And while we’re listening to Vince Vaughn talk about politics, why not look at Katy Perry’s thoughts on religion?
At BiblicalWoman.com (Yeah, I read it. What about it?) Candi Finch looks at the beliefs of the California Girl as expressed in a recent issue of Entertainment Weekly. She looks at this quote in particular:
My upbringing was so strict and sheltered and rigid, and now it’s a lot more loose. I believe in God [but] not as an older guy with a long beard sitting on a shiny throne, or heaven or hell as a destination. I believe you can have your own hell on earth from the actions you do. If you don’t have that accountability, then why don’t you just do everything selfishly or be a menace to society? I have a lot of spiritual, New Agey stuff that I’ve applied to my life now
Finch then comments:
Before you dismiss what she says, consider that both of Perry’s parents are in ministry and that she grew up in church. And, Perry is not alone in her beliefs. Many young adults who grow up in church wrestle with the same things Perry expressed above and has voiced in previous interviews: Some kind of moral compass or accountability seems wise, but the exclusive “Christianity-is-the-only-way” version of religion seems intolerant.
On any given Sunday, thousands of young people wrestle with whether or not they truly believe this whole Christianity thing. I am talking about all of those kids who have grown up in church, who were probably in the church nursery the week after they were born. It is what they grew up hearing, it is what their pastor and youth pastor believe, it is what their parents believe, but do they really believe it?
I don’t know if we should draw any conclusions about young Christians from Katy Perry; global pop stars tend to find themselves in a bubble of weirdness that I’m sure has a lot of influence on how they see the world. And when you consider her peers, she doesn’t sound that far off. She’s probably the closest thing to a mainstream Christian of anyone sitting in the first ten rows at this year’s Grammy awards.
But the point of Finch’s article, with which I wholeheartedly agree, is that it is true that the church has been doing a pretty poor job of preparing kids to go out into a world that is not just indifferent to their beliefs but actively hostile to them. I hope we can raise kids and teach them about Christ in such a way that they won’t just remember their childhoods as “strict and sheltered and rigid.” If that’s the case, we shouldn’t be surprised to see them shooting confetti out of their boobs on national TV.
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