Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. No heaven, no hell. Bruce Gerencser, 65, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 44 years. Hell will be your just desert (exactly what you deserve), and you will have no one to blame but yourself. CCM and Southern Gospel have been filled with scandals that the GMA (Gospel Music Association) have tried hiding as quickly as possible. People who heard about it 2nd or 3rd or quintillionth-hand might get confused about exactly who it was and view the entire group suspiciously because they heard that somebody involved had done something really bad.) I for one will not sit quietly while my XM radio blasts the sounds of these few, but prominent, individuals. 400 for Sierra. It was written over a period of 1,600 years by more than 40 writers from all walks of life. As one agreeing commentator put it, this falls flat in times when everybody knows theres a scandal. Evangelizing the Lost: Do You Have Blood on Your Hands? He was suicidal because he was going to lose everything. 1 HOUR OF SOUTHERN GOSPEL MUSIC HYMNS ON PIANO If you like video please "SUBSCRIBE" - "LIKE" - "SHARE" -"COMMENT"Stream or download all 22 Timeless, . The Cultural Origins of White Southern Gospel, Then Sings My Soul: The Culture of Southern Gospel Music, Bill and Gloria Gaither perform at a Gaither Homecoming Friends concert, Wake Up!! These issues and questions make up the emotional and analytical heart of Harrison's fascinating book, even though he addresses them in depth only in his final chapter: "Southern Gospel in the Key of Queer.". I enjoy classic Rock-n- Roll. So the Bible shows. Others were generals or kings, shepherds or historians. No other book has as many copies of the ancient manuscripts as the Bible. In John 3:16 (your verse), the Greek word translated as believe is pisteuo. The world scoffs at those who abandon the ship of this world and cling to the lifeboat of the Savior. Rev 2:22 Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds. The decade's top Christian music from Michael W. Smith, 4Him, Rebecca St. James, and Steven Curti Channel of the Day: Music from "HitKast Girl Power", Birthday: Country star Tim McGraw (5/1/67), Brand-New Crowdsourced Channel: "Loneliness". For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life See it. The first book printed was the Bible. Get back to the old paths and the old hymns. In Christs Army, Contemporary Christian music (CCM)? Those who looked like fools in abandoning the ship were actually wise, and those who seemed wise by staying on board were, in truth, fools. Yes, I do fear the perversion and depravity that they bring into the church, community, schools, and world. This is the claim of the Bible. Rev 2:18 And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass; Is IFB Preacher Jack Schaap a Model Prisoner? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.) "Still Captivated by Southern Gospel," Religion Dispatches (Q&A with Douglas Harrison) Seven years is a long time to wait between albums. 10:10), it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. Rather than try to rehabilitate a lost agrarian world, he returned to another familiar pursuit and became a gospel song writer and businessman along with Ruebush (5051). Change). In our scoop Link (go to speakers and scroll down to Kirk Talley, 4/06) of the testimony of Kirk Talley, we see a very arrogant response to the whole situation. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. An associate professor of English at Florida Gulf Coast University, he is a literary and cultural critic by training, which shines through in his deep textual analysis of song lyrics, stage performances, and styles, and in his occasionally overwrought, jargon-laden prose. SOUTHERN GOSPEL MUSIC. At least nobody lied there!) Egads, holy smoke, jumpin Jeo, look at what Jeeeeezus can do! Here is a link with pictures of the touching event. How should I deal with this? However, lets surmise for a moment that there is no Judgment Day and no hell. Its no wonder that Kirk and Kenny have some common dates this year, since they share the same crowd! Guy Penrod, a former music teacher from Atlanta, suffered chest pain while performing at a television taping in Red Rocks, CO. Hampton and the other singers from the Gaither Vocal Band have resorted to using sexual harassment. He has been in this hole before! He made it sound like everything was his spot in the industry. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2001. (I suppose I could imagine a case where its technically true. The songbooks themselves, argues Harrison, "became an early evangelical technology for managing the disorienting effects of modernization through a continuous stream of new shape-note tunes" (65). Since 2005, Kathie Lee Gifford, the well-known television host, has been telling Mrs. McPherson's dramatic and admittedly convoluted story in a theatrical production. do not ye judge them that are within? Charles Finney stated, God is not angry merely against the sin abstracted from the sinner, but against the sinner himself. Many of the musical groups traveled using diesel busses. When given the choice I will many times avoid settings where I may randomly be asked to sing or dance before the crowd. In the IFB world many will view me as either Not Right With God or unsaved. The Bakkers, PTL, and Southern Gospel Music | MusicScribe Scripture itself teaches you that whoever would fellowship with sodomites and lesbians are enemies of God. The whole time Im listening to him complain, Im thinking of Numbers 32:22-23 And the land be subdued before the LORD: then afterward ye shall return, and be guiltless before the LORD, and before Israel; and this land shall be your possession before the LORD. The music of the West Coast "Jesus Movement" of the late '60s-mid '70s, with Keith Green, Larry N With Matthew West, for KING & COUNTRY, Jordan St. Cyr and more of 2022's top artists, Christian Alternative from the mid-'90s and 2000s, Our curators choose the best in Gospel music from 2010 through 2019. I also disagree that even if there is sin involved, the group is obliged to spill for the fans. Paul I found a website that ask "Did Mike Hopper of the Southern. As far as attracting new church members? Southern Gospel got its start in what we know as the "Bible belt" in the southeastern United States. In 1866, the pair created "Ruebush & Kieffer," a gospel tune book publishing company at Singers Glen, Rockingham County, Virginia, an early nineteenth-century settlement in the Shenandoah Valley founded by Joseph Funk and German Anabaptists in the early nineteenth century (5960). Despite being an atheist, Heilbut found transcendent power in the music of the black church and went on to produce records by icons such as Mahalia Jackson and Marion Williams. There is no doubt that it was entertainment of a high order. . I wasnt there as I had already decided the concerts were nothing more than Christian approved entertainment. My Experience with Religious Fundamentalism and Bipolar Disorder, Dear Evangelical, Just Because You Quote the Bible Doesnt Make Your Comment True. But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him. Queering Southern Gospel: A Review of Douglas Harrison's What upset him, you ask? In the 1990s, I went through a CCM phase, thinking that if I brought in name groups, doing so would attract people to our church. The two reunited over a shared love of shape-note singing and a desire to reclaim "the pastoral peacefulness" of the past they had known before the war (5556). I didnt play rock music for decades because I bought into the IFB standard. A common theme as with most Christian read more. Because the music they wrote, the songs they sang, and the lives they lived were pure. How could everyone possibly know all the ins and outs of a private transaction? Top southern gospel artists | Last.fm Stop fighting God. Denying this facet of the music and its culture, he argues, obscures "the persistent role that misfits, outcasts, nonconformists, and strugglers of all sorts have played in the history of gospel music and evangelicalism more broadly" (168169). Many years ago we went to see this group and the crowd was full of the spirit with lots of hands in the air and charismatic gesticulations. This seems to go back to my point about repentance. He is faithful and will welcome you with open arms. Often, people from outside of our area would attend the concerts. Trust me, it really works! Tell us. I answered, Why do they have to? We dont know if theres repentance. Herein lies the problem of people who judge according to outward appearances rather than by what scriptures says in effect righteous judgement (John7:24). Reason being, I never paid much attention to musical performances back then, it was time to go to Church or later I was always helping on a Church bus route, and, of course, at that time it was a sin to be watching TV anyway in the IFB. White gospel embraced "southern" as a way to assert traditionalism, authenticity, and relevancy (8596). If they say that they are absolutely sure, then they are wrong because their own statement is an absolute. I used to be like you at one time but God opened up my eyes and I realized that gays and lesbians are people too and we should accept them as they are. IFB was custom make for me with dancing, it is considered sinful and forbidden. While there is absolutely nothing bad or wrong with what I viewed in the Robbie Hiner video, for some reason I sometimes become uneasy, anxious, or angry in some social settings when there is the possibility of being pointed out to speak, sing, or dance before the crowd. . 5. Then without warning, the great ocean liner strikes an iceberg and suddenly sinks, taking all on board with it. Do you have a better idea? A regular reader, JSR, replied that he felt public rebuke was biblical procedure. 400 for Sierra. Recently, those in the know (this blogger) has personally been in contact with those who are scheduled to host Mr. Talley. How can this square with what Harrison describes as "the most culturally fundamentalist sacred music in evangelicalism" (140)? Gaither Vocal Band Wins Southern Gospel Artist of the Year - YouTube 0:00 / 4:27 Gaither Vocal Band Wins Southern Gospel Artist of the Year GMA Dove Awards 150K subscribers 151K views 3 years. Tell God you are truly sorry, then trust the Savior as you would trust yourself to a parachute. I dont agree. I was unfamiliar with Robbie Hiner. Baby steps. One of early concerts was at The Potters House Fellowship in Miami. The three comprised the Talley Trio Talleys corrected 3/29) knew that Kirk was gay for almost 20 years before the scandal broke. To that end, he writes that he is "particularly indebted to autoethnography for empowering scholars to mobilize personal experiences too long deprecated by humanist scholarship" (14). The next year they were back but this time Annie Hering was sick and the group performed without her. Still, you can't help but wonder if just "complicating" southern gospel music's "orthodox power structures," while never challenging or disrupting them, makes participation in that culture akin to complicity. The openly lesbian Marsha Stevens is best known for her songwriting. Cant believe it? Rather than offend homosexuals by directly confronting the issue of their sinful lifestyle, modern evangelism often tries to soften the approach by saying that God hates the sin, but loves the sinner. This isnt a new concept. This was way back in the 80s. With the snarky little snipper about so called rightwingers, Im sure Darlene doesnt care what the Bible says, she can just look at people and through some sort of accumulated osmosis determine they are ok. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. God made me to be a homosexual, so He doesnt want me to change.. marianne I have been aware that my allegiance to church attendance would surely have improved had I the pleasure of some deep down southern gospel as an enticement. Think of it. For more on the difficulties faced by black gospel singers who come out as gay see, Kelefah Sanneh, "Revelations: A Gospel Singer Comes Out," The New Yorker, February 8, 2010, 4857, http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/02/08/100208fa_fact_sanneh. On April 26, 2005, Kenny shared the stage at Open Door. All the body activity of the SG quartets is for one simple reason-- they want to dance to the beat, and they cannot stand still. Reconciling these competing purposes allowed the genre to achieve cultural relevancy while providing fans with messages and emotions that grounded their identities as pious people marginalized by a corrupt modern world (8485). Though Jesse Aiken conceived of seven-shape notation in 1846, Ruebush-Kieffer songbooks like The Temple Star popularized the style of singing that Harrison argues anticipated the "melodic and harmonic developments that would come to define twentieth-century white gospel" (64). The seven-shape system attempted to "improve the quality of congregational music making by teaching as many people as possible how to sight-read . Now, to get to the verse I know some of you are waiting to throw at me. dont get me started on the singers themselves. In fact, Vaughn had connections with Kieffer and Ruebush, having studied at their Virginia singing school in the early 1880s. Southern gospel music. Harrison's candor about his personal connections to southern gospel, his love for the music's transcendent qualities, and, most importantly, his openness about how his sexuality has shaped his experiences with the music and industry make his book a powerful and effective example of self-reflexive scholarship. Please read the commenting rules before commenting. Dont expect a saved, sanctified, submitted, saint. My friend thought these groups were spirit-led, when, in fact, they were well-paid professional entertainers. Published at the end of the Reconstruction Era in 1877, The Temple Star, their most popular tunebook, sold more than a half-million copies (5152). He hates the theft, but loves the thief. John J. McCall A big, fat bust. Those who say that there are no absolutes are often very adamant about their belief. I am fifteen years removed from preaching my last sermon. But does the Church need to market music just to make a buck in the name of Jesus? The godly base their confidence on two truths: 1) all Scripture is given by inspiration of God (2 Timothy 3:16); and 2) an elementary rule of Scripture is that God has deliberately included seeming contradictions in His Word to snare the proud. The rest of the story is littered with his prideful account of how GQ treated him better than the Christian media. No other book even comes close. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. I think its great that Kirk and Joyce are visiting this church. The sin should be laid bare before the whole Church. The ability to reconcile tensions between old and new, orthodoxy and heterodoxy, queer and straight, represents "a key psychodynamic dimension of modern southern gospel" (60). There is a very definite reason why CCM and Southern Gospel continues to produce bad fruit. It's a debate that resonates far beyond the "cloistered world of southern gospel" (11). James 4:11 Speak not evil one of another, brethren. Christianity never heard of scandals from our hymnwriters. 9 Kenyan gospel musicians with ungodly scandals that made headlines - TUKO God is angry with the wicked [Psalm 7:11], not with the abstract sin. I think I have said enough and answered most of the questions here. The sin has no moral character apart from the sinner. And I suspected that the reason some of those concerts were held on Sunday nights was to attract potential Church Hoppers from other churches. Simply obey the gospel, and live. The forgiveness that is in Jesus Christ is conditional upon repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 20:21). For example, the original writings of Julius Caesar are no longer around. Anyone with a little discernment or at least a little brain activity can see this in the showmanship and the surrounding fanfare. Bruce, you wrote of your experience of Marketing Southern Gospel concerts hoping to gain Church members. These exceptions, however, hardly diminish the important role racism and expressions of whiteness have played in creating a separate "southern" gospel culture. I know you have studied these things extensively, so I am confident you can help. Then Sings My Soul draws upon Harrison's immersion in southern gospel culture since his childhood, as well as information he has gathered from interviews and relationships with people in the industry over the years. Programmed by Mark Blackwell. We dont know what innocent parties could be harmed by the dissemination of such information, including innocent group members. They wrote in dungeons, in temples, on beaches, and on hillsides, during peacetime and during war. Kirk claims that he hasnt spoken to her since 86. If you decide to go to the site and listen, here are a few words and phrases that you will fail to hear: repent, sin, I take responsibility, deliverance, abomination, hell, Im sorry, I deserve the fruit of my sin, I beg forgiveness. What I found wasnt surprising to me, but it was disappointing. However, when the religious trappings are stripped away, whats left is entertainment. There is a very definite reason why CCM and Southern Gospel continues to produce bad fruit. The anointing argument is often used to exclude the person from any scrutiny or rebuke. Over the years, I had several well-known groups come to our church: Robbie Hiner and The Journeymen, to name two. That person told me that it was forbidden to listen to Robbie Hiner at Hyles -Anderson college in the 1980s. Harrison says he wants "to suggest that the overt racism is not the only story here" and argues that "[r]ace is not nor has it ever been a predominant concern of most southern gospel songs or groups" (101). as a teen, i had to daydream about mtv music videos to get thru it. Our church was used by pastors as a stepping stone to larger churches (usually ones in the Nashville area). Rev 2:24 But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden. http://www.religiondispatches.org/books/culture/6221/the_gospel_church_and_the_ruining_of_gay_lives%3A Those who are looking for contradictions may therefore say, Seethe Bible is full of mistakes! and choose to reject it entirely as being untrustworthy. Since 1982, he has been at the forefront of southern. The David Phelps And The Gaither Vocal Group Scandal - Heart Eyes Magazine So-and-so needs to spend more time with his WIFE and kids. We know what he wrote only by the copies we have. You wont even realize that its good news. You cant be sure of anything!. Black gospel, with its call-and-response style, emphasizes the "power of the individual (the soloist) within the community (the congregation or audience and singers) to assert the self idiosyncratically (improvisation). Second, what is it about southern gospel that attracts "queer" fans and supports heterodox interpretations of a seemingly orthodox musical culture? 1 John 4:1. It is meant to get your feelings up, it is sensual, it is mental coasting. God can set them free from their sinful nature (Romans 7:238:2), give them new desires (Ephesians 4:2224), and help them withstand temptations (1 Corinthians 10:13). So it is with southern gospel music. If you have him for a concert, expect tears, pity, blame, and bitterness. In Then Sings My Soul he attempts nothing less than to "reimagine southern gospel music as abidingly indebted to a fundamentally queer aesthetic"not simply a genre of music that possesses an aesthetic that happens to attract queers (140). He will tell you whatever it takes to get in bed with your congregation. 4. He related her rejection by the church with his own. Voltaire died in 1728, but the Bible lives on.