“Christian” as an Adjective
Ξ January 25th, 2006 | → 2 Comments | ∇ Theology |
Allow me first to introduce you to someone I know. He is Dan. Dan and I have many long conversations about all kinds of things. Usually we discuss ourselves into a place where we basically both agree that the world is a mess. Often our discussions are about the state of the church and our place in it. What is the church meant to be doing? Are we doing it?
Dan and I also spend a lot of time talking about music. He and I are both musicians and aspiring song writers. We are both members of a song writer’s guild and so we often ask questions about the types of songs that we should be using and therefore writing in our churches. Today, the question was posed…
Should the word “Christianity” EVER be used as an adjective?
Well I think that we can all agree on it’s noun-ness. It’s cretainly a noun. I am a Christian. A Christian by definition is someone who strives to be Christ-like. That means like a million different things. Basically by calling myself a Chrsitian, I am saying that I’m a follower and/or a disciple of Christ. Thus the term “Christian” can easily be used as a noun.
Now what about it’s use as an adjective. What do I mean? Let me give some examples…
- Christian Radio Station
- Christian Music
- Christian Magazine
- Christian Bookstore
Obviously I could go on and on. The use of particular interest to me is the “Christian Music” one. Well, first of all music can’t be christ-like. It can be Christ centred. The real use of that term is meant to say that this music overtly expresses and promotes Christianity. Ok. So whats the point in that lable in the first place?
I’m a married man. I don’t cheat on my wife. So that’s established. Now consider this. Uncle Kracker has had a song on the radio called, “Fallow Me”. The song is basically the singer trying to convince a married woman (or maybe an engages or otherwise committed woman..or man I suppose) to enter into an affair with him. So that’s what the song is about. Unfaithfulness in a relationship. So do we refer to that song as a part of the genre called Cheater Music? Or what would be even more parrallel would be to call it Cheater-like Music. That doesn’t make sense.
Further to that, if I listen to that song, does that make me a Cheater? No. By listening to it and even enjoying it, am I any more likely to cheat than I was before I ever heard it? No. Was it put on the radio because it was a good Cheater Song? No - at least probably not. The song would have fit into a radio mold. It’s a simple song with a nice “feel” to it. It fits really well into the “pop” genre we’re all so used to being forced to hear. (At least it feels that way some times.)
So Uncle Kracker can write a hit song about cheating but he doesn’t have to seek out a Cheater radio station???
So why the hell, are there Christian radio stations?
If I got in my time machine I got off ebay and went back in time to just before that song was release and replaced the lead vocal track with an equaly well performed vocal that expressed christian views and was even a song in praise of Jesus, would the song still make it on the radio? I submit that it would not. Why? Because thought it doesn’t make sense, there IS such a thing as Christain music. Its the label given to music that is about Christianity. For some reason out of the millions of topics that songs are about, this one topic is assigned it’s own genre, thus alienating it from mainstream radio.
It shouldn’t be this way. It defies logic. It’s crazy.
I can write a rock song and it only “counts” if it’s not about Jesus.
Of course, this is not always true. There are bands like Lifehouse and Creed that each have Christian members and sing about Christian morals and so on, but if you consider worship songs, or songs that basically just extol Jesus using direct Chirstian language, it’s true almost all the time.
Do you know how I think it should be? Genre should be a musical style thing only. (i.e. rock, jazz, rap, ska, metal, etc.) Chirstian should not come into it.
As a christian musician, I should really be standing against Christian radio and any other area where my music will be labelled as Christian. That will only limit the places my music can go. I’ll sell less but what me more unfortunate is that non-Christians will not hear my music and there will be no chance at all that they might learn about why I have chosen Christianity. How is that Ok from a Great Commission (Matt 28:18-20) perspective?
I would be fulfilling the Great Commission better if I avoided letting my music from being flagged as Christian. Seems ironic, hey?