in.  There are really some amazing Christian mathematicians out there today.  We just really encourage you to take a stand, and to live holy lives tonight.”

And with that, the guitarist began strumming, and through the darkness a female voice began to sing, “Change my heart, O God… make it ever true… change my heart O God… may I be like you…”  And one by one, the campers threw their secular math books into the lake, walking back to the shore in the light of their newfound devotion to God.

———————————————————————————————————————

If you were ever a part of a youth ministry, the above fictional scene sounds vaguely familiar.  It is not uncommon at Christian youth camps or youth rallies to have a time where the teens are encouraged to rid themselves of the secular music that is pulling them away from true devotion to God.  And so, you get a scene like the one above, where Christian teens pitch their Christina Aguilera and Black Eyed Peas CD’s into the lake or garbage can while a timid twelve year-old stands nearby clutching his They Might Be Giants CD that he got from his mom for Christmas, not really wanting to part with it but beginning to believe that this must be what true devotion to Jesus looks like.

Certainly it is silly to think that there is such a thing as secular math and Christian math.  We do not differentiate like that in the realm of mathematics because truth is truth – 2+2=4 and the three angles of a triangle add up to 180 º – whether or not the teacher is a Christian or a Buddhist.  If a mathematician is a Christian, there is no guarantee that his book will teach us more about the truths of this world than a book by someone who does not follow Jesus.  That’s why the idea of secular mathematicians and Christian alternatives is so ridiculous.

And surely I can apply this same thinking to many professions and arenas of life.  Does anyone believe there is Christian engineering and secular engineering?  Christian vs. secular auto repair?  What about being a linebacker in football?  Is there a Christian way of smashing someone to the ground vs. a secular way of doing it?  It is clear to people in many arenas of life that truth is truth, that being a Christian doesn’t necessarily make you a more skilled engineer or mechanic or linebacker. 

But what about music and art?  Can we say the same thing about those realms?  I have argued for the past two weeks that Christian music must die; not that Christians should stop making music, but that the belief that there is such a concept as “Christian music” vs. “Secular music” needs to be destroyed. And today I am wondering whether a supposed sacred/secular divide in music is really as absurd as a sacred/secular divide in mathematics is.

I think the main similarity between the two arenas is that truth is truth, and as I argued a couple weeks ago, much of God’s truth is available to all through what theologians call natural revelation.  A mathematician may be able to testify to the truths of the mathematical laws of nature without acknowledging that God is the one responsible for them.  Likewise, a singer may testify to how beautiful it is to be known completely and loved despite your faults without realizing that this is the truth of the gospel.  In this way, a singer who is not a Christian may be able to produce “Christian” music without even knowing it by testifying to God’s truth.

However, it is also worth noting that it is easier to pass off a lie as the truth in music than it is in math.  Certainly a math teacher who attempted to convince his students that 2+2 is really equal to 5 would be laughed at and not believed.  However, a musician who tries to convince his listeners that leaving one’s wife for another woman is actually a good thing to do may be successful if he can do it with a catchy beat and intriguing lyrics.  And this potential for ambiguity and deception is why it is easier and safer for many parents and youth pastors to simply declare that all “secular music” needs to be thrown in a lake and only Christian music should be consumed.  This way, they hope, there is assurance that the impressionable children will only be told the truth.  And perhaps there is some validity in such an approach for kids at an impressionable age who are not able to discern truth from lies when it is delivered by beautiful people over a Neptunes beat.  But for those of us out of our teen years, we misrepresent God and the way He works in the world if we stubbornly believe in an artificial sacred/secular divide.  God is bigger than that, and is communicating through nature and conscience to everyone in this world, revealing some of the truth of who He is and how this world is meant to be.

So, I conclude this series on Christian vs. secular music by celebrating the majesty of God, that He has revealed His truth and beauty to this world, and that we can celebrate His truth wherever we find it.  I encourage you to tear down the sacred/secular divide, and instead heed the words of Paul as you engage this world:  “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable– if anything is excellent or praiseworthy- think about such things” (Philippians 4:8).

Today I want to continue the discussion by considering a quote by Madeline L’Engle, a Christian woman who is most famous for her classic book A Wrinkle in Time.  In her book Walking on Water:  Reflections on Faith and Art, L’Engle wrote that “Art is art, painting is painting, music is music, a story is a story.  If it’s bad art, it’s bad religion, no matter how pious the subject.”  Essentially, L’Engle argues that the line is not between sacred and secular but between “good” art and “bad” art; if a Christian makes bad music, it is bad religion.  If a non-Christian makes good art, then there is truth and beauty in their work that point to the Creator of truth and beauty, whether or not they realize it.
 
When I became a youth pastor, one of the things I was most excited about was a music subscription service called Interlinc.  For a reasonable price, I was sent quarterly about twelve CD’s from Christian artists, along with posters, videos, and Bible study material based off of the songs.  As a huge music fan, I was looking forward to becoming an expert on the Christian music scene and hearing all sorts of bands that I might never have found on my own.  After three years of receiving CD’s, I remember looking around my office and thinking, “I’ve never owned so many BAD CD’s!”  It seemed that in each shipment there would be a couple of really good CD’s, one or two more that were good that I never would have found on my own, and about eight embarrassingly bad ones.  I think it was through that experience that I came to understand what Madeline L’Engle was trying to say:  bad music is bad religion, even if its subject is God.  The reason it is bad religion is that it reflects badly on our creative Creator when His followers make music (or any other type of art) lacking in creative excellence.

Just as bad “Christian” music is bad music, no matter how pious the subject, good music made by someone who does not recognize Jesus as Lord is still good music.  Madeline L’Engle goes even further than this, arguing that an artist or musician who is not a Christian can actually produce what one might call “Christian” music as he or she “gives birth” to the art that comes to him or her for expression:  “Provided he is an artist of integrity, he is a genuine servant of the glory which he does not recognize, and unknown to himself there is ‘something divine’ about his work” (Timothy Kallistos Ware, Eastern Orthodox theologian). 

The truth is that for some, Sandi Patty or Michael W. Smith sing songs that lead them into the presence of God and give them a sense of who they are in this world.  For others, the same songs are “bad art,” doing nothing to connect them to God, truth, or beauty.  However, those same people might consider a song by U2 or Johnny Cash to be a spiritual experience, magnifying their view of God and communicating truth about their relationship with God.  As L’Engle put it, “What is a true icon of God to one person may be blasphemy to another.  And it is not possible for us flawed human beings to make absolute zealous judgments as to what is and what is not religious art… the smarmy picture of Jesus which I find nauseating may be for someone else a true icon.”  The lesson here is to be careful about drawing artificial lines dividing “religious” art from “secular” art, but instead to broaden our appreciation for how God can reveal truth and beauty to and through believers and unbelievers alike.

I encourage us again to hold fast to Paul’s exhortation to fix our minds on that which is true, noble, excellent, and praiseworthy.  Let us celebrate truth and beauty wherever we find it, as we recognize the Creator of all truth and beauty, remembering that “every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father” (James 1:17).

Next week:  If there is such a thing as “Christian music”, is there also “Christian engineering”?  What about “Christian auto repair”?

“What’s that?” you say.  “Isn’t Christian music more popular than ever, selling more CD’s then ever, having a greater impact on the secular music scene?”

All that may be true, but I still believe that the time has come for Christian music to die.

“But what about Carman?”

Like I said…

Perhaps you’ve seen the charts that are omnipresent on youth group walls across America.  They’re called “Christian Music Comparison Charts,” and they go something like this:

If you like…                                     Then try…

Aerosmith                                       Petra
Rage Against the Machine                 P.O.D.
Gwen Stefani                                  Superchic[k]
Eminem                                          KJ-52

And so on…

The premise is simple:  “our kids are listening to music on the radio, and they like the beat, but the words don’t honor God, so let’s give them a “Christian” alternative that sounds similar but is full of God-honoring lyrics sung by committed Christians.”  For some reason, this all seemed to make so much sense ten years ago.  But it is becoming increasingly apparent that many singers and bands in the music scene make it difficult to construct a sacred/secular divide.  There are bands such as Switchfoot, Sixpence None the Richer, and P.O.D., whose music was marketed mostly in Christian bookstores until they experienced crossover success in the mainstream in recent years.  There are other acts, such as Chevelle and Dashboard Confessional’s lead singer Chris Carrabba, who also got their start in the Christian music scene before breaking through to mainstream success, but have ceased writing music with much spiritual content.  There are increasingly more singers and bands, like The Fray, Sufjan Stevens, and Mat Kearney, who consider themselves Christians but for the most part skipped the Christian music scene and are experiencing mainstream radio play or critical acclaim.  And, of course, there are numerous singers and bands who tackle Christian subjects or sing songs that talk about Jesus, salvation, and redemption, without trying to target the Christian audience – think U2, Evanescence, Kanye West’s “Jesus Walks,” and Carrie Underwood’s “Jesus Take the Wheel,” among others.

As the lines become more and more blurred, I think it is it time to dismantle the notion of a sacred/secular divide, that there is such a thing as “Christian music” vs. “Secular music.”  I am not arguing that Christian bands and artists need to stop making music; rather, that the belief that there is such a thing as “Christian” music vs. “secular” music needs to die.  Certainly there are Christians, and there are those who would not consider themselves Christians.  There is also music made by Christians, and music made by people who do not follow Christ.  But if I subscribe to the notion that I should only listen to music that honors Christ written by people who follow Christ - “Christian” music – where do I draw that line?  Does it have to say Jesus in the song?  What if it mentions Jesus but I don’t know the “salvation status” of the person singing the song?  What if the singer and guitarist are Christians, but the bassist is a Wiccan and the drummer is Buddhist???  What if I know the person is a believer, but they are singing about silly, meaningless things?  Is that better for me than a song written by someone who does not follow Jesus but discusses spiritual matters?  And what if the so-called Christian artist gets divorced, or struggles with drug abuse, or lives in a million dollar house?  If I only listen to Christian artists, how am I to judge their character so as to know if they are REALLY following Jesus or just paying lip-service to it in order to further their career?

To explore this ambiguity, consider this quote by Spencer Chamberlain of the band Underoath, a hardcore band that has experienced success in both the Christian market and the mainstream:

 ”A lot of this album is about my struggle as a human, with drug problems and emotional problems and fighting yourself and figuring out, really, how you’re going to change….But many people will be bummed out because I’ve been struggling with drug problems on-and-off since I can remember, even recently–really recently–I don’t believe in lying to people. Being honest, at least I know I could help somebody. As dark and twisted as the songs are, they have that element of hope in their heart, that there was a God, and the only way for me to get out was to hold onto his hand. A lot of people may feel that they’ve done too much or it’s too late, but that’s never the case.”

So… does this qualify as Christian music?  Music performed by a Christian who admits that he still struggles with drug problems?  Would you let your children listen to Underoath, even though they may get the message that it’s okay to be a Christian and to use drugs?

And, just to complicate things further, surely there have been songs written by people who do not profess to be Christians that have inspired you and brought you closer to God, regardless of the songwriter’s motives.  I think of Sarah McLachlan, best known for organizing the Lilith Fair tours a few years ago.  These tours, which brought together many of the leading female singers and bands (including some Christian artists like Jennifer Knapp), were named after Lilith, the mythical first wife of Adam, who according to legend left Eden of her own free will because she found Adam inferior.  Although Sarah McLachlan would not want to be confused as a Christian, her video for her song “World on Fire” is a stunning visual tale of how far $150,000 could go if it were spent on things such as school rooms in Afghanistan or clean water in Africa instead of on producing a music video (you can see the video at www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzoNInZ2ClQ).  This video has done more to inspire me to think about global issues of justice than any so-called Christian song has ever done.

I still think it is beneficial to draw lines between those songs that add to our lives and those that subtract from it.  There are songs that inspire us, educate us, challenge us, or give us joy, and there are songs that lead our attention from God, from things that are good and add value to our lives (Think about what Paul wrote in Philippians 4:8 – whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable– if anything is excellent or praiseworthy- think about such things).  But in my experience, there are many songs written by so-called “secular” artists that belong in the first category (inspiring and adding to my life) and many songs written by Christian artists that belong in the second category (subtracting from my life).
 
Psalm 24:1 says that “the earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it.”  The book of Genesis tells us that we were all created in the image of God, and Paul writes in Romans 1 how the whole world can know that there is a God who has revealed to the hearts of man what is good and what is wrong.  These passages tell us that all humans have the capacity to do good, to know and speak truth, and to create beauty because of our status as image-bearers of God.  As some theologians put it, “All truth is God’s truth.”  The corollary, of course, is that we are all fallen and sinful beings who are capable of serious evil and damage.  But the truth of these passages is that all songwriters are capable of producing music that communicates truth, even if they do not recognize it as the truth of God.  It is possible to find good and truth outside of the realm of Christian music.

I believe it is time to tear down the sacred/secular divide, to recognize that the whole world belongs to the Lord, and to celebrate God’s truth wherever we find it, whether it comes from the lips of a drug-addicted Christ-follower or a spiritually minded singer who does not recognize Jesus as Lord.

(Next week – Part 2 of “Christian Music Must Die” – Is bad music written by Christians better than good music written by a non-Christian?)