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The God-haunted music of Julien Baker
There’s a certain horror and heartbreak in God’s grace.
An old man dreaming dreams of psalms
Paul Simon isn’t religious, but the voice he heard in his sleep seems to be.
Missionary of grief
Musician Nick Cave talks to journalist Seán O’Hagan about his son’s death and the pull of love.
Imani Perry’s tour of the American South
South to America shows how one region’s beauty, losses, and inequities have shaped the country as a whole.
Thinking musically about God
One note fills the whole space. Then we add another—and a third.
In these troubling times, we asked some of our favorite writers to tell us about books (and other things) that bring hope and healing.
In the midst of all the unarmed black people dying at the hands of police and the even larger problem of anti-black ideology that has normed our society, I thought it fitting to share Moe's song. Let me know what you think about his song entitled Brown Skin.
My mind ventured off to the Contemporary Christian Music concerts I attended with my youth group. CCM was taking off, and evangelical teens had a mass of buying power. In my home, my mom would pay for any CCM that I wanted. So I listened to the music and even attended Disney’s Night of Joy. It was a magical evening in the kingdom. As Michael W. Smith sang in front of the Cinderella’s Castle, girls in the audience would raise their hands and scream, “WE LOVE YOU, MICHAEL!”
After school, I was milking the cow and listening to the radio when I heard a menacing baritone intone the words, "I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die." It made an impression.
by Rodney Clapp
Faith, as Marcelo learns in Franciso X. Stork's young-adult novel, is following the music when we don't hear it.
Early Christian writers recognized music's emotional power. Just as often, however, they commended it for its powers of harmony--in both the musical and extramusical sense.
Christian music these days is pushing across the boundaries of what many churches and denominations used to regard as acceptable. The introduction of new styles of music in worship—often styles associated with secular popular culture—symbolizes the extent of a given church’s cultural relevance and outreach. For that reason, it’s increasingly important for churches to become not only more inclusive and diverse, but also more discerning and discriminating in their musical offerings.