Lyrics for American Jesus as interpreted by oofus

American Jesus Lyrics
I don't need to be a global citizen,
'Cuz I'm blessed by nationality.
I'm member of a growing populace,
We enforce our popularity.
There are things that seem to pull us under and,
There are things that drag us down.
But there's a power and a vital presence,
It's lurking all around.

We've got the American Jesus,
See him on the interstate.
We've got the American Jesus,
He helped build the President's estate.

I feel sorry for the Earth's population,
'Cuz so few live in the U.S.A.
At least the foreigners can copy our morality,
They can visit but they cannot stay.
Only precious few can garner our prosperity,
It makes us walk with renewed confidence.
We got a place to go when we die,
And the architect resides right here.

We've got the American Jesus,
Bolstering national faith.
We've got the American Jesus,
Overwhelming millions every day.

He's the farmer's barren fields, (In God)
The force the army wields, (We trust)
Expressions on the faces of the starving millions, (Because He's one of us)
The power of the man, (Break down)
He's the fuel that drives the Klan, (Cave in)
He's the motive and the conscience of the murderer, (We can redeem your sins)
He's the preacher on T.V., (Strong heart)
The false sincerity, (Clear mind)
The form letter that's written by the big computers, (And infinitely kind)
The nuclear bombs, (You lose)
The kids with no moms, (We win)
And I'm fearful that he's inside me... (He is our champion)

We've got the American Jesus
See him on the interstate
We've got the American Jesus
Exercising his authority
We've got the American Jesus
Bolstering national faith
We've got the American Jesus
Overwhelming millions every day

One nation, under God...

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CourseWeDeliver
08-02-2002

Rated 0 
Fact: Greg Graffin is a very intelligent and wise man and a great frontman, also Fact: The US used religion to justify actions, just like anyone whose religious. FACT: I'm not patriotic at all, and i'm agnostic, but too many americans take what they have for granted. There IS alot wrong with the united states, corruption, cover ups, big business greed. But many of you forget that we are not having bombs dropped on us, followed by boxes of food, like some other parts of the world. (often time for RELIGIOUS reasons.) I consider myself quite liberal, i don't agree with christian conservatives, I don't beleive people are inherently evil. I'm not saying wave a american flag around and say the "pledge of alliegence." But I am saying that we take WAY too much for granted. So, think about what you have that's good, and think of ways to help change what you don't.

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mtvgetofftheair
08-04-2002

Rated 0 
its a good song and i agree with a lot of you that the problem is all the leaders of this country using jesus and other major religous figures in our own name. just because we have jesus on our side, which by the way isnt true at all, doesnt mean that we can do no evil. and who is to say that america is the home of the free if we are using figures like "god" in our own currency? what about the religons who dont believe in "god". and while the government is not saying that we have to believe in god they are putting their beliefs on our currency.

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CyborgDemon
08-05-2002

Rated 0 
This is one of the bands best. i have all of their 12 or so albums, and this song stands out. I believe that this "Jesus" is money."See him off the interstate" ie Billboards. "Helped build the presidents estate" ie money."Overwhelming millions everyday" ie credit card debt. "preacher on tv, false sincerity" they all point to money. I know, that some of the lyrics dont agree with my statement, but for the majority of the time, it is either money or authority.

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coolstuff25
08-10-2002

Rated 0 
yeah that would make sence, most of it would fit to be something economical

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comeanddiewithme
08-17-2002

Rated 0 
this explains how americans think that they are better than everyone else " i dont need to be global citizen, cuz im blessed my nationality." and americans are so cocky that everything they do is right, and god must be on our side "we've got a place to go when we die and the architect resides right here"


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necro
08-17-2002

Rated 0 
It's quite amusing for a german speaking guy to read all those comments related to religion. What the hell has
i don't need to be a global citizen
because i'm blessed by nationality
i'm member of a growing populace
we enforce our popularity
there are things that
seem to pull us under
and there are things
that drag us down
but there's a power
and a vital presence
thats lurking all around
to do with religion at all? The whole song is about america and its self assessment and self confidence (literally) if you'd ask me. But you won't, so Ill shut up anyway

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StupidPunkRocker
08-24-2002

Rated 0 
You asked for it, so here it goes(this is totally un edited, i apologize). The flawed status of the christian religion rooting from the puritan settlement of the US bred certain ideals which greatly influenced and ultimately corrupted the ideals of our country. The puritans came to this country seeking religious freedom, but when they settled they brutally enforced conformity to their ideals. "Your free to think like us." Also these settlers were intrinsically materialistic because of a belief that god wanted them to have things and by acquiring things you showed that god smiled upon you. (you can check the accuracy of these facts by searching for "puritans" on google or whereever youd like). As you can see this is a drastically different religious view point than would have been held by Jesus and because Jesus is the embodiement of the christian religion Greg as a talented writer uses him as a symbol. Only now he is corrupted by the American (not that only american christians believe this way or all of them do...). This ethic and ideals of the puritans have carried through over the years. As a result we are left with a nation that believes god smiles upon us because we have more things and also a belief that you will join us, think like us, and conform to us, or we will make sure you do. If not you will be eliminated. If one couples this basis of belief with the ignorance of many of the USA population (and oh is it rampant), than this is never questioned and therefore a sense of nationality and superiority is built on a religious ideal. Its Democratic....but unfortuneatly (to partially quote a NOFX song) a million people are not smarter than one. So there you have it, religion tied to the lyrics and the United States. I hope you found this to be interesting or at least informative. I am born and raised in the United States, I am an athiest, and I believe Greg to be one of the more brilliant humans i have come in contact with. Please understand that to really analyze some of his more complex songs would take pages upon pages, and this is not even close to a complete analysis. Thank you for your time. (ps dont bother making fun of me...i will ignore you, i dont need to waste time with it.)

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superman9k
08-31-2002

Rated 0 
ratt, i agree with you about blindly following people, but

1) don't think you're better than people just because you have a degree. yes, i'll have one too in a couple of years, but don't assume that it's the degree that makes you intelligent.

2) I am NOT the american government. there is a difference between american culture and american government, sure it's slight, and the two ARE intwined (along with "accepted" religions in this country), but don't blame me for the arrogant attitude of the president. don't blame me for the unneccessary military presence around the world. don't blame me for the ignorant and fear-driven laws persecuting drug users, gun owners, motorists, homosexuals, wiccans, satanists, atheists, agnostics. and don't blame me for the class system in this country that so many people seem to be all too happy with.

don't make me one of those flag-on-the-car-antenna gullible, unquestioning, unthinking, unfree, irresponsible fucking jingos. the us has more than enough of those already.

thank you, and peace.

-an agnostic, left libertarian


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Kayla610
09-11-2002

Rated 0 
i love it!

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LongforBlueSkies
03-20-2003

Rated 0 
amen to that superman (get it.. ha-ha-)

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argug
03-22-2003

Rated 0 
i don't understand how some of you can say such horrible stuff about our government. sure it's not perfect and yeah the president isn't always right he's only human, but please. look at the country you live in. we are far more advanced that almost every country on earth. most of us can not even imagine the hell that other countries go through. if you are not grateful to live in this country and can't see all the good you have despite the mistakes, then move somewhere else.

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pibbler
03-27-2003

Rated 0 
arquq: yes, I do believe that we are lucky to be living is the US. Because in my opinion it's the greates country. However, just because someone speakes out against the government or its policies, doesn't make them anti-american or unappreciative. In fact, I believe it makes them more american. We have been give the right to speak our mind and stand up for what we believe is right and true. If we didn't do that, then I say we would be unappreciative or unamerican. That is pnly my opinion though

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pibbler
03-27-2003

Rated 0 
arquq: yes, I do believe that we are lucky to be living is the US. Because in my opinion it's the greates country. However, just because someone speakes out against the government or its policies, doesn't make them anti-american or unappreciative. In fact, I believe it makes them more american. We have been give the right to speak our mind and stand up for what we believe is right and true. If we didn't do that, then I say we would be unappreciative or unamerican. That is pnly my opinion though

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argug
03-27-2003

Rated 0 
you're right pibbler i didn't mean that they were unamerican but i was responding in light to some of the earlier posts about people "hating america" i don't think that's just speaking out, i think that's being unappreciative.

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argug
03-27-2003

Rated 0 
also, "we've got the American Jesus
see him on the interstate" i think that was written about those little billboard signs that you see when you drive down the highway that say come to my house on sunday and stuff like that. sorry if someone already said that but there are so many posts i didn't see the point in reading them all.

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EmoKiD_Riot
03-29-2003

Rated 0 
Quite simple in my opinion, this song simply depicts the way those few americans who celebrate "jesus' existence" tend to see him, the american perspective of such a thing...

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BrianLovesJennie
04-15-2003

Rated 0 
I just though of something funny...

'Thall shalt not kill' - Crusader
'God Bless our Troops' - 'Thall shalt not kill'
'God Bless the USA' - God Bless Iraq? NO.
'God is on our side' - Kill.

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uhvguitarist
04-19-2003

Rated 0 
All those primitives bastards who wrote "Fuck America" and such should swallow their own tounge. NOT SAYING THAT AMERICAS PERFECT. Their no such thing as a perfect goverment. I'm Just saying that this country is not all that bad. Some of the people in charge can suck my dick. But the country on paper is good. Its people that fuck it up. And another thing. I don't care if you're and athiest or a jesus lover. EVERYONE has their owN God and i respect that. but don't slander jesus. He died two thousand years ago. Don't accuse him of anything because the only defense he'll get will come from a bunch of disqualified pastors and priest.

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rancidrocks
06-18-2003

Rated 0 
I would have to agree with uhvguitarist, because I don't hate the U.S. government. But at the same time, there is room for improvement. I also think this song is awesome. One of the things that is great about Bad Religion is they don't just make fun of everything, they give real reasons and explanations for their beliefs. And if you do it that way, it is a whole hell of a lot easier to get people on your side. If you just say "fuck the us, it sucks", people are gonna turn away and be offendend, so it doen't do much good. But I think different from a lot of people, because I'm not a liberal or a conservative, I'm inbetween the two.

Greg is a genius.

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freedom liver
04-13-2004

Rated 0 
this song is great i love it i would die to meet these guys or see them live

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colonel schwartz
04-28-2004

Rated 0 
eddie vedder sang backup on this.... pretty sweet


awesome song

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EZ3
05-08-2004

Rated 0 
I think this song is about american pride and the general feeling that america is better then everywhere else. In the verses of the song he explains american pride and in the breakdown he basically goes down a list of some of the wrongs american pride has caused.

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WayneSaysYes
05-31-2004

Rated 0 
As I read through all of these posts, I realize why I love Bad Religion so much. Just look at the discussions going on. It makes me very happy to know that their music inspires people to think. Although peoples' views are divided, the important thing is that this song causes us to stop for a moment and consider what is going on in the world. I think, overall, that's what the band is going for.

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RATM13LJH
06-03-2004

Rated 0 
This song to me is about America's belif that they are God's people. They (we) think they are the best contry and will never fall. uh........and that the Gov. being greedy and hoggy tha money so they can use it for war. basicly we think we r perfect.

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sacrifice_for_life1
06-17-2004

Rated 0 
I would basically agree with WayneSaysYes. It's the power of [good] music that causes change in hearts and minds across the world. Not that other things don't/can't, but there's nothin' like a great fucking tune. Over the years, BR has done this on a consistent basis (minus the last few years, in my opinion).

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