The Influence of the Bible on Contemporary Music - Research Paper Example

The Influence of the Bible on Contemporary Music Music is influenced by the nature of the culture from which the artists have developed their aesthetic point of view. Music expresses emotional connections which are enhanced by the literary value of the lyrics that are written to define the subject matter. One of the most influential pieces of literature of the past two thousand years has been the Bible, the rise of Christianity forming culture and transforming the nature of life. Music and lyrics, as art forms, naturally reflect the cultural influence that the Bible has had on Western society. The Bible has influenced modern music, both in positive and negative venues, the Judeo-Christian foundation of society evolving in a wide variety of formats and belief systems. While some artists express joy from this perspective, others express anger and resentments. From either point of view, the Bible has been a strong influence on culture with the arts, including modern music, reflecting that influence. Schippe and Stetson explore the many ways in which the Bible has influenced society. Literature, the newspaper, rock musicians, screen writers, television producers, and advertisers, all frequently use the Bible for inspiration for their work. Fine artists and commercial artists use the Bible in order to gain inspiration for their work as well (1). The Bible is a double edged sword in regard to the influence it brings to society. The moral and ethical structure that Western society is based upon is derived from the Bible, thus much of the positive imagery found in the arts can be attributed to the Bible. However, there is a darker side of the Judeo-Christian heritage that often finds its way into the arts. Repression through strict Christian family situations or through sicknesses that manifest within the families of artists within a Christian framework sometimes finds its way into their work and is represented through vocal imagery that is associated with the Bible. It is easy to find contemporary Christian music with high levels of Biblical influences, but looking at secular music can also reveal a great deal of Biblical influence. The singer Madonna has had a long career with music that reflects the influence of her Catholic upbringing evident in much of her music. Her greatest hits album at the end of 1990 was titled The Immaculate Collection, a tongue in cheek take on the concept of the immaculate conception story in the Bible. Christian images are even more prevalent in her video interpretations of her music than even in the music itself (Taraborelli 203). In her song Like a Prayer, the visual imagery is specific to the crucifixion and to the embodiment of a deified male character who is associated with Christ. According to Campbell, the message of the song is that we are all brothers and sisters under Christ, that racism diminishes humanity. Her video emphasizes the spiritual nature of the music even though the music provides no straight narrative to the visual imagery (299). The band Devo used the influence of the Bible as a starting point from which to define some of the music that they created. They saw the Bible as a mythology, a set of beliefs from which society defined its place in the universe and Devo saw that hubris as humanity placing itself at the center of the universe. The name of their band, Devo, was constructed from the concept of de-evolution. In creating music that was contradictory in nature to the influence of the mythology of the bible, they were “attacking ideas that people have that they’re at the center of the universe” (Crisafulli 65). In naming their band by a name that came into conflict with creationism and evolutionism, Devo was making a comment on the pride with which religion elevates human beings above a place in which they lose their awe for all of nature. The music of politically inspired musicians often also include music that is inspired by the Bible. Sinead O’Conner, greatly influenced by the politicized, religious war of her native Ireland, used the Bible for a great deal of influence on her music. Her song Thank you for Hearing Me resembles the Bible school song Jesus Loves Me, her music charged with the complexity of the situation in her country. Her music, while critically not received well after her initial releases, reflected a sadness and imagery of a nation that was crippled under the pressure of belief systems founded in the Bible but in conflict with each other (Diggs 141). Because of the strong emotions that are often tied to religious belief systems, the art that emerges from stressful cultures will have a morose nature, reflecting the Biblical influences that have negatively affected their growth within their societies. Sometimes, stories of the Bible find their way into contemporary music. Revelations, in particular, has been highly referenced in contemporary music. A heavy metal band by the name of Manowar put out a song in 1983 that was called Death Angel, an apocalyptic story about the defeat of Satan. Death as described in Revelations is explored in a Hank Williams song called The Angel of Death (1948) which talked about meeting the Angel when they die. The lyrics ask listeners if they are ready to meet the Angel when they die. REM sang about It’s the End of the World as We Know It, telling listeners that it is the end and they feel fine, suggesting that peace is eminent, despite the horrors of the world. Even a musician known for lighter works, such as Jimmy Buffet has discussed the end of the world in his music. He wrote in his work Apocalypso, “When this earthly light is burning low, this dance will take you to the next plateau…We’ll be dancing when we go” (Roncace and Gray 45). Rap music has expressed Biblical influences within its catalogue of works. Context, by Flame in 2005 uses highly sophisticated theoretical concepts in order to create a discourse about interpretation. Tupac and Outlawz sang about Black Jesuz (1999) and Ice Cube voiced his anticipation in When I Get to Heaven (1993). Snoop Dog created his own set of gangster commandments through his piece of work Mac Bible Chapter 211 Verse 20-21 (2001) (Roncace and Gray). The ways in which the Bible has been used throughout all genres of music shows the great influence that the bible has had on culture. . One of Us by Joan Osborne created a piece of music that provided the concept of the humanization of God and the way in which people can relate to Him. Through her work, the idea that God is just like another person on the bus reflects the personalization of the relationship with God that can be discovered, along with a forgiveness for the ills of the world. The feminization of God has also been seen in music. In Dishwalla’s song Counting Blue Cars the lines “Tell me all your thoughts on God because I’d really like to meet her” repeats through the work and emphasizing the idea of a female God presence (Roncace and Gray 49). Culture and theology create a symbiotic relationship in which one is always creating influence on the other. According to Malphurs, “we use culture to order our lives, interpret our experiences, and evaluate behavior” (96). While culture has a large effect on the development of theological relationships within a community, theological elements will have a high level of influence on many aspects of culture. The Bible has had an extensive influence on more than just the spiritual lives of Western culture. Judeo-Christian ethics and morals have influenced politics, family structures, and social behaviors through a common underlying set of beliefs that frame Western society. Because of the influences that have come from the importance of the Bible in Western culture, the book has had a great deal of influence over the creation of the arts. Contemporary music has a great deal of evidence of the powerful influence that the Bible has held over the culture and the influence it has provided for contemporary music. Works Cited Campbell, Michael. Popular Music in America: The Beat Goes on. Boston: Schirmer Cengage Learning, 2009. Print. Crisafulli, Chuck. Nirvana: Teen Spirit : the Stories Behind Every Song. New York, N.Y: Thunder's Mouth Press, 2003. Print. Cusic, Don. Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music: Pop, Rock, and Worship. Santa Barbara, Calif: Greenwood Press, 2010. Print. Diggs, L. N. Sinead O’Conner. Vibe Media Group, November 1994. Print. Malphurs, Aubrey. A New Kind of Church: Understanding Models of Ministry for the 21st Century. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Publishing Group, 2007. Print. Roncace, Mark, and Patrick Gray. Teaching the Bible Through Popular Culture and the Arts. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2007. Print. Schippe, Cullen, and Chuck Stetson. The Bible and Its Influence. New York: BLP [Bible Literacy Project] Pub, 2006. Print. Taraborelli, J. Randy. Madonna: An intimate Biography. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2001. Read More