EXEGESIS: BREAD לחם (Lehem or Lechem) OF LIFE IN JEWISH THOUGHT *(Continued)

Continuing from where I left off on my previous post: TheoPoetic Musings: EXEGESIS: BREAD לחם (Lehem or Lechem) OF LIFE IN JEWISH THOUGHT:

---While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body” (Matt. 26:26).--Jesus’ body is the Bread.

---”I Am The Bread Of Life”--- ‘I Am’ Statement, Jesus speaks with Absolute divine authority. I Am echoes God’s True name. The Tetragrammaton-YHVH or YHWH, also referred to as the Ineffable Name. Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey:, which is usually pronounced as Yahweh or Jehovah though the exact pronunciation has been lost. See http://www.eliyah.com/tetragrm.html and http://pages.cthome.net/hirsch/tetra.htm for more info. The Jews never pronounced the Tetragrammaton but substituted the word Adonai instead (usually rendered in the Bible as 'Lord'), because of fear of desecration of the name. Ha-Shem, which means the Name or Elohim, which means a god or many gods are also substituted for it. This is the special memorial-name that God revealed to Moses at the burning bush. "And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM; and He said, thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, I AM has sent me to you... this is My eternal name, and this is how I am to be recalled for all generations" (Exodus 3:14-15). Actually, the phrase in Hebrew is "eh-yeh asher eh-yeh." The word "eh-yeh" being the first person future form of "hovah" (to be). A better English translation would really be, "I will be who (or what or that) I will be." Even though the name YHVH appears earlier in Genesis 2, God didn't reveal Himself as YHVH until Exodus 3 in conjunction with the creation of Israel.

---Baal Shem Tov= Master of the Sacred Name

---Shema--- “Hear, O, Israel, the Lord, your God, is One (echad) Lord.” (One Unity) This is the fundamental belief in Judaism and the opening statement of many Jewish rituals. The Hebrew word echad for one is also used in the Genesis passage about Adam and Eve becoming one flesh, which is an act of union.

--- Jesus would have said in a form of: “Ey-yeh lehem hachay” in Hebrew, “Iythay (to be) lehem chay” in Aramaic and “Einai (to be) artos zoe” in Greek. “I Am the Bread of Life.” Notice the close connections between bread and (to) life.
l'chaim -"To Life!" /lechem -(Heb.) bread

---The Wine of the Last Supper is like the kiddush and the kiddush HaShem lit.=sanctification of the Name: selfless act, esp. martyrdom. Wine is used as a means of sanctification. Wine has always been symbolic of blood sacrifice and atonement.=Cup of Redemption of the Passover.

---Wine is symbolic of blood and blood is the very essence of life. Wine has also been used as a symbol of love and divine love, especially by mystics. It is also symbolic of life, communion, covenants, death and even sex (see Song of Solomon for that) or intimate relations. Wine as a symbol is seen in a lot of Persian mystic or Sufi poetry.
Examples:

Don’t let go of the cup’s lips
Till you receive your worldly tips.
Bittersweet is the world’s cup
From lover’s lips and the cup sips.

---A Ruba'i or Quatrain of Hafez or Hafiz, a Sufi poet. Or this Ghazal of Hafez:

O beautiful wine-bearer, bring forth the cup and put it to my lips
Path of love seemed easy at first, what came was many hardships.
With its perfume, the morning breeze unlocks those beautiful locks
The curl of those dark ringlets, many hearts to shreds strips.
In the house of my Beloved, how can I enjoy the feast
Since the church bells call the call that for pilgrimage equips.
With wine color your robe, one of the old Magi’s best tips
Trust in this traveler’s tips, who knows of many paths and trips.
The dark midnight, fearful waves, and the tempestuous whirlpool
How can he know of our state, while ports house his unladen ships.
I followed my own path of love, and now I am in bad repute
How can a secret remain veiled, if from every tongue it drips?
If His presence you seek, Hafiz, then why yourself eclipse?
Stick to the One you know, let go of imaginary trips.

---Another extreme example of this is from Rumi, the founder of the mystical Sufi Order of Islam: “Let me taste the wine of eternal communion/Cry out in drunkenness, intoxicated, broken, alone…” from the Divan-e Shams 114
(http://www.rumionfire.com/shams/rumi114.htm). --- http://www.rumionfire.com/.

---Or from Edward Fitzgerald’s translation of Omar Khayyam’s Rubaiyat:

“Here with a little Bread beneath the Bough,
A Flask of Wine, a Book of Verse - and Thou
Beside me singing in the Wilderness
Oh, Wilderness were Paradise enow!”

(http://www.arabiannights.org/rubaiyat/index2.html)
See also: http://www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Khayyam.html
And: http://www.okonlife.com/---(In this quatrain of Khayyam’s, we see a connection with the Eucharist of the Last Supper or Holy Communion).

----More modern references to the mystical symbolism of bread and wine come from popular culture. Here are some examples from different song lyrics:

“Trouble/Oh trouble can't you see/You're eating my heart away/And there's nothing much left of me/I've drunk your wine/You have made your world mine/So won't you be fair.” ---Trouble--Cat Stevens.

“Bring tea for the Tillerman/Steak for the sun/Wine for the women who made the rain come/Seagulls sing your hearts away/'Cause while the sinners sin, the children play/Oh Lord how they play and play/For that happy day, for that happy day”---Tea For The Tillerman--Cat Stevens. See http://catstevens.com/index.html for others.

“Don't worry smile and dance/You just can work life out/Don't let down moods entrance you/Take the wine and shout/My life's a mess I wait for you to pass/I stand here at the bar, I hold an empty glass”---Empty Glass--Pete Townshend. (http://www.wdkeller.com/index17.htm)

“Here is your wine,/And your drunken fall;/And here is your love./Your love for it all.”---Here It Is--Leonard Cohen.

----Bill Mallonee And The Vigilantes Of Love: http://www.parting-shot.com/

---Chris de Burgh: http://chris-deburgh.de/

---- Genesis: http://genesis.musichall.cz/php/eng/

----U2: "Until the End of the World"
"We ate the food, we drank the wine...I took the money, I spiked your drink...In the garden I was playing the tart, I kissed your lips and broke your heart" -- see Judas and Jesus in Matthew 14-15, 20-29, 47-49 ---http://www.atu2.com/lyrics/biblerefs.html
http://u2sermons.blogspot.com/
http://lyrics.interference.com/u2/

---Bob Dylan:

http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Studios/7855/01skeletonkeys.html

http://www.literatureclassics.com/ancientpaths/dylan.html

http://www.radiohazak.com/Dylan.html

http://www.gottaservesomebody.com/

http://www.geocities.com/temptations_page/DylGuide.html

http://notdarkyet.tripod.com/index.html

http://www.alilyamongthorns.8m.com/0alilyamongthorns.html

http://web.utk.edu/~wparr/SlowTrain.html

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Forum/2667/articles.html

http://www.bobdylan.com/links/linksContent.html

http://mysite.verizon.net/vze796a4/index.html

http://hem.passagen.se/obrecht/backpages/chords/index.htm

"Business men, they drink my wine, plowmen dig my earth/None of them along the line know what any of it is worth."---All Along The Watchtower---"The Lord will enter into judgement with the ancients of his people, and the princes thereof: for ye have eaten up the vineyard, the spoil of the poor is in your houses." (Isaiah 3:14). All belongs to the Lord, but His creation has spoiled the earth, His bounty, His vineyard, and the poor.

Jokerman--At the beginning of the song, we see the Jokerman "Standing on the waters casting [his] bread" (1). We know that Jesus Christ said He was "the bread of life" (Henry 1; John 6.48). He also commented that "[m]an shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God" (Matt. 4.4). The Jokerman casting his bread, therefore, may be symbolic of Christ’s sharing his Word, since he "is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die" (John 61.50). Most explicitly, this verse of the song refers to Ecclesiastes 11:1: "Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days" (Henry 2). The implied hope, then, is that Christ’s teaching--which He has "cast" upon the people--will breed loyal disciples. But the hope is an insecure one. See http://www.radiohazak.com/Jokerman.html for a Jewish Interpretation of this song. Another interpretation of the first verse: Now let’s look at the actual verses in Jokerman and see how they describe Jesus.
Standing on the waters casting your bread
In demonstrating dominion over His creation Jesus walked upon the Sea of Galilee (Kinneret). When Jesus was being tempted by Satan to turn stones into bread to quench His hunger, He replied that man does not live by bread alone but by the Word of God. In the gospel of John, we learn that Jesus was the Incarnation of the Word of God and that He is the Bread of Life to all that come to Him. Or: http://web.utk.edu/~wparr/henryjokerman.html


Someone Got A Hold Of My Heart- They say "Eat, drink and be merry, take the bull by the horns."
From Luke 12:19. "And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, [and] be merry." This is what a rich man who plans on living a life on hedonism says to himself in one of Jesus' parables. The chronicle goes on (12:20) to record God's reply to the man: "Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?" The moral of the story is, Jesus explains, "Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on. The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment." (12:22-23)

Lyrics Search for Bread: YEA! HEAVY AND A BOTTLE OF BREAD
Yea! Heavy and a bottle of bread

DIAMOND JOE
5. Now his bread it was corn dodger

FROM A BUICK 6
She's a junkyard angel and she always gives me bread

SANTA-FE
She's rollin' up a lotta bread

YE SHALL BE CHANGED
And you been eating the bread of sorrow

SOMETHING'S BURNING, BABY
You can't live by bread alone, you won't be satisfied

GATES OF EDEN
Who pick up on his bread crumb sins

CLEAN-CUT KID
He drank Coca-Cola, he was eating Wonder Bread,

JOKERMAN
Standing on the waters casting your bread

FOOT OF PRIDE
Feed you coconut bread, spice buns in your bed

GOTTA SERVE SOMEBODY
You might like to eat caviar, you might like to eat bread, Total number of matches: 11

---See also---Contemporary Christian Artists, Hymns And Such
Larry Norman, Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith, Steven Curtis Chapman, etc.

More On "The Day The Music Died"

Read these posts.

Buddy Holly Tours

On Buddy Holly's Baptist Faith: In Memory of Buddy Holly: The Day the Music Still Lives:

February 3, 2009, marks the 50th anniversary of "the day the music died." A half-century ago, a 23-year-old Buddy Holly boarded a plane on a wintry Iowa night with fellow package show headliners the Big Bopper and adolescent Richie Valens. After a now legendary coin toss with band bass player Waylon Jennings, the three stars took their flight into rock and roll lore. In terms of rock history, the tragedy of that light aircraft crash in Iowa marked the end the era of 50's rock. It was a time and a place when innocence could still be truly innocent. While Elvis was out womanizing, Johnny Cash was popping pills and Jerry Lee Lewis was marrying his 13-year-old cousin, Buddy Holly was still sending 10% of his income to his Baptist church in Lubbock, Texas. Holly didn't womanize or do drugs, instead, he got married to a woman his own age. For Buddy Holly, the Christian ethic and world view were a given, without question. It was such a part of his life, he never thought to doubt the faith of his fathers as neatly woven into his career.

The Buddy Holly Story biopic falsely portrays his parents and his pastor disapproving of his rock and roll music. In reality, they were all thrilled with both his music and his success. While other small town Texas communities encouraged sports as the main point of achievement, for Lubbock, musicianship was of equal, if not superior value. After all, this was the land of Bob Wills and The Sons of the Pioneers. From my own amateur rock historian perspective, I often wonder what would have happened to rock and roll had Holly lived on. My innocence envisions him leading The Beatles to the Lord and ushering in an eternal age of youth and clear-eyed innocence. But, this is, I admit, at best naive. Its hard to say where Buddy Holly's musical journey would have led him. As it was, he was beginning to form partnerships with more pop driven artists like Paul Anka and using some pretty un-rock and roll sounding strings and arrangements on his latter day recordings. Listen to "True Love Ways." Its beautiful, yes, but not the raw, joyful sound of "That'll Be The Day."

An old girlfriend of Buddy's speaks on their relationship.

Buddy Holly's Church---a loony historical revisionist fundamentalist King James Only church/cult: Tabernacle Baptist Church Lubbock Texas.

Big Bopper exhumed and Big Bopper's casket a macabre marketable on eBay

Buddy Holly's Widow Speaks On "The Day The Music Died"

For those of you who missed it, Feb. 3rd was the 50th Anniversary of "the day the music died" when:

On February 3, 1959, a small-plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa, United States killed three American rock and roll musicians: Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and J. P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, as well as the pilot, Roger Peterson [1]. The day was later called The Day the Music Died by Don McLean in his 1971 song "American Pie".[2][3]

Buddy Holly's widow said this of the late Buddy Holly:

Buddy Holly Makes His Widow's Heart Go Boom 50 Years Later

The third of February marks the 50th anniversary of the plane crash that took the lives of Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens -- an occasion immortalized in Don McLean's 'American Pie' as "the day the music died." However, for Holly's widow, Maria Elena, he has never been far from her side. She has spent the past half century keeping his music and legacy alive.

Best known for hits including 'That'll Be the Day,' 'Peggy Sue,' 'Maybe Baby' and 'Rave On,' Holly is one of rock 'n' roll's true pioneers, creating a larger, lasting body of work in two years than most artists build during a lifetime. Holly's music, alone and with the Crickets, is plumbed in two new compilations: the 60-cut 'Memorial Collection' and the 59-selection 'Down the Line: The Rarities,' both of which contain previously unreleased material.

To commemorate the tragic anniversary, Maria Holly will be in Clear Lake, Iowa, at the Surf Ballroom & Museum, the site of Holly's last show, for a Feb. 2 concert organized by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She talked with Spinner about her brief yet magical time with Holly, new directions he was exploring musically and culturally, and her enduring love for him in the years after his death.

You met Buddy when he came into Peer-Southern Music, the music publishing company in New York where you worked. Were you a fan?

I'd never seen a picture of him or even knew who he was in person, because when I met him he'd just come from a tour in the U.K. I knew of him because I used to mail the 45s to the disc jockeys, I knew the name and songs.

Did you think he was cute?

I thought he was sexy-looking. It was like, "Boom!" It was strange to me, since I'd never been on a date. And he felt the same way. It was, like they say, love at first sight. I didn't hear the bells, but I felt the boom, boom. I felt it in my heart.

Two months after meeting, you and Buddy married. You lived in New York's Greenwich Village surrounded by various folk and jazz clubs. How did that influence his music?

We were both night people. He'd get up in the middle of the night and start writing. He was a little restless; we'd roll up our pajamas and put our coats on. He enjoyed listening to the poetry. Sometimes people would play the guitar in some of the coffee houses. It was something to put his mind at ease because he was so involved in writing. He loved anything to do with poetry and music.

Did you ever play any music for him from artists that you liked?

Yes I did. As a matter of fact, he was planning with my aunt, who was one of the execs at Southern Music, to do an album [in Spanish]. [At the time of his death, he] was in the process of my aunt trying to get songs that he would be able to do. At the same time, I was trying to teach him how to pronounce the words correctly and with a person from Texas, that's not so easy [laughs]. But, you know what -- he was really learning.

'Rarities' includes undubbed versions of what are known as the 'Apartment Tapes.' They showcase Buddy's voice in its unadorned purity.

He had that little [Ampex tape recorder] there with that mic and it was just very raw. He would erase and come back while he was composing. He would come first sometimes with the music, and then he'd write lyrics, or vice versa. A lot of people ask, "What comes first?" and I say I saw it both ways.

The Apartment Tapes also include a snippet of a conversation you and Buddy had in your apartment in 1958. What runs through your head when you hear that?

Oh, dear, that was the most difficult one when I was listening. I had to stop and I went back and pictured myself in the apartment. I started visualizing where he was sitting. Where I was. The whole apartment. It was pretty hard for me to listen to this, but I wanted to hear. [In the conversation] I was trying to get him to take a break because he was constantly writing ... I did a lot of different things to bring him out of what he was doing and sometimes even to get him to eat something. He forgot about everything else when he was writing.

He was exploring different musical paths when he died at 22. What direction do you think he was going in?

He wasn't afraid to try things, so that was a plus for him. I think he would have gone into different ways. As a matter of fact, he also was very much interested in music like Mahalia Jackson and Ray Charles, gospel. We even went to California, looking for [Charles], but unfortunately he was on tour. [Buddy] wanted to do a duet with him and also with Mahalia. He said, "I'll get him sometime or another."

People talk about Buddy's voice, his songwriting and his glasses. What else do you wish people know about him?

Buddy was very, very generous. Even though he was the one closing the shows, he was not hesitating to sit for others. With the Everly Brothers, he sat down and played the drums because the drummer didn't show up. It never fazed him if he had to sit in for someone or do something for the others. He was sure of himself. He never contemplated the status; [it was] "If you need me, I'm here." I admire him for that. And love him more and more every day.

You've said you couldn't listen to his music for years after he died. What was it like the first time you finally heard it again?

I still have problems. I can hear it when I go on appearances when they have a special tribute because I see the fans being so energized, but here in the house, it's sometimes very difficult. I just can not handle it. So even after this day, after 50 years, it's something...People say time cures all and I say it does not, it does not cure that and especially the way I loved him. He was here one moment and he's gone the next day.

What do you remember about that last trip? You didn't go because you were pregnant.

I remember distinctly that I already had my suitcases done and I had them at the door and he said, "No, honey, I don't want you to go. Take care of my baby and I'll be back in two weeks. So don't worry, I' ll call you every night." [Maria Elena miscarried after Buddy's death. She later had three children with her second husband.] I still blame myself. If I had insisted on going and said, "No, I'm going," I'm sure ... OK, I was a little pushy when I needed to be, so, actually, this is the only regret that I have about what happened to him. I still remember constantly and I say, I wonder, if I had [gone], if he would still be [here] because I would not have let him get on that small plane. I didn't know he did that, absolutely not ... I still sometimes get upset.

Neil Diamond's Holly Holy And Prayer: A Call To Holiness

Prayer: A Call To Holiness---Using Neil Diamond's
Soolaimon/Holly Holy As A Catalyst For Discussion

First listen to this song:



Now pay attention to these lines:

...Ride on the night
Sun becomes day
Day shall provide...

...God of my want, want, want
Lord of my need, need, need...

...God of my day, day, day
Lord of my night, night, night
Seek for the way, way, way
Taking me home...

(Full Lyrics: Here).

And:

Holly holy eyes
Dream of only you
Where I am, what I am
What I believe in
Holly holy

...And I run just like the wind will...

...Sing a song
Sing a song of songs
Sing it out
Sing it strong

Call the sun in the dead of the night
And the sun's gonna rise in the sky
Touch a man who can't walk upright
And that lame man, he's gonna fly
And I fly
And I fly

Holly holy love
Take the lonely child
And the seed
Let it be filled with tomorrow...

(Full Lyrics: Here).

Now, what do you notice about Neil Diamond's quasi-religious language? To me---Neil's phrases invoke a sense of the urgency of prayer and it's use as an act of a call to holiness such as:

...Day shall provide...(God provides)

...God of my want, want, want
Lord of my need, need, need...(human longing)

...God of my day, day, day
Lord of my night, night, night
Seek for the way, way, way... (the human need for discernment of God's Will for our lives)

And: ...Sing a song
Sing a song of songs
Sing it out
Sing it strong
Call the sun in the dead of the night
And the sun's gonna rise in the sky... (the act of prayer itself)

...Holly holy love
Take the lonely child
And the seed
Let it be filled with tomorrow... (future longing and hope)

What are your thoughts? Prayer indeed is a call to holiness for it provides us a sense of God given wholeness and spiritual peace. See: The Freedomist: Prayer And Wholeness, Part I (v.1) for example.

See also: Is Neil Diamond a Christian?, Neil Diamond-I Am & Holly Holy and Songs Sung Blue
Leonard Cohen and Neil Diamond: separated at birth?.

White Lion's Social Consciousness

Here are the lyrics to the above song:

When The Children Cry
Artist(Band): White Lion

little child
dry your crying eyes
how can I explain
the fear you feel inside
cause you were born
into this evil world
where man is killing man
but no one knows just why
what have we become
just look what we have done
all that we destroyed
you must build again

when the children cry
let them know we tried
cause when the children sing
then the new world begins

little child
you must show the way
to a better day
for all the young
cause you were born
for all the world to see
that we all can live
with love and peace
no more presidents
and all the wars will end
one united world
under god

when the children cry
let them know we tried
cause when the children sing
then the new world begins

what "have we" become
just look what we have done
all that we destroyed
you must build again
no more presidents
and all the wars will end
one united world
under god

when the children cry
let them know we tried
when the children fight
let them know it ain't right
when the children pray
let them know the way
cause when the children sing
then the new world begins

White Lion and Social issues

Unlike most bands of their genre, White Lion recorded occasional songs that addressed social or political issues such as apartheid ("Cry for Freedom") and the effect of divorce on children ("Broken Home"). The song "Little Fighter" was about the Rainbow Warrior, a ship owned by the environmental group Greenpeace that was illegally destroyed by operatives of the French intelligence service. This concern for political and social issues was also hinted at in the cover art to their album Big Game, which featured a lion's head hidden in tall grass with the White House in the background.

Read an interview with band member and co-founder of the group here.

Coldplay's Revolutionary Christianity

On the heels of Justin's excellent post from---Wednesday, August 20, 2008---Cartoon Of The Day. I'd like to share this interesting bit from a Wikipedia article:

The magazine Q asked Chris Martin about the line "I know Saint Peter won't call my name" sung in "Viva la Vida". Martin replied: "It's about… You're not on the list. I was a naughty boy. It's always fascinated me that idea of finishing your life and then being analyzed on it. And this idea runs throughout most religions. That's why people blow up buildings. Because they think they're going to get lots of virgins. I always feel like saying, just join a band (laughs). That is the most frightening thing you could possibly say to somebody. Eternal damnation. I know about this stuff because I studied it. I was into it all. I know it. It's still mildly terrifying to me. And this is serious."[1] When asked about the song, bass guitarist Guy Berryman said, "It’s a story about a king who’s lost his kingdom, and all the album’s artwork is based on the idea of revolutionaries and guerrillas."[2]

This seems to tie in nicely with some of Doug Pagitt's thoughts from his Way Of The Master radio interview:

---(Part 1)


---(Part 2)


And for those of you who have yet to hear Coldplay's new song here are the full lyrics:

I used to rule the world
Seas would rise when I gave the word
Now in the morning I sleep alone
Sweep the streets I used to own

I used to roll the dice
Feel the fear in my enemy's eyes
Listen as the crowd would sing
"Now the old king is dead, long live the king"

One minute I held the key
Next the walls were closed on me
And I discovered that my castles stand
Upon pillars of salt and pillars of sand

I hear Jerusalem bells a-ringing
Roman cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror, my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can't explain
Once you'd gone there was never
Never an honest word
That was when I ruled the world

It was a wicked and wild wind
Blew down the doors to let me in
Shattered windows and the sound of drums
People couldn't believe what I'd become

Revolutionaries wait
For my head on a silver plate
Just a puppet on a lonely string
Oh, who would ever want to be king?

I hear Jerusalem bells a-ringing
Roman cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror, my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can't explain
I know St. Peter won't call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world

Ohh...

Hear Jerusalem bells a-ringing
Roman cavalry choirs are singing
Be my mirror, my sword and shield
My missionaries in a foreign field
For some reason I can't explain
I know St. Peter won't call my name
Never an honest word
But that was when I ruled the world

Ooh...

You can also watch the music video:



Coldplay's new song also reminds me of John Lennon's "Imagine." So here is a thought that came to my mind: the question is although, eternal life and the afterlife are important to our Christian beliefs, shouldn't we as Christians focus on living the life of Christ in the here and now rather than turning Christianity into one more punishment and rewards religion among the many others?

The Gospel Of Bruce Springsteen

#

Here this is for you, Dr. J:

http://www.religionnews.com/index.php?/rnstext/the_gospel_according_to_the_boss/


Here is an excerpt from the book The Gospel According To Bruce:

Bruce's Ten Suggestions for Spiritual Living

1. The world has gone awry. The world according to Bruce is often portrayed as a gritty, conflicted, sometimes dark and sinister place. It differs for the particular characters involved in each song, of course, but the darkness is always there on the edge of things or not very far beneath the surface.

2. There is a power within the souls of men and women to transcend the world and to achieve real victories in spite of the world. For every homeless loser who has left his wife and kids high and dry back in Baltimore, there is that good man or good woman who works endlessly at a thankless job to meet his or her responsibilities. People have within them the power to choose to be true to themselves and what really matters.

3. The world is as it is. There is both great pain and great joy in life, Springsteen affirms. Once we have accepted that the pain is part of the deal, then we are free to experience genuine joy when it comes our way.

4. Life without connections is empty and dangerous. Springsteen sings of a stark array of misfits, criminals and losers. But there is always compassion in the portraits he presents, and we sense that the line between winners and losers is a narrow one and that what differentiates the former from the latter are the connections they have with other people.

5. Our stories symbolize something deeper. The great lie of our contemporary, celebrity-crazed culture is that only the rich and famous have stories worth telling. There are almost no celebrities featured in Springsteen's songs. His stories are our stories, and the wisdom (as well as the folly) they contain is ours, too.

6. Life is embodied. Sexuality is intrinsically neither good nor evil, Springsteen implies; here, as in all human ventures, only good soil will produce worthy fruit.

7. It's all about change. If we cling to the past, it withers and dies. If we let it go gracefully and move on to the next stage of our lives, the gifts of the past can continue to bless us.

8. There is no guarantee of success. Sometimes life teaches us lessons about humility and silence and emptiness and pain and unanswered prayers. At those times, we know that our true treasure is the power of our own integrity, and our reward lies in keeping faith with those other decent, down-to-earth, hardworking people everywhere.

9. Hope is resilient. The men and women in Springsteen's songs may win or they may lose, but they seldom abandon all hope. Despair is seldom, if ever, given the final word. It is hope that carries us human ones on the sacred vector toward life's divine possibilities.

10. There is always something more. If Bruce is luminous in his work — shining a light of perception on the horizontal dimension of this earthly life — so he is numinous as well — casting this life we lead in the brilliance of an almost mystic glow; shedding the radiance of discernment on that vertical beam which crashes through the linear plane of existence and points it toward that which is higher, deeper, somehow transcendent.



**Excerpted from The Gospel According to Bruce Springsteen by Jeffrey B. Symynkywicz. Reprinted by arrangement with Westminster John Knox Press. © 2008.

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible are copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. and are used by permission.