Format pictured: VHS

Released in 1995 by Integrity's Hosanna! Music

Thursday was a day off. I'm stuck in in an ole-white-guy bubble, but recently I've been thinking about and exploring 21st Century music. I happened upon a record review on Youtube, Ka and the Ruse of Faith- “The Thief Next To Jesus” analysis by the Professor Skye's Record Review Channel.

My knowledge and appreciation of Rap and Hip Hop is thin. but something I've appreciated about the genres is that so many fans are huge music nerds. The writing about the music is often really great.

Professor Skye's review is largely extemporaneous while he's sitting on his back porch. And I was making and eating some lunch while listening. His analysis is nuanced and worth listening to. Nevertheless,I wasn't paying attention closely. But the part that caught my attention was when he asks: "Which thief?"

To the left is a thief mocking Jesus in effect telling him to perform a miracle and get yourself off that cross, and while you're at it get me down too. The thief to the right then tells the thief to the left to stuff it, saying that we're guilty but Jesus is Innocent.

Professor Skye notes that if you consider the right thief, the good one, and the left thief the bad one you're missing something.: Jesus is in the middle. There are three men being tortured to death. And it follows that the bloody empire that imagined and perpetrated such awful cruelty is horrible.

There are tendencies in Christianity which have emerged in various places and times against empire, against powers and principalities. Professor Skye's analysis of Ka's album reminded me of Walter Brueggemann, and Old Testament scholar and teacher who died last month. Brueggemann was part of this antimperial strand of Christianity. I posted a quote from a eulogy for Bruegemann that which captures something I had grasped before listening to Professor Skye's review. Here's the quote:

Brueggemann painted the prophetic task not as angry denunciation or mere moral exhortation, but as the deeply pastoral, deeply disruptive calling to nurture grief and kindle hope. He showed that prophets break the silence not to shout down the empire, but to sing out another world.

In the old nautical dictionaries, sing out is defined as a chant, by which the sailor on the chains of a ship proclaimed his depth soundings with each cast of lead and line. Admiral Smyth explained it in his book The Sailor’s Wordbook of 1867 with a rhyme:

To heave the lead the seaman sprung

And to the pilot clearly sung- By the deep nine.

This song, and video, just scream pride to me!

This song makes me feel like I’m ok, as I am: a gay, demi guy who has PTSD from an abusive relationship.

This song raises my spirits when I’m struggling.

This song reminds me that it’s ok to be different; even if others don’t understand, it’s still ok.