This post is supposed to be a miscellaneous one, which means that the blog allfather, Stephen, has not provided me with a theme. Unfortunately, there are many miscellaneous things about which I would like to write, and only one post in which to do it. For example, I am one of millions of college basketball fans which in the past two days have moved through the five stages of grief regarding our March Madness brackets. I could write about that journey from denial to acceptance. Regrettably, I am still in the fourth stage, not yet having accepted the dumpster fire that my bracket has become. It was Ben’s recent post about social justice that caused the wheels of my brain to turn. And they have not stopped. Thus, one could say my post is born from that.
I try not to take criticism too seriously when it comes from a person to whom I would not go for advice. However, this is not always the best route, and so it should be traversed with care. Maynard James Keenan (hereafter MJK) is most definitely not a person to whom most Christians would go for advice. He is the lead singer of such bands as Puscifer, A Perfect Circle, and Tool. I would not recommend that you open a Spotify tab and listen to this music. For the most part, there are few, if any, redeeming qualities.
That being said, 2018 saw A Perfect Circle release a new CD called Eat the Elephant. As a high school worldview and apologetics teacher, I try to stay abreast of popular music and entertainment. I heard about the song TalkTalk on the new album, so I listened to it. I was stunned. Silent. Dare I say that I was even convicted? Now, in 2021, I have an outlet to speak to someone other than my wife about the song and the impact that it had upon me. I will produce the lyrics below, but be aware that I have purposefully censored a certain word that MJK seemed intent on repeating.
"You’re waiting on miracles
(While) We’re bleeding out.
Thoughts & Prayers.
Adorable.
Like cake in a crisis. We’re bleeding out.
While you deliberate, bodies accumulate.
Sit and talk like Jesus
Try walking like Jesus
Talk Talk Talk Talk. Get the **** out of my way.
Don't be the problem. Be the solution.
Faith without works is dead.
Talk without works is dead.
Sit and talk like Jesus.
Try walkin’ like Jesus.
Try braving the rain.
Try lifting the stone.
Try Extending a hand.
Try Walkin’ your talk or get the **** outta my way."
First, it should be noted that MJK is not a believer in Christ. Yet somehow he shows a wonderful understanding of at least some of the Book of James in this song. Ironically, he places the song on an album that many Christians will not hear. For me, this lessens the impact, as I do not think that MJK wants a dialogue with Christians so much as he wants to scream at them. My misgivings notwithstanding, it seems to me that if this is the general perception of Christianity, we’ve some work to do, brothers and sisters.
Would I go to MJK for advice? Certainly not. But I can take this criticism and at least examine my own life against it. Am I truly being an example of Christ in both word and deed (1 John 3:18)? Am I loving as He loves? Am I seeking truth, justice, and mercy (Psalm 89:14)? In the end, perhaps the best advice for a Christian who refuses to walk the talk is to just get out of the way. See, the profanity can easily be left out.
You may disagree with me, and that is your prerogative, but knowing that MJK is opposed to Christ actually causes me to respect his thoughts more. Like the atheist Bertrand Russell who said that “if we want a stable world" what we really need is "love, Christian love, or compassion" (Russell, 1951, Ch. 6), it seems apparent that MJK recognizes that the true Christ-life changes things. At least it should. When it doesn’t, we cease to be above reproach.
Perhaps when we are chastised and prosecuted by the MJKs of the world, it is not so much for well-doing as we think it is. Maybe we have become too comfortable saying, “depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled,” without actually lifting a hand. We may argue with MJK, but dare we argue with James? He asks the question: what does this profit (James 2:15-16)? To paraphrase, “what good does this kind of faith actually do?”
Another band, Five Iron Frenzy (FIF), led by Reese Roper, put it this way in a song released just last month:
"If you vote to stop abortions
**** the pregnant girls and orphans
Blame your decline on the LGBTQ
Offer platitudes not portions
Then your rancor is your fortune
And your poison is what’s poisoning you"
Language notwithstanding, FIF was, or is, a band of Christians. If you care to know, the censored word is not the same in both songs. FIF’s earliest works were the jams of my tweenage years. The album on which this song appears, has no less than six songs devoted to social justice issues. It smacks of liberalism and is, in essence, an attack on the politics of conservative Christians like me. To be honest, it was disappointing and it made me sad. But again, three years later and from a source much closer to home, the thought is the same. Christians have a lot of talk about morality, but not a ton of action.
For what it is worth, Reese Roper sat down with CCM Magazine for an interview about the new album and said, “Yes, I think it is Christian music. In fact, there were people in the band that kept saying it wasn’t Christian enough—and we needed more overtly-Christian songs in there. I sent the lyrics back to them with at least 5 Bible verses that had inspired the lyrics” (MacIntosh, 2021)!
I am not saying these perceptions are accurate. I pray to God they are not. But today I heard a pastor say, “Americans are three generations removed from seeing a massive move of Jesus.” Could this be true? As the culture grows darker, shouldn’t Christ’s lights shine brighter? So, what could happen if every Christian did a heart check? What would happen if every Christian prayed, “Dear God, let it not be me!” What would happen if every Christian fully backed up his words with actions? I think we would turn the world upside down (Acts 17:4-9). And maybe today you will read this, and the prayers will rise from your heart, and real change will begin with you. And me. And others. May it be so.
A Perfect Circle. (2018). TalkTalk. On Eat the Elephant. BMG.
MacIntosh, D. (2021). Five iron frenzy: Until this shakes apart. CCM Magazine. https://www.ccmmagazine.com/reviews/music/five-iron-frenzy-until-this-shakes-apart/
Five Iron Frenzy. (2021). While Supplies Last. On Until This Shakes Apart. Independent.
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