This song is somewhat about death but really it is a commentary on what logical people deal with when they comtemplate religion.
The author starts to realize that he has been mislead into believing in religion and possibly God, and has been wasting much of his life doing and believing what he was told instead of what you want to be doing.
"As if something that's written should be taken as true" is a reference to the Bible. People take everything within the Bible literally, even though many of the stories were intended to be a model to teach people how to be good, not necessarily a history textbook.
The reference to Heaven poses a question - if heaven is all that the Church can promise to its followers, why not just die now so we can go there? hence "Pray for death"
"My time" is probably a reference to death or one's "Judgement Day". Is this a real thing, he asks? If Heaven exists and there is a gate with Peter deciding who gets in and who goes to hell, Will he be judged differently if he strays from the path set forth for him by his religion? Or perhaps is straying part of his intended path?
"Pay for my successes with all my defeats" relates to atonement / karma, and "took what i wanted and put it out of my reach" is a form of asceticism, a religious practice.
"Staring into the abyss" and seeing something that isn't there is definitely a comment on Faith and religion - Faith is the belief that something does exist even though it is impossible to know for sure whether it actually exists. If you look hard enough for order in chaos, if you look hard enough for God in the world and universe, you will probably find it. But just because you think you see order in the chaos, that doesn't make it true.
"But every path I have taken and conclusion I drew / Would put truth back under the knife." This is what a lot of intelligent people wrestle with about religion - Science and Truth tend to disprove the tenents of Faith and God and the stories of the Bible. When the writer of this song thinks about God or blind faith, it doesn't make sense. Faith is illogical. Religion tries to disprove science, and science tries to disprove religion.
I think the lyrics are about a person who has lost religion, or is at least doubting what he was raised/brainwashed to believe. He wonders if God is real, if he will ever find out if it is real, and struggles with internal conflicts related to "believing" vs. "not believing".
Yeah, this was almost 10 years ago, but here's a few thoughts.
Yeah, this was almost 10 years ago, but here's a few thoughts.
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I find it interesting that you said: " it is a commentary on what logical people deal with when they contemplate religion." It seems as if you believe religious people can't think logically, or that religion itself is irrational.
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I find it interesting that you said: " it is a commentary on what logical people deal with when they contemplate religion." It seems as if you believe religious people can't think logically, or that religion itself is irrational.
i>
While this could be interpreted as a formerly religious person contemplating the fallacies in religion, it could also be the other way around. Someone who was completely opposed to any form of god then contemplating the good parts of religion. For instance,
i>
While this could be interpreted as a formerly religious person contemplating the fallacies in religion, it could also be the other way around. Someone who was completely opposed to any form of god then contemplating the good parts of religion. For instance,
i>
"So I pointed my fingers, and shout a few quotes I knew
As if something that's written should be taken as true"
This can be interpreted as a little man in a tweed suit clutching a bible and condemning people on the streets for their callous misdeeds, but it can also be interpreted as an atheist or antitheist quoting Charles Darwin and telling Christians, Jews, Muslims, and whoever else that they've been brainwashed. Either way, the debate is pretty brutal on both sides.
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Finally, It could also be neither of these things: this Belief or Unbelief. It could be a re-evaluation of one's belief. I don't know exactly how much you know about Christians or your experiences with them, but many of them don't actually act like Jesus. Many of them claim to be so, solely because they attend church. However, some of these people realize this. I personally found myself to be putting on a Jesus mask and going to church. The thing is though, I realized that who I was and what I was doing elsewhere was not synonymous with the Christian faith. However, I had a sort of epiphany. (Yes, my attitude toward religion may disgust you, but bear with me) I saw this God who so desired me that He Himself became a dirty, fragile human in order to fix me. If that was so, then what did I have to keep from Him? If I claimed to be someone He died for, then why did I not live my life like I'd been saved from something horrific? Anyway, I see this song, not as a turning away from any certain way of thinking, but rather as an evaluation and repurposing of ones motives behind this way of thinking.
This song is somewhat about death but really it is a commentary on what logical people deal with when they comtemplate religion.
The author starts to realize that he has been mislead into believing in religion and possibly God, and has been wasting much of his life doing and believing what he was told instead of what you want to be doing.
"As if something that's written should be taken as true" is a reference to the Bible. People take everything within the Bible literally, even though many of the stories were intended to be a model to teach people how to be good, not necessarily a history textbook.
The reference to Heaven poses a question - if heaven is all that the Church can promise to its followers, why not just die now so we can go there? hence "Pray for death"
"My time" is probably a reference to death or one's "Judgement Day". Is this a real thing, he asks? If Heaven exists and there is a gate with Peter deciding who gets in and who goes to hell, Will he be judged differently if he strays from the path set forth for him by his religion? Or perhaps is straying part of his intended path?
"Pay for my successes with all my defeats" relates to atonement / karma, and "took what i wanted and put it out of my reach" is a form of asceticism, a religious practice.
"Staring into the abyss" and seeing something that isn't there is definitely a comment on Faith and religion - Faith is the belief that something does exist even though it is impossible to know for sure whether it actually exists. If you look hard enough for order in chaos, if you look hard enough for God in the world and universe, you will probably find it. But just because you think you see order in the chaos, that doesn't make it true.
"But every path I have taken and conclusion I drew / Would put truth back under the knife." This is what a lot of intelligent people wrestle with about religion - Science and Truth tend to disprove the tenents of Faith and God and the stories of the Bible. When the writer of this song thinks about God or blind faith, it doesn't make sense. Faith is illogical. Religion tries to disprove science, and science tries to disprove religion.
I think the lyrics are about a person who has lost religion, or is at least doubting what he was raised/brainwashed to believe. He wonders if God is real, if he will ever find out if it is real, and struggles with internal conflicts related to "believing" vs. "not believing".
@meowza
@meowza
Yeah, this was almost 10 years ago, but here's a few thoughts.
Yeah, this was almost 10 years ago, but here's a few thoughts.
>
I find it interesting that you said: " it is a commentary on what logical people deal with when they contemplate religion." It seems as if you believe religious people can't think logically, or that religion itself is irrational.
>
I find it interesting that you said: " it is a commentary on what logical people deal with when they contemplate religion." It seems as if you believe religious people can't think logically, or that religion itself is irrational.
i>
While this could be interpreted as a formerly religious person contemplating the fallacies in religion, it could also be the other way around. Someone who was completely opposed to any form of god then contemplating the good parts of religion. For instance,
i>
While this could be interpreted as a formerly religious person contemplating the fallacies in religion, it could also be the other way around. Someone who was completely opposed to any form of god then contemplating the good parts of religion. For instance,
i>
"So I pointed my fingers, and shout a few quotes I knew As if something that's written should be taken as true"
This can be interpreted as a little man in a tweed suit clutching a bible and condemning people on the streets for their callous misdeeds, but it can also be interpreted as an atheist or antitheist quoting Charles Darwin and telling Christians, Jews, Muslims, and whoever else that they've been brainwashed. Either way, the debate is pretty brutal on both sides.
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