Contradition? I think not.
Sep. 15th, 2006 11:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bladesparkI was listening my my random playlist of doom, and I got two rather interesting songs in a row. First up was They Might Be Giants' The Bells are Ringing, immediately followed by Steven Kapp Perry's Great Things and Small Things
Now since some of you might not be familiar with these songs, TMBG's Bells is, as Jordan describes it, dystopian. Which is to say, it describes a world where everyone listens to the bells, and does what the bells say, and the girl with earplugs has them taken away, so she can hear the bells too, and be like everyone else. It's a commentary on a lot of what is sometimes wrong with humanity, and I quite like it.
Great Things and Small Things, on the other hand, is a song from an obscure musical about the Book of Mormon, and talks about how God provides a way for people to do what He's asked of them, wheter in great miracles, or just in small acts of kindness. It happens to be another one of my favorite songs, and I very much enjoy listening to it, both for the excellent traditional-style choral harmony and for the message in the lyrics.
So how is it that I can enjoy both of these points of view? On the one had, a creepy description of what happens when everyone simply does what they are told, all alike, and on the other hand a song urging one to follow God. Contradictory, aren't they?
Well, I don't happen to think so.
Because when you get right down to it, God doesn't tell us how to live our lives. No, really, He doesn't! (He did tell the ancient Jews how to live their lives, but that's a topic for three or four entire essays right there, so I'll leave expounding on that for another day and just say that Christ made it pretty clear that he was doing away with the Law of Moses, so the modern Christan shouldn't be paying much attention to anything found in Leviticus or Dueteronomy. Or Numbers either, but there's not really that much in Numbers except, er... numbers. A whole book spent counting Israelite tribes, how exciting...)
But I digress. To get back to the point, the majority of the New Testament, and a good heap of the Old as well, isn't about specifics. It's about attitudes and generalities, with some specific situations described as examples, but without a lot in the way of precise directions. God doesn't lay down details. The commandments consist of nice broad things, like "love thy neighbor as thyself." Does it say "lend thy neighbor thy powertools"? No, of course it doesn't! You get to decide whether you want to do that or not. Does it tell you "tell thy neighbor he's going to Hell because he's pagan"? No! Go look for specifics, you'll find precious few in Christ's teachings. He was more about a state of mind than a specific lifestyle. And that state of mind can pretty well be summed up in "love thy enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that despitefully use you and persecute you."
And if your neighbor, or friend, or enemy, or whoever, wants to wear earplugs, and be an atheist, or a discordian, or a pagan, protestant, or pastafarian, you LOVE them anyhow, and you don't "make" them become just like you "for their own good." They're not children. You feed your two year old spinach for his own good, you don't get to condem the guy in the next cubicle to hell for his own good, okay?
To put it another way, if God had wanted us to be all alike, He'd have made us all the same. He didn't. Embrace difference, don't fear it! Following God is about doing good in small ways, lifting and helping those around you, not about Hellfire and brimstone.
I did volunteer work at a old folk's home once. I went there every bingo night and carried up bingo cards so that they creaky old people wouldn't have to get up and down to have their cards read. They had a party for a couple who'd been married 50 years on bingo night once, and they had alcohol. And they wanted me to serve it, because I was the most spry one there. And you know what? I don't believe in drinking. In fact I think that alcohol is evil stuff. But I was there to help and serve, and what these people wanted was for me to help them. It didn't matter that what they were doing was wrong by my morality. They felt differently, and though I certainly wouldn't have been shy about telling one of them that I personally don't believe in drinking, their lives were not mine to direct.
So I served the booze, and they got drunk, and had fun, and were happy. And maybe they were also killing their livers and feeding a nasty addiction, but you know what? That's between them, their livers, and God. Not my business.
Man... the world would be such a better place if more people minded their own business, and saw to the beams in their eyes before nit-picking at the motes in others'.
Oh, and in case you care, here's lyrics!
The Bells are Ringing
The bells are ringing
The song they're singing
The sound is bringing the people 'round
They hear the instructions
They follow directions
They travel great distances to the sound
The bells are ringing
The song they're singing
The sound is bringing the people 'round
They hear the instructions
They follow directions
They travel great distances to the sound
They are persuaded by the music of the bells
They're not responsible for anything they do
(No) The people know
(No) The way to go
The bells are ringing, they hear the sound
The bells are ringing
And everyone's walking
With arms extended in a trance
Forgetting their washing
Neglecting the children
They're dropping all businesses at hand
A voice is telling them to act a different way
They tilt their heads so they won't miss what it will say
And when it's so
There's this to know
The bells are ringing, they hear the sound
The bells are ringing
The song they're singing
The sound is bringing the people 'round
They hear the instructions
They follow directions
They travel great distances to the sound
They are persuaded by the music of the bells
They're not responsible for anything they do
The people know
The way to go
The bells are ringing, they hear the sound
A girl with cotton in her ears
Is shielded from the bells' effect
As if by hidden signal
The people turn to face her
One thousand eyes are staring
They pull away her earplugs
The bells are pealing
And they're revealing
The simple key to happiness
It isn't evil
It isn't good
It's only what the people miss
The bells explain what they've been lacking all along
They were disorganized and that was what was wrong
And now they know
The way to go
The bells are ringing, they hear the sound
The bells are ringing
The song they're singing
The sound is bringing the people 'round
They hear the instructions
They follow directions
They travel great distances to the sound
Great Things and Small Things
To move a mountain, to make a sea become dry land,
To cross an ocean, to build a ship upon the sand.
Such things I could do if the Lord should command,
But the Lord has commanded me
To love a neighbor, and to forgive when I am wronged.
To keep my promise, to let my word become my bond.
How simple and small are the things He has asked,
Are the things He has asked of me.
Great things and small things,
I can do all things.
All that the Lord may require.
Though the world may assail me,
God will not fail me.
He will remain by my side.
Whether He asks for the great or the small,
I can do them all.
He gave us weakness, and yet He calls us to obey.
And so He teaches that we must all on Him for strength,
And such is the love that the Father extends,
What we pray for in faith, He sends.
Great things and small things,
I can do all things.
All that the Lord may require.
Though the world may assail me,
God will not fail me.
He will remain by my side.
Wether He asks for the great or the small,
I can do them all.
And through the small things will come the greatest things of all
(And then, of course, the playlist pops up a cheerful song that is, as far as I can tell, about nothing more than a purple toupee. Nonsense is just as good as philosophy.)
Now since some of you might not be familiar with these songs, TMBG's Bells is, as Jordan describes it, dystopian. Which is to say, it describes a world where everyone listens to the bells, and does what the bells say, and the girl with earplugs has them taken away, so she can hear the bells too, and be like everyone else. It's a commentary on a lot of what is sometimes wrong with humanity, and I quite like it.
Great Things and Small Things, on the other hand, is a song from an obscure musical about the Book of Mormon, and talks about how God provides a way for people to do what He's asked of them, wheter in great miracles, or just in small acts of kindness. It happens to be another one of my favorite songs, and I very much enjoy listening to it, both for the excellent traditional-style choral harmony and for the message in the lyrics.
So how is it that I can enjoy both of these points of view? On the one had, a creepy description of what happens when everyone simply does what they are told, all alike, and on the other hand a song urging one to follow God. Contradictory, aren't they?
Well, I don't happen to think so.
Because when you get right down to it, God doesn't tell us how to live our lives. No, really, He doesn't! (He did tell the ancient Jews how to live their lives, but that's a topic for three or four entire essays right there, so I'll leave expounding on that for another day and just say that Christ made it pretty clear that he was doing away with the Law of Moses, so the modern Christan shouldn't be paying much attention to anything found in Leviticus or Dueteronomy. Or Numbers either, but there's not really that much in Numbers except, er... numbers. A whole book spent counting Israelite tribes, how exciting...)
But I digress. To get back to the point, the majority of the New Testament, and a good heap of the Old as well, isn't about specifics. It's about attitudes and generalities, with some specific situations described as examples, but without a lot in the way of precise directions. God doesn't lay down details. The commandments consist of nice broad things, like "love thy neighbor as thyself." Does it say "lend thy neighbor thy powertools"? No, of course it doesn't! You get to decide whether you want to do that or not. Does it tell you "tell thy neighbor he's going to Hell because he's pagan"? No! Go look for specifics, you'll find precious few in Christ's teachings. He was more about a state of mind than a specific lifestyle. And that state of mind can pretty well be summed up in "love thy enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that despitefully use you and persecute you."
And if your neighbor, or friend, or enemy, or whoever, wants to wear earplugs, and be an atheist, or a discordian, or a pagan, protestant, or pastafarian, you LOVE them anyhow, and you don't "make" them become just like you "for their own good." They're not children. You feed your two year old spinach for his own good, you don't get to condem the guy in the next cubicle to hell for his own good, okay?
To put it another way, if God had wanted us to be all alike, He'd have made us all the same. He didn't. Embrace difference, don't fear it! Following God is about doing good in small ways, lifting and helping those around you, not about Hellfire and brimstone.
I did volunteer work at a old folk's home once. I went there every bingo night and carried up bingo cards so that they creaky old people wouldn't have to get up and down to have their cards read. They had a party for a couple who'd been married 50 years on bingo night once, and they had alcohol. And they wanted me to serve it, because I was the most spry one there. And you know what? I don't believe in drinking. In fact I think that alcohol is evil stuff. But I was there to help and serve, and what these people wanted was for me to help them. It didn't matter that what they were doing was wrong by my morality. They felt differently, and though I certainly wouldn't have been shy about telling one of them that I personally don't believe in drinking, their lives were not mine to direct.
So I served the booze, and they got drunk, and had fun, and were happy. And maybe they were also killing their livers and feeding a nasty addiction, but you know what? That's between them, their livers, and God. Not my business.
Man... the world would be such a better place if more people minded their own business, and saw to the beams in their eyes before nit-picking at the motes in others'.
Oh, and in case you care, here's lyrics!
The Bells are Ringing
The bells are ringing
The song they're singing
The sound is bringing the people 'round
They hear the instructions
They follow directions
They travel great distances to the sound
The bells are ringing
The song they're singing
The sound is bringing the people 'round
They hear the instructions
They follow directions
They travel great distances to the sound
They are persuaded by the music of the bells
They're not responsible for anything they do
(No) The people know
(No) The way to go
The bells are ringing, they hear the sound
The bells are ringing
And everyone's walking
With arms extended in a trance
Forgetting their washing
Neglecting the children
They're dropping all businesses at hand
A voice is telling them to act a different way
They tilt their heads so they won't miss what it will say
And when it's so
There's this to know
The bells are ringing, they hear the sound
The bells are ringing
The song they're singing
The sound is bringing the people 'round
They hear the instructions
They follow directions
They travel great distances to the sound
They are persuaded by the music of the bells
They're not responsible for anything they do
The people know
The way to go
The bells are ringing, they hear the sound
A girl with cotton in her ears
Is shielded from the bells' effect
As if by hidden signal
The people turn to face her
One thousand eyes are staring
They pull away her earplugs
The bells are pealing
And they're revealing
The simple key to happiness
It isn't evil
It isn't good
It's only what the people miss
The bells explain what they've been lacking all along
They were disorganized and that was what was wrong
And now they know
The way to go
The bells are ringing, they hear the sound
The bells are ringing
The song they're singing
The sound is bringing the people 'round
They hear the instructions
They follow directions
They travel great distances to the sound
Great Things and Small Things
To move a mountain, to make a sea become dry land,
To cross an ocean, to build a ship upon the sand.
Such things I could do if the Lord should command,
But the Lord has commanded me
To love a neighbor, and to forgive when I am wronged.
To keep my promise, to let my word become my bond.
How simple and small are the things He has asked,
Are the things He has asked of me.
Great things and small things,
I can do all things.
All that the Lord may require.
Though the world may assail me,
God will not fail me.
He will remain by my side.
Whether He asks for the great or the small,
I can do them all.
He gave us weakness, and yet He calls us to obey.
And so He teaches that we must all on Him for strength,
And such is the love that the Father extends,
What we pray for in faith, He sends.
Great things and small things,
I can do all things.
All that the Lord may require.
Though the world may assail me,
God will not fail me.
He will remain by my side.
Wether He asks for the great or the small,
I can do them all.
And through the small things will come the greatest things of all
(And then, of course, the playlist pops up a cheerful song that is, as far as I can tell, about nothing more than a purple toupee. Nonsense is just as good as philosophy.)
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-09-16 09:17 am (UTC)Embrace diversity
no subject
Date: 2006-09-16 02:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-16 03:22 pm (UTC)--Mav
no subject
Date: 2006-09-16 05:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-16 04:57 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-16 05:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-16 09:25 pm (UTC)So there.
no subject
Date: 2006-09-17 03:26 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-09-17 01:06 pm (UTC)In short, thanks for adding to my knowledge. If I get any more I can make Knowledge(Religion) Checks soon. ;)
no subject
Date: 2006-09-17 08:03 pm (UTC)I just happen to know human nature well enough to realize that trying to talk somebody into changing is the worst way to go about it. *grin*