I felt like posting something, even though there isn't really much to post about.  So I'll talk about the SCC concert.  I haven't been to a real SCC concert since... I'm not quite sure... But I've seen SCC do one of those mini-concerts as part of a big conference (at DCLA 94 & 97).  So I'm thinking maybe the last time I saw SCC in concert was about 10 years ago...

This was a really fun concert.  It was one of the few, or perhaps the only concert I've attended where I knew literally every song he sung, and could sing along to every song.  I think the exception must have been a Petra concert I attended in 1992.  I don't think there is any other artist whose concert I can attend and know every single song.  Concerts are better when you know all the songs. 

The only bummer about this concert is that the power went out.  I suppose this made it a memorable experience.  Because of it, they had to bring in a generator, which took about an hour to get to the place (making us fall behind in schedule).  Rather than place her songs, Bethany Dillon (the opening act) came out along with SCC's song Will Franklin and did an acoustic set of worship songs for us.  So basically we sat there for about 30 minutes singing worship songs to a guitar and a djembe that was not mic'ed up.  It was truly acoustic.  When Sanctus Real (another opening act) came out, they did an acoustic set concert for us also.  By that time they got some of the lights going, and some of the things mic'ed up, so we could actually hear the people singing. 

When SCC came out they actually had everything running, finally, so we got the full-blown concert.  Though it seems like they could have benefited from another sound check, because I think the mics were a little loud and disproportionate to the music.  That's OK.  It turned out to be a great concert.  SCC's kids are amazing musicians.  His youngest son Will Franklin is pretty awesome.  He's such a cute boy... I love his hair.  Suprisingly, they didn't sing a lot of songs from the new album... only like 3 or so.  They opened up with The Great Adventure, rather than with a song from the new album, which was weird.  But that's OK.  It was a really nice mix of songs. I wish the concert would have lasted longer, though... it wasn't long enough. 

I have all these weird feelings and memories of attending such overt Christian concerts, because my memory of them were at a time when I was in a completely different mindset and understanding of life.  Everything was so happy and fluffy back then.  Years ago music was my life, and concerts were one of the only things I sought to attend. I was a loner (still am), and to cope, music became my world.  I felt a sense of love and belonging in such an environment... something I did not feel anywhere else.  At such events, people were all so genuine on the surface.  

How much changes in 10 years.   Now with my experience, and the fact that I've spend a year on an activities board in college whose sole purpose was to go backstage and help with set up and tear down equipment, seeing the artists backstage and not really giving any care that they had albums or were famous (I've been around POD, Joan Baez, Lucinda Williams, Third Day, Sixpence, Jars of Clay, Caedmon's Call, Bruce Cockburn, etc.), all has helped me see that people are simply that - people.  Who cares if they have albums?  I know people who write books.  Big deal. 

Now I look at such events with a kind of awareness and skepticism.  I'm back to trying to figure out what it means to be part of this clique called Christian culture, evangelicalism at the core.  The people look the same as when I remembered them.  Almost all white people.  A few minorities spread out here and there.  Everybody is very kind and friendly, and on the surface appears to love Jesus.  I don't remember what it's like to be in this kind of Christian culture anymore.  I went to Calvin College.  We smoked... chain-smoked, in fact... we were very proud that we could chain smoke (I didn't; but almost everyone I knew did).  We frequented bars and drank... sometimes with our profs.  Our professors prayed before class started and went on to lecture and said "shit" and "asshole" here and there.  We had friends and classmates who were devoutly Christian, and gay.  Roommates and floor mates were... like anyone else you'd meet in any other dorm.  Guys made very explicit jokes about their balls and their phalluses.  Marijuana stunk up the air at a concert I once attended.  Back at the dorms my classmate (who is now a pastor) thought it was "so fucking awesome" - that all these marijuana-smoking hippies would come to our school and get exposure to Christianity.  What a perspective...  This was Calvin College.  This college has shaped my Christian life and my faith in the most tremendous way. 

It's weird to come back to the environment of my youth and hear SCC tell these great feel-good "Christiany" stories about his kids and blessings and make clean Christian jokes.  He's a really funny guy, actually.  It's hard not to find him loveable. 

In any case, it is easy for someone of my background and experiences to take one of two perspectives on this.  The first is to see my former Calvin environment as that example of everything that is bad and hypocritical about Christianity.  Return to the bubble because it is safe, and it is where the "real Christians" are.  The conservatives... the republicans... the fundamentalists... hahaha!  The second is to take the Calvin attitude and ridicule any environment where such conservative evangelicalism occurs.  Perceive these environments with cynicism, because you know the truth about the people.  People at these events are either hypocrites, or people who are so completely blinded by the reality of life because they have existed only within a neat, perfect little bubble.  These people need lives.  They need to figure out that life is not this fluffy.  They are so completely thoughtless and ignorant of their ignorance.  They need to realize what it's like to have real problems, real issues, and very, very deep depravities.  Such an environment, one may argue, are for the simple-minded.  People there don't know what faith is like, because they've never really thought about their faith.  They've never had to be challenged by their faith.  They only know how to inreach.  Their idea of an outreach is to "witness" to strangers and never see them ever again.  But at least now they can brag to their friends that they've "led 15 people to Christ."  It can become easy to pity the people within these environments...

But here's the twist.  I took neither perspective at the concert... mainly because i think I am trying to break beyond those two perspectives, and I think it would be wrong for us to dichotomize these perspectives and make hasty generalizations about people in such an uncharitable manner.  Yes, there are people there who are hypocrites.  And yes, there are lots of people there who are cluelessly lost inside of the bubbles.  But I imagine there is a very large percentage of people in these environments who have experienced life and the sufferings of life in the fullest and deepest way that one can experience the sufferings of life.  And somehow, despite the terriblness of their experiences... despite that they've been tortured and have seriously messed up problems, they have a very profound understanding of the grace of God in their lives.  I would like to think that people within those environments realize this complexity of faith.  This is the complexity of the simplicity.  This kind of profound understanding, I believe, is the affirmation of grace and redemption that SCC sings about.  At least I would hope, that this is why I think SCC is only prima facie fluffy.  It is the notion that faith is a journey. You can begin with having the mere faith of a child.  But as life continues, your faith expands, and is challenged, and maybe even lost.  But faith seeks to go beyond what it does not understand.  And when the individual realizes that, in her reasoning, she can go no further, it is then that she returns to faith.  She returns to that sense of the childlike faith; but this time, it is no longer mere.  It is with a new kind of awareness and understanding.  Even despite my sufferings, I live with the hope that God is still good.  Despite that i know people are messed up and depraved, and many who are worshipping aren't really worshipping and in fact live a total and complete lie of a life, I think God is still present.  And so, I enjoyed my time with this community of Christians.  Despite that I still feel I did not much belong, I still did. 

What a great concert... Steven Curtis Chapman is still cool.