Thoughts From the Turnpike Part 2

A Guest Post by Tim Ghali

If you read Tuesday’s post, you’ll remember that I was listening to Radiohead as I drove past that billboard that got me thinking. Shortly after that thought, I remembered the criticism of a well-intentioned friend who was concerned for my appreciation of Radiohead. I remember the conversation well. He thought it was a bad example for a youth pastor to be listening to them and then he almost fell out of his chair when I told him that I burned OK Computer for one of my students. “Do you want to get fired? If you want to relate to the kids, give him Third Day.”

Then I fell off my chair.

I don’t have anything against Third Day; they’re good guys, they play their music, and I do like a few songs (like “Who I Am” from Conspiracy No. 5). As we conversed, I tried to express to him how much OK Computer made me think about God. Here we have these beautiful sounding songs accompanied by Thom York’s nihilism and I’m moved and saddened and motivated and perplexed and I love it because that’s a bit how God is.

The point of this post is not to criticize the Christian Music Industry or those that support it nor am I suggesting that worship bands become Radiohead tribute bands. My point is to say more that we tend to confine God’s glory in what we deem as “safe” and “appropriate”. While there is a emptiness in the music of Radiohead, there is also a great sense of hope. For instance, one of my favorite lyrics is from “Let Down” on OK Computer:
“You know, you know where you are with
You know where you are with
Floor collapsing
Floating, bouncing back
And one day….
I am going to grow wings
A chemical reaction
Hysterical and useless”

In my mind it invokes the ideas of losing, dying, despair, emptiness …. But there’s hope. There’s a promise and one day I am going to have wings and overcome … but they might not work … Like many, I enjoy paradox and irony. If you’d like more about Radiohead from a Christian’s perspective, I happily recommend David Dark’s Everyday Apocalypse. He devotes an entire chapter to it.

Many like to think that that their faith gets stronger by the feel-good nudges found in our Christian sub-culture. And suffering is from God for when we need a bigger nudge of faith. These are ideas that fall flat with me. In addition to the spiritual disciplines that are necessary for faith, my faith is also encouraged from less likely sources like Michael Shermer’s Skeptic Magazine or movies like Bill Maher’s Religulous or Fight Club (remember what Tyler tells “Jack” about God in the chemical burn scene?). The thoughts and conversations these moments have led to have been very beneficial to my faith. As you know, it’s a big world out there, as Christians, let us be blessed by the many ways God speaks into it.