The other day when I was listening to the radio I happened to hear two songs about the problem of evil in close succession: Depeche Mode's Blasphemous Rumours and Train's Calling All Angels. It got me to trying to remember if there are any other popular songs around on the P of E. Arrested Development's Tennessee was a good one from 10 or 15 years ago, and there are a bunch of U2 songs but I don't think any were radio singles (Peace On Earth, If God Will Send His Angels, Wake Up Dead Man). Certainly it's not a radio-friendly subject, but obviously it's not impossible ...
Posted by Camassia at July 30, 2003 08:15 AM | TrackBackI never heard of this song until I read about it on this blog:
http://whoyoutalkinat.blog-city.com/index.cfm?d=16&m=7&y=2003
It's the blog of a friend of a friend. Here's the song and the lyrics:
Dear God
by Sarah McLachlan
From the CD A Testimonial Dinner: The Songs of XTC (1995)
Dear God, hope you got the letter and...
I pray you can make it better down here
I don't mean a big reduction in the price of beer
But all the people that you made in your image
See them starving on their feet
'Cause they don't get enough to eat
>From God,
I can't believe in you
Dear God, sorry to disturb you but...
I feel that I should be heard loud and clear
We all need a big reduction in amount of tears
And all the people that you made in your image
See them fighting in the street
'Cause they can't make opinions meet
About God,
I can't believe in you
Did you make disease, and the diamond blue?
Did you make mankind after we made you?
And the devil, too?
Dear God, don't know if you've noticed but...
Your name is on a lot of quotes in this book
And us crazy humans wrote it you should take a look
And all the people that you made in your image
Still believing that junk is true
Well I know it ain't, and so do you, dear God
I can't believe in
I don't believe in
I won't believe in heaven and hell
No saints, no sinners, no devil as well
No pearly gates, no thorny crown
You're always letting us humans down
The wars you bring, the babes you drown
Those lost at sea and never found
And it's the same the whole world 'round
The hurt I see helps to compound
That Father, Son and Holy Ghost
Is just somebody's unholy hoax
And if you're up there you'd perceive
That my heart's here upon my sleeve
If there's one thing I don't believe in
It's you
Dear God
Oh yeah, I remember that! That's definitely a good example. I haven't heard the Sarah MacLachlan version though.
Posted by: Camassia on July 30, 2003 03:43 PM