Ok, I think this should clear up the meanings to some degree...from the horse's mouth (interview with Stephen from Anberlin, from hollywoodjesus.com).
HJ: Word choice seems really important to the band. I've taken a stab at the 'meanings' of a bunch of your songs in [my review] but "Fin" seems so compact and full, there's just a lot going on. Shed some light on that song. It seems personal, complete with names, [is it] an actual event? Help listeners (as "Whisper and A Clamor" is certainly a wake-up call) see what's behind the words of "Fin" and maybe other songs.
Stephen: “Fin” (pronounced like the fin on a shark’s back) means ending in French. I felt like this was a conclusion (or just a start) to my epic tug-of-war with God. I have a lot of questions, a lot that I may never really understand or have the capacity to comprehend in this lifetime. “Fin” is a series of four stories, that all tie together in the line ‘patron saint of lost causes.’ The first story is a personal memoir about my life as a child and the pull on my soul even then. I deliberated even at eight years old, that it would be better that God and the devil would just both leave me alone. The second story is about a couple from my early teen years’ church who cried for a miracle. It was a promised miracle, and it never came about. That leaves an impression. The third is about a mentor that used the guise of 'missions work' to leave his family in shambles and eventually decay. That plays with your salvation, when one experiences it. [The fourth story is about] Billy, a traveling ' healer' who crippled my life and growth right in front of me. All these things and many, many others made me lose my salvation. But later in life I realized I needed to stop looking at Christians to see Christ. I wrestled with God, and he won.
The next question is though - Stephen references four stories, but there's only 3 verses. Where do each of the stories fit in? "Billy" is obvious, but the others aren't so clear. And where do the "hidden lyrics" from the end fit it?
The first two stories, the one about himself and the one about the couple he knew from his teen years' church (William and Mary, I assume), are both contained within the first verse, rather melded together. He moves back and forth between them. The second verse is about the mentor of his, Tommy, the missionary. The third verse is about Billy, the traveling healer.
The first two stories, the one about himself and the one about the couple he knew from his teen years' church (William and Mary, I assume), are both contained within the first verse, rather melded together. He moves back and forth between them. The second verse is about the mentor of his, Tommy, the missionary. The third verse is about Billy, the traveling healer.
Ok, I think this should clear up the meanings to some degree...from the horse's mouth (interview with Stephen from Anberlin, from hollywoodjesus.com).
HJ: Word choice seems really important to the band. I've taken a stab at the 'meanings' of a bunch of your songs in [my review] but "Fin" seems so compact and full, there's just a lot going on. Shed some light on that song. It seems personal, complete with names, [is it] an actual event? Help listeners (as "Whisper and A Clamor" is certainly a wake-up call) see what's behind the words of "Fin" and maybe other songs.
Stephen: “Fin” (pronounced like the fin on a shark’s back) means ending in French. I felt like this was a conclusion (or just a start) to my epic tug-of-war with God. I have a lot of questions, a lot that I may never really understand or have the capacity to comprehend in this lifetime. “Fin” is a series of four stories, that all tie together in the line ‘patron saint of lost causes.’ The first story is a personal memoir about my life as a child and the pull on my soul even then. I deliberated even at eight years old, that it would be better that God and the devil would just both leave me alone. The second story is about a couple from my early teen years’ church who cried for a miracle. It was a promised miracle, and it never came about. That leaves an impression. The third is about a mentor that used the guise of 'missions work' to leave his family in shambles and eventually decay. That plays with your salvation, when one experiences it. [The fourth story is about] Billy, a traveling ' healer' who crippled my life and growth right in front of me. All these things and many, many others made me lose my salvation. But later in life I realized I needed to stop looking at Christians to see Christ. I wrestled with God, and he won.
The next question is though - Stephen references four stories, but there's only 3 verses. Where do each of the stories fit in? "Billy" is obvious, but the others aren't so clear. And where do the "hidden lyrics" from the end fit it?
The first two stories, the one about himself and the one about the couple he knew from his teen years' church (William and Mary, I assume), are both contained within the first verse, rather melded together. He moves back and forth between them. The second verse is about the mentor of his, Tommy, the missionary. The third verse is about Billy, the traveling healer.
The first two stories, the one about himself and the one about the couple he knew from his teen years' church (William and Mary, I assume), are both contained within the first verse, rather melded together. He moves back and forth between them. The second verse is about the mentor of his, Tommy, the missionary. The third verse is about Billy, the traveling healer.