Discover more from Amor Dei, Amor Mundi
Roadstead
I’ve been hesitant to say much about the new Kanye record. As a friend pointed out to me, it’s so loaded with potential landmines: race, Trump, reformed bros, our understanding of evangelism and conversion, our beliefs about faith and culture, cultural transformation… the list goes on and on. Even so, here I go.
I see a few things.
First, there is the “wait and see” crowd. The skeptics that can’t get past Kanye’s past antics and are sure that this is either a manic episode, a stunt for money, or a certain failure. The reality is that any one of those things can be true. But as I see it, the pattern in the book of Acts is “Here is water. What is to keep you from being baptized?” In other words, if someone is making a confession of faith, we should treat them like they’re a Christian. Sort of a Christian-until-proven-Pagan approach. This doesn’t mean we don’t discern, but much of what I hear is essentially measuring Kanye against the standards of elders, rather than according to the standards of new converts. A new convert needs hospitality, discipleship, and encouragement, and I fear that from this tribe, he will get none.
The “stunt for money” critique I find particularly laughable. If there’s anything Kanye doesn’t need, it’s to alienate his baked-in audience by becoming an evangelical. Compare his album sales, ticket prices, and streaming numbers to any of the top-selling Christian Hip Hop artists, and you will see that, well, they aren’t even in the same galaxy. Kanye was doing fine financially without Jesus.
Second, there is the crowd that’s enshrining him as the next William Wilberforce. (I should note, I really like Andrew, and know him a little bit… but this definitely seems a bit too early to call.) This tribe sees Kanye’s conversion as an opportunity to strike a significant blow in the culture wars. To maybe move the Overton Window on evangelicalism. And the truth is, this might happen. It is not insignificant that the phrase “Jesus is King” is on the lips of millions of people right now as they talk about the record. The phrase is even shining over Times Square.
But think of the enormous pressure this is putting on a new convert. “Oh, you’ve been a Christian for six months? Let’s put the weight of the culture wars on your shoulders.” I love the idea that Kanye might move the Overton Window. But let’s give him some time.
Third (and here I’m really going to get into trouble), there are those who are hailing “Jesus is King” as a landmark work of art. An achievement for Christian Pop Culture that is unparalleled. I hate to say it… but maybe it’s not. I’m not saying it’s bad. It is thrilling to me to hear someone so joyously celebrating his salvation and newfound faith. I’m just not ready to hail the artifact itself as a profound piece of art. It definitely has its moments. But “Jesus is King” exists in the same universe as Chance the Rapper, Kendrick Lamar, and…. Kanye West.
All three of these examples have rapped about Christian faith for quite some time. Go back and listen to “Jesus Walk” (Incidentally, in this version, recorded more recently, he’s changed the lyrics.) Listen to Chance’s “Angels”, or to Kanye’s “Ultralight Beam.” (Not incidentally, I wrote about 5,000 words on Kanye’s SNL performance of that song for Our Secular Age, a book reflecting on the legacy of Charles Taylor’s A Secular Age.) Lamar has been open about faith since Good Kid, m.A.A.d City in 2012. But here’s the thing: neither of the three identified with white evangelicalism – that is, until now, with Kanye.
That may be what makes this moment so culturally weighty. We’re in the age of Trump, and Kanye’s a pretty Trumpy guy. In the age of Trump, white evangelicalism has aligned itself around the politics of power, while still giving lots of lip service to a more or less fundamentalist understanding of the gospel. Kanye’s journey seems to have aligned him with both of these streams. If he remains faithful to evangelical convictions, he does so as one who sounds a lot more like Robert Jeffress – the very vocal Trump-supporting Dallas pastor – than he does Lecrae.
And on that subject… we should remember that Christian Hip Hop has a tradition already. I wonder how many who are doing backflips over “Jesus is King” have ever heard Sho Baraka, Lecrae, Jackie Hill Perry, Derek Minor, or going way back, Grits, or Preachers in Disguise. (Yes, I’m that old, and no I won’t mention DC Talk.) For that matter, how many white evangelicals who are pumping their first to “Jesus is King” have listened to even one other rap album in the past year? If they haven’t, they should. They’d find nuanced expressions of faith, people wrestling with racism and temptation, people who have clearly done a lot of the hard work of discipleship, who’ve endured persecution and criticism, and people who do so with some pretty sick beats along the way.
I know this makes me sounds cynical. Maybe I am. Partly, I’m anxious on Kanye’s behalf because the last thing a new convert needs is to be made the token poster boy celebrity, or even worse, a weapon in the culture wars.
And let me repeat: I like the record. I don’t think it’s bad, and there’s a joyfulness to the simplicity of someone’s first cries out to the Lord. I don’t doubt Kanye’s conversion. I have great suspicions around the reactions to it. I am hopeful that in his life there are good pastors, faithful guides, people who (to invert a David Foster Wallace phrase) love him and do not want his money (or his power or fame). I have heard that’s the case, and I thank God for it. For the rest of us, let’s encourage him to keep making art, and pray “God show him the way because the Devil’s tryin’ to break him down.”
Cultivated
David Zahl, one of my favorite humans, is my guest on this week’s podcast. We go deep on secular religions, the way that people change, and the heart of the gospel, all while exploring his work with Mockingbird Ministries, of which he is the founder.
Varia
· I am loving The Dispatch. It’s a new media venture started by Jonah Goldberg, formerly of National Review, and Stephen Hayes, formerly of the Weekly Standard. David French has joined their ranks too, and is offering a twice-weekly newsletter that is excellent as well. It’s thoughtful news from a center-right angle, and it comes to your inbox. Jonah Goldberg’s G-File and Remnant podcast are also part of the family.
· It’s interesting to think about how facts “work” these days. First, no quid pro quo in the Russian scandal. Then, of course it’s quid pro quo – we do it all the time. Then back to no quid pro quo. Trump’s tactic is to say whatever he thinks his base needs to hear loud enough and enough times that it bends their reality to fit it. I’m guessing we’ll leapfrog this story a few more times before it’s all said and done. As Christians trying to discern our way through it, I think we should insist on the ideas that facts are facts and words have meaning. Both sides of this political moment are going to try to twist meaning and shape “facts” in ways that suit their cause. Hopefully we can see past it.
· I revisited Matthew Myer Boulton’s God Against Religionlast week for a forthcoming writing project, and it’s as good the second time through as it was the first. In short, through the lens of Karl Barth, Boulton reads Genesis 1-3 and sees the fall as the invention of religion – the invention of the idea that there are things we must do to please God apart from mere faith. It’s a heavy read, pulling from Calvin and Luther as well, but it’s worth the effort.
Colts Update
Vinny is giving me a heart attack. Love the guy. Wouldn’t pull him if I was the coach, but I’d have the athletic trainers make sure there was an extra-large supply of Tums on the sideline.
Brissett is making me very happy. That win over the Broncos this weekend came after a lackluster performance overall, but he still deserves credit for pulling off a clutch play, avoiding Von Miller and making a 35-yard throw on the run. It’s a stunner. One of the NFL’s best defensive players comes free at Brissett, and somehow he breaks free and hits TY Hilton. A thing of beauty. You can watch it here. Coach Frank Reich said (I’m paraphrasing), “Only one or two guys in the NFL could make that play, and we have one of them.” I’m glad we do.
See you in a couple of weeks!
Mike Cosper
Subscribe to Amor Dei, Amor Mundi
Christianity, culture, and faithful presence. Haunted by Hannah Arendt. "Love is the original miracle." — Guy Garvey