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The Gospel and Les Mis, Part 2 (Guest Post)
Read more: The Gospel and Les Mis, Part 2 (Guest Post)Most of the readers of this blog will be familiar with the Law/Gospel distinction that is present in the New Testament. While this distinction grew out of a particular set of controversies involving a particular law code and its relevance to a particular cultural situation (something that we Protestants often forget to our own exegetical detriment),…
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The Gospel and Les Mis, Part 1 (Guest Post)
Read more: The Gospel and Les Mis, Part 1 (Guest Post)It should go without saying that art is a powerful thing. When it is done well it can easily change the way we see the world, subverting our perspective in a way where other forms of communication would struggle or fail. We are surrounded by well executed art, yet it is an exhilarating rarity to…
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A Year For Christian Hip-Hop (Part 2): Suddenly in the Spotlight
Read more: A Year For Christian Hip-Hop (Part 2): Suddenly in the SpotlightI grew up in a household that, at least on paper, dictated that I listen only to “Christian” music. What this meant, functionally speaking, is that I could only listen to music sold at Christian bookstores, or the oldies station that my Dad would tune into on the radio. Those were my options, musically speaking,…
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A Year for Christian Hip-Hop: An Introduction
Read more: A Year for Christian Hip-Hop: An IntroductionI’ve written a number of pieces about Christian hip-hop over at Evangelical Outpost, as well as entrenching myself in the genre as a reviewer (both written and in podcast form) for The Christian Manifesto. When I was asked to write a few guest posts here at The Two Cities, I really wasn’t sure what I…
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Album Review: ‘Weight & Glory’
Read more: Album Review: ‘Weight & Glory’Rapper KB dropped a killer debut last month with Weight & Glory, an album that puts to rest all debates on whether hip-hop is good or bad. If we’re judging by music, lyrics, theology and phat beats, the verdict is in: behold, it was very good. Weight & Glory is a musical sermon that urges…
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On F Bombs and Christian Music: A Reflection on P.O.D.’s Newest Album, Murdered Love
Read more: On F Bombs and Christian Music: A Reflection on P.O.D.’s Newest Album, Murdered LoveLast week the Christian rap-metal band P.O.D. (Payable on Death) came out with their eighth album, Murdered Love. When I first heard that P.O.D. was releasing a new album I was quite excited. There was a time when P.O.D. was my all-time favorite band. Indeed, they functioned like a doorway for me into the world of…
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How I Watch Sports Movies
Read more: How I Watch Sports MoviesThe Replacements is on TV when I walk into the living room. I suffer through the last ten minutes, not because I’m particularly interested in character development (if you can call it that), but because of the score. Not the scoreboard—the musical score. It’s the fourth quarter of the game that could send the orange…
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(UN)Christian Music
Read more: (UN)Christian MusicLast week I reviewed mewithoutYou’s new album, Ten Stories. As I wrote the review I thought about the idea of “Christian Music.” This is something that I’ve been wrestling with for a while. For some Christians, they only listen to “Christian Music” and deem it a sign of impiety to do otherwise. I imagine this…
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mewithoutYou – Ten Stories (New Album): A Review
Read more: mewithoutYou – Ten Stories (New Album): A ReviewMaybe you’ve never heard of mewithoutYou. That saddens me. This post-hardcore melodic folk band from Philadelphia is certainly one of my favorites. Their 5th studio album, Ten Stories, was just released on May 15, 2012. This is their first album released after their record-label contract with the Christian record company, Tooth & Nail, expired. What sets mewithoutYou apart…
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Hip Hop: It’s not good or bad, it’s how you use it (Guest Post)
Read more: Hip Hop: It’s not good or bad, it’s how you use it (Guest Post)What if I told you that you could saturate your mind with profound truths about the glory of God and the sufficiency and infallibility of the Bible through music? What if I told you that it was hip hop music? Would your embers of interest be further kindled if I told you that words and…