They get their Hymns from Him.
...As much as we and the WASP*s do.

They swear, have lots of sex, do drugs and have supremely inflated egos. Kings of bling and coke, but still oddly, the song-writers who have succeeded reducing me to tears on the bus.

Kanye West and his crew speak of christianity from a different sociological angle. And one that cannot be written off for it's faults. I believe that they have revealed truth as experienced by their community. If Dan Haseltine was discriminated against for the colour of his skin, and entrenched in a history of exploitation and slavery leaving his community with little choice but to turn to abusive substances and crime, Jars of Clay would be spinning tracks wildly different from the ones that we know.

I think it'd be good for us to recognize truth in what we Christians see as 'improper' or 'worldly', and to think critically about our own Christian Culture. Especially in Singapore for Christ's sake, where the churches with their respective denominations find their roots in the terror of colonialism. The way I see it our christian culture, as with every other sphere of cultural development, is dictated by those in socio-economic power: the WASPs.

Kayne moves me to tears becuase he expresses the spiritual journey of the oppressed. And these weigh heavily on the heart of God. So while we're locked within our cultural lenses, let us be open-hearted and love those who are glaringly different.

And understand, and live according to the simple truths: That Jesus walks with them, and that He'll doesn't intend on letting them down.


*WASP: White Anglo-Saxon Protestant.