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I always knew you
In your mothers arms
I have called your name
I have an idea
Placed in your mind
To be a better man
I've made a crown for you
Put it in your room
And when the bridegroom comes
There will be noise
There will be glad
And a perfect bed
And when you write a poem
I know the words
I know the sounds
Before you write it down
When you wear your clothes
I wear them too
I wear your shoes
And your jacket too
I always knew you
In your mothers arms
I have called you son
I've made amends
Between father and son
Or, if you haven't one
Rest in my arms
Sleep in my bed
There is a design
To what I did and said
In your mothers arms
I have called your name
I have an idea
Placed in your mind
To be a better man
I've made a crown for you
Put it in your room
And when the bridegroom comes
There will be noise
There will be glad
And a perfect bed
And when you write a poem
I know the words
I know the sounds
Before you write it down
When you wear your clothes
I wear them too
I wear your shoes
And your jacket too
I always knew you
In your mothers arms
I have called you son
I've made amends
Between father and son
Or, if you haven't one
Rest in my arms
Sleep in my bed
There is a design
To what I did and said
Lyrics submitted by xsloth
Track duration: 07:06
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This song is directed to Sufjan Stevens' friend, Thomas Vito Aiuto. He is an ordained reverend who preaches at Resurrection Presbyterian Church, which Sufjan attends whenever he's in the area. Vito and his wife have a band called the Welcome Wagon, which Sufjan produces--their lyrics are all Christ-centered--and Vito collaborated with Sufjan on a lot of the songs on the latter's Christmas album. So, right off the bat, the title is, at least on some level, literal: It is a song about the ordination of a guy named Vito to the Christian ministry. All your guys' theories about divorced parents and sexual affairs are all well and good, but it's not what the song's about, and insisting that it might not be is sort of like claiming that it's unfair to say that the Battle Hymn of the Republic might actually be pro-Confederacy.
Now, to the lyrics:
"I always knew you/In your mother's arms" seems like a reference to Jeremiah 1:4-5: "Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations." This again makes the connection to someone being "ordained" to speak the word of God to people, who's been prepared for this mission since infancy.
"I have called your name" seems like an allusion to the story in 1 Samuel 3 where God calls the young Samuel three times in the night, which the boy mistakes for the voice of the high priest Eli. When Eli realizes who Samuel is hearing, he instructs the youth to reply, "Speak; for thy servant heareth." This is the beginning of Samuel's ministry as a prophet, and again the imagery of being called to the mission of declaring God's message is the theme here. This could also be a reference to Isaiah 43:1: "But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine."
The Apocalyptic imagery of Vito receiving a crown, the Bridegroom coming, etc. has already been discussed by other commentators here so I won't really dwell on it; and of course the song derives a lot from Psalm 139, as has also already been mentioned.
"When you wear your clothes/I wear them too/I wear your shoes/And your jacket too" is an interesting concept. Is it saying that God will be closer to Vito than the very clothes he's wearing? Is the idea that Vito is being clothed in the righteousness of Christ's merits, that he is "putting on Christ" (Romans 13:14)? I'm honestly not sure but I'm kind of reminded of Sufjan's other song "In the Devil's Territory" on probably his most explicitly Christian album that isn't Christmas-themed, *Seven Swans*, where there's the line "I stole my Father's shoes/I pulled His pockets too". That's another line I'm not too certain about, but it seems like the concept is the Heavenly Father's status and stature, as shown forth in His garments, is being shared with the believer.
Maybe the reference is to the story of the prodigal son being restored to his family described in Luke 15: "But the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet" (verse 22). This might make sense of the lyric "I've made amends/Between father and son". If you watch Vito Aituo's personal testimony, which is currently on YouTube, he talks about how he really had no relationship with God throughout his high school years and only found faith later in life, so perhaps that's what this is a reference to.
Whatever the exact meaning of these details might be, the thrust of the song overall is clear. It's a song about God's election. Like so many of Sufjan's songs (maybe, in a sense, all of them), it's about Grace.
We have been known from the very start. Our eye color, our hairline, our jawline, the shape of our big toe, the tone of our voice. These things have been designed from the very beginning.
What kind of music we listen to. The sort of skirt that looks good. The sort of cap that fits right. We have been made to find these things for ourselves and take them in as ours, like adopted children: habits, hobbies, idiosyncrasies, gestures, moods, tastes, tendencies, worries. We are all these things. They have been put in us for good measure.
Perhaps we don’t like what we see: our shapeless hair, our loss of hair, our shoe size, our dimples, our knuckles too big, our eating habits, our disposition. We have disclosed these things in secret, likes and dislikes, behind doors with locks, our lonely rooms, our messy desks, our empty hearts, our sudden bursts of energy, our sudden bouts of depression.
Don’t worry. Put away your mirrors and your beauty magazines and your books on tape. There is someone right here who knows you more than you do, who is making room on the couch, who is fixing a meal, who is putting on your favorite record, who is listening intently to what you have to say, who is standing there with you, face to face, hand to hand, eye to eye, mouth to mouth. There is no space left uncovered.
The bridegroom is part of Christ's description of His relationship to the church/children of God. No matter how much we think are lives are difficult or in control "there's a design." I always go back to that.
Apart from the 'ordination' in the title: this seems to me about God's plan for Vito: having always known him, having called him and set him aside for his vocation.
I think it's an astoundingly beautiful song.
I agree with Noodles and with the idea that this is a ridiculously intimate relationship between two lovers. For Vito, maybe. But then, doesn't Sufjan tend to gove his songs dual meanings anyway? On the one hand, he could be applauding and congratulating Vito for his increased spirituality, and on the other he could apply Vito's spirituality to the extent of the relationship between lovers. And I think the 'other hand' is a far more central aspevt to the song than anything overtly religious could ever be.
I agree with Noodles and with the idea that this is a ridiculously intimate relationship between two lovers. For Vito, maybe. But then, doesn't Sufjan tend to gove his songs dual meanings anyway? On the one hand, he could be applauding and congratulating Vito for his increased spirituality, and on the other he could apply Vito's spirituality to the extent of the relationship between lovers. And I think the 'other hand' is a far more central aspevt to the song than anything overtly religious could ever be.
"Born and raised in Michigan, Vito experienced a spiritual awakening at the age of 20 and consequently relocated to New Jersey...From there, the Aiutos continued to write their own material, with fellow songwriter Sufjan Stevens lending his help to the cause."
i read the band bio on pandora.com