More from Jay Swartzendruber May 15, 2007
Posted by Paul Edwards in Arts and Faith, CCM, Culture, Music.1 comment so far
I asked Jay to further clarify what he means by “Christian worldview music”:
We believe strongly that music is not a tool just for evangelism, or just for praise and worship, or just for teaching Christians things about Christianity. We believe it should be a biblical reflection, the same way the Bible is, whether it’s Ecclesiastes, or the Psalms, or Song of Solomon, most of the Psalms are actually laments - crying out to God, in desperation; most Christian music is not that way. We’re encouraging these artists to give into that urging to bring Christ into all of life, whether it’s our marriages, whether it’s our professional lives, whether it’s how we treat our neighbor and how we love the poor; and we’re saying, yes, it honors God when you sing about all of these things from a biblical perspective.
I then asked Jay, what of the perception that the Christian music industry is all about money:
I’ve been in this business now for about 14 years. I worked for Christian record labels for ten years, and with CCM Magazine for about four, and I’m grateful to say it’s not all about money. That said, I will say money influences too many of our decisions as an industry. But in these years I’ve gotten to know dozens of artists and, you know, it’s about calling; it’s about being salt and light in culture, showing the world who Christ is. (The world) has written off Jesus based on parodies of the church that aren’t real. Some of these artists have a passion for our culture to see who Jesus Christ really is, and that’s why I am still here after 14 years.
CCM: It’s the worldview May 15, 2007
Posted by Paul Edwards in Arts and Faith, Culture, Music.3 comments
On a recent broadcast of The Paul Edwards Program, I asked Jay Swartzendruber, the editor of CCM Magazine, if he and his staff had arrived at a philosophical definition of what Christian music is or isn’t:
It’s a very difficult thing. For one thing - Christian music - we’ve really made it this thing where it’s a genre in our industry and if you look at it honestly, Christian music is not a genre. It’s a description that we use to describe music made by Christians in all kinds of genres, from hip-hop to jazz to hard rock to soft pop, and so it’s not really a genre. If you want to call it a genre, then it’s the only one defined by its lyrics, which is a really odd thing. And we can’t say truthfully that we’ve defined it by who’s making it because what about all the Christians making music that aren’t distributed into Christian bookstores. So we’re saying, “It’s Christian worldview music.” It’s music that has a biblical worldview of life reflected in the lyrics and created by believers.
Advice on direct-mail fundraising appeals May 14, 2007
Posted by Paul Edwards in Church Life, Economics, Giving, Money, Money Management.1 comment so far
Joel Belz in the May 12, 2007 issue of World Magazine has some practical advice on what to do in response to all of the direct-mail fundraising appeals we all receive from worthy nonprofits:
- Cut out the small gifts. You’ll just encourage them and the reality is that over the long term it will cost the organization more to send the appeals for your money than what they actually receive from you. “You can count on that organization sending you several dozen more appeals - maybe even every single month - costing the organization a minimum of 50 cents each. Do the multiplication.”
- Reduce your list of giving ‘targets’ to no more than half a dozen organizations - including your local church. “Start by designating 10 percent of your income to your local church…go on then to pick two, three, or even five other organizations you also want to give to - and right away designate 1 percent of your income for each one.”
- Set aside another 1 percent of your income for relatives and friends who appeal to you for support of short-term missions trips.
But what about all those other nonprofits who make appeals to you but you didn’t choose to support? “…start sending a simple form letter. Tell them lovingly that you’ve picked a handful of organizations to support significantly; that you like what they’re doing but you can’t support everybody; and that for your mutual good they should remove you from all mailing lists. You’ll be saving them some money and yourself some future frustration.”
World Magazine: Junk the junk mail
Handel’s ‘Messiah’ Anti-Semitic? May 13, 2007
Posted by Paul Edwards in Arts and Faith, Culture, Media Bias, New York Times, Theology.1 comment so far
Michael Marissen writing in the April 24, 2007 issue of The New York Times thinks so.
…”Messiah” lovers may be surprised to learn that the work was meant not for Christmas but for Lent, and that the “Hallelujah” chorus was designed not to honor the birth or resurrection of Jesus but to celebrate the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple in A.D. 70. For most Christians in Handel’s day, this horrible event was construed as divine retribution on Judaism for its failure to accept Jesus as God’s promised Messiah.
Marissen argues that the author of the libretto, Charles Jennens, was “deeply troubled by the spread of Deism,” and the deist belief that Jesus was neither the Son of God nor Messiah. Through a leap of logic, Marissen sees Jennens intended target as not the deists, but rather “rabbinical scholars” (the Jews) who supposedly gave the deists their “anti-Christian ammunition.”
In other words, Messiah was never intended merely as great art, but rather as a subliminal message to Christians everywhere to hate the Jews:
Like Arius, who won popular opinion for his views with catchy anti-orthodox jingles in the fourth century, Jennens resorted to music, approaching Handel with his libretto.
By publishing Marissen’s piece, The New York Times continues to display its own anti-Christian bias.
Managing Money May 13, 2007
Posted by Paul Edwards in Economics, GenX, Hugh Hewitt, Millionaire, Money, Money Management.add a comment
The Bible certainly warns us against the desire to be rich, and those warnings ought to be heeded (1 Timothy 6:9,10). Contentment is the hallmark of the genuine believer in Jesus who lives on limited resources.
If, on the other hand, you are already rich, it is not the fact that you are a millionaire that in the end messes you up. It’s the fact you trust in uncertain riches which becomes your undoing (1 Timothy 6:17) . So Paul distinguishes between the non-rich who desire to be rich (they should be content) and the rich (they should guard against the temptation to trust their wealth rather than God).
That having been said, GenX Finance has an interesting post that is worth a read: The Top Five Ways to Become a Millionaire (HT: Hugh Hewitt).
Is there anything about what we believe that prohibits Christians of simple means from managing their money in such a way as to become wealthy? What are the benefits? What are the pitfalls?
CNN: “Bush Resigns” May 11, 2007
Posted by Paul Edwards in Bush, CNN, Media Bias, Politics.2 comments
ABC’s Nightline hosts atheist debate May 9, 2007
Posted by Paul Edwards in Culture, Theology.16 comments
Tonight at 11:30 pm ABC’s Nightline will air the debate between Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort (representing theism) and members of the Rational Response Squad (representing atheism). The video of the debate will be available online at ABC’s website after 1:00 pm today.
If it’s Tuesday, it should be Cleveland May 8, 2007
Posted by Paul Edwards in Calvinism, Theology.3 comments
Solomon was a Calvinist. In January Alistair Begg and his staff at Parkside Church/Truth for Life invited WLQV to broadcast The Paul Edwards Program live from their Basics 2007 Pastor’s Conference. The conference began yesterday and runs through Wednesday at Noon.
I was excited about the invitation. I have appreciated Alistair Begg’s preaching ever since I first met him in 1988. He had come to Temple Baptist Church in Detroit as one of the speakers for our annual Summer Bible Conference. Since then I have made it a habit to visit Parkside Church in Cleveland as often as possible. To be invited to broadcast my program from there was a high honor.
So the plans were made. Hotel reservations, contacting all of the speakers at the conference to arrange on-air interviews during the conference, travel arrangements, etc. But God had other (better?) plans.
Back to Solomon: “In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps” (Proverbs 16:9). I planned my course, God determined my steps. He determined my steps using a ladder, a screwdriver, and a window shutter.
While re-hanging a freshly painted shutter at our house last Friday, my wife fell about five feet off a ladder. A trip to the emergency room five hours later revealed a torn spleen. She was just moved from ICU last night. God is good: no surgery is necessary, just a long homebound healing process.
And so if it’s Tuesday, it should be Cleveland - according to my plans. But if it’s Tuesday - according to the course determined for me by a sovereign God - I am right where I am supposed to be. And Lord willing I’ll be right back in front of the microphone this afternoon in the beautiful state of the art studios at WLQV Radio in Detroit. Thanks for praying for Terri.
By the way, Tim Challies is live blogging the Basics 2007 Pastor’s Conference from Cleveland. God to www.challies.com to read the updates.
You can also watch and listen to the Basics Conference here.
Does Whatever a Spider Can May 7, 2007
Posted by Paul Edwards in Arts and Faith, Culture, Film, Theology.add a comment
My son and I saw Spider Man 3 this weekend, along with every other American. Kirsten Dunst and Toby Maguire have never been my favorite actors, and still aren’t. It’s the special effects that are the drawing card for most movie-goers. The drawing card for me to Spiderman 3 was Mark Mooring’s review in Christianity Today.
I agree wholeheartedly that this movie is Paul’s struggle with the old nature writ large on the silver screen. The spiritual implications are evident, but I’d still take an expository sermon by John Piper on Romans 7 over Sam Raimi’s screenplay any day.
