There was Scripture 1A, then rough weather, a hunting obsessed saint, and Scripture 1B. Then we had an obituary and a calling and scary parenting posts. And we can't forget Belloc!
Still reflecting on some of last weeks posts, I put together this mix of songs for your listening pleasure. Some may not be pleasurable, though. Indeed you may find some irritating, grating, or troubling even. But stay the course, and I think you will be pleased and uplifted, somewhere between the rock and the hard-place.
Wrapping up Belloc's book with the chapter on the Modern Phase reminded me of this song by The Doors. Riders on the Storm. "Into this house were born, into this world were thrown." In my mind, I can assign roles to each of the characters Jim Morrison sings about here: the riders, the actor, the killer, the girl, the man. How about you?
The Byrds, Turn, Turn, Turn. The roots of this Pete Seeger song? Hint: it's from Frank's favorite Old Testament book. Yeah, you guessed it, Ecclesiastes (see chapter 3). Because everything I know (about this world) I learned from Ecclesiastes. I even built a Facebook page with that title. I must say that I'm very glad The Word decided to follow-up and make some of Qoheleths observations obsolete. Most of them are still on target though.
A more modern take on the Ecclesiastes theme from The Police: King of Pain. There's a little black spot on the Sun today; it's the same old thing as yesterday.
Neil Young, Restless Consumer. Ever heard the term "cognitive dissonance?" I think Neil hit's the nail right on the head here. This song reminds me of some of the haunting passages from another Old Testament book (see Amos, chapter 8). After all, as the introduction to the book explains, "Amos is the prophet of social justice. He reveals to us a God who defends the rights of the poor." Lest we forget. Please forgive the advertising at the beginning...
Reality bites, sometimes, right? Give us something happy now Frank! Um, not yet—wouldn't be prudent. Tom Jones has a new album coming out entitled Praise & Blame. Deacon Greg tipped me off to this one. It's called Did Trouble Me.
Remember that we are called to love. It's hard to do, but I keep trying. With her angelic voice, Jocelyn Montgomery helps me to remember. This is Caritas, from her album singing the texts from Hildegard von Bingen. Webster probably has this on his Pandora Radio channel.
And pray without ceasing. Here is Loreena McKennitt with her song Dante's Prayer. I came across this recently. The artist introduces the song and explains how she was inspired by an experience of traveling across Siberia on a train, and reading Dante’s Inferno.
Breathe life into this feeble heart
Lift this mortal veil of fear
Take these crumbled hopes, etched with tears
We'll rise above these earthly cares
Cast your eyes on the ocean
Cast your soul to the sea
When the dark night seems endless
Please remember me...
This time next week, and none too soon, I'll be on vacation! Webster or Allison will have the conn for Music for Mondays until I return. Ciao!
