In response to Miranda Simpson's "The Gaga Gospel"

In response to Miranda's post entitled The Gaga Gospel, I had never before actually seen the video for Judas - other than hearing it on the radio quite often for a period of time after its release last year - and am so intrigued by the multiple, and explicit, religious imagery and
symbolism present in both this video as well as in it's accompanying lyrics. 

As a Christian, it would be easy to say that some of this borrowing from Christian imagery could be seen as offensive, mainly because of the juxtaposition of all of these elements with incongruous (and provocative) elements such as guns and sex - but in all honesty, I found it very intriguing to see the various creative applications of all of these constituent parts, combined with overt sexuality, violence and other such visually striking elements. In ways, I believe this is one of the main reasons why videos such as this are important artifacts in the study of popular culture - today's generation, especially young adults, are so used to being over-stimulated by all of the media that engulfs them in their quotidian surroundings, that it would be highly unlikely for a boring video that lacks such juxtaposing elements to strike any real interest in them. Whether or not this is a testament to a lack or gain in cultural appreciation in today's younger generation is an entirely new topic in itself. I really do have to say that I strongly agree with your comment that appreciation of her work, more specifially her striking music videos in which she takes a great part in bringing to completion: "comes down to a matter of opinion - appreciation of music and music videos is akin to appreciation of art and films - it is highly subjective". Subjectivity is key in considering whether or not this borrowing of Christian imargery is offensice or merealy entertaining, however it is without saying that she is definitely pushing new creative boundaries that are shocking to watch.

Lady Gaga vs. Religion?

Lady Gaga loves a good BAD romance. 


Lady Gaga, the self-proclaimed 'Fame Monster' has amassed an immense fan base, otherwise known as her 'Little Monsters', through the creation of a 'religion' based on inclusivity, tolerance, peace and love. The question lies on whether or not this religion can really be considered a religion, or rather, is it more of a non-religion? Moreover, what are the positive associations related to her religion, that have developed over this relatively short period of time since her debut album The Fame, merely three years ago.


As was discussed in class, Lady Gaga grew up amongst Christians at the elite Roman Catholic all-girls school The Convent of the Sacred Heart, in New York, that she attended as a child. On many occasions Lady Gaga has stated her faith as a defining attribute of her created self. This is seen in numerous interviews where she states her beliefs with respect to the Church and religion - In an interview with Larry King, she goes on to say that she believes in God, Jesus and in prayer, and is a very spiritual person. However, she also expresses that religion to her is always, to some degree, prejudiced against other racial, sexual or religious groups which to her is "bogus". Rather, she envisions a future with a more peaceful religion for today's younger generation - this is the alternative she is attempting to offer her fans.


LINK to interview with Larry King from June 1st, 2010 - one of the topics discussed here is Lady Gaga's take on religion:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiuXg8fP2-A&feature=related


As someone mentioned in lecture today, Lady Gaga's religion is based on positive ideas such as creating a space of inclusion for her performances, where her audience is able to feel accepted into a community of sorts. These fans she often terms 'misfits' or 'freaks' are, as she describes, troubled individuals alike herself. In this respect, one could say that the set of beliefs she has follows are based upon a principle of inclusion, allowing people to feel wanted, as well as fostering a sense of self-love. Moreover, by being open to all sexual orientations and races, she is able to congregate a massive amount of people under one 'religion', which basically only insists on love as a main guiding principle.  In my opinion, this must certainly contribute to why so many young people belonging to this generation reject traditional ('uptight') religion, and are allured by new religions such as Lady Gaga's more liberal belief dogma.


Whether or not you agree that this artist is creating a positive impact on her followers, Lady Gaga is certainly finding unique ways to integrate religious elements that are meaningful to her in her lyrics, as well as in her music videos. Take a peek at a couple of examples of pieces from her wardrobe, and how these integrate overtly Christian symbols - such as the cross, or an interpretation of a nun's outfit.

Response to Gianni B's post "Get Out of Hell Free Card"

In response to Gianni B's post on Living in Technicolour entitled "Get Out of Hell Free Card", I too often pondered about the concept of redemption, and its somewhat ‘loose’ interpretation in modern day society. As a practicing Catholic, and having been an alter server for many years of my childhood, I was taught that through proper penance God is forgiving of our sins. However, I was also taught that repenting before death does not guarantee access to God’s Kingdom, a common misconception in popular culture - as is highlighted in the scene from Homer the Heretic Gianni B referenced:  

Lisa: Why are you dedicating your life to blasphemy?

Homer: Don't worry, sweetheart. If I'm wrong, I'll recant on my deathbed.

The creators of The Simpsons evidently picked up on this mistaken idea of faith, and its workings. Conversely to this, I was taught that sin is a choice and that choosing to act in discordance with God requires work in our lives, as well as after our lives, to bring ourselves closer to Him through our actions (hard work nonetheless!).

In Kanye West’s collaboration with Jay-Z for their new album Watch the Throne that was recently released in 2011, Kanye makes reference to Jesus Walks. He addresses the concept of redemption in the song Otis in a perceivably confident manner: “I made ‘Jesus Walks’ I’m never going to hell”. This clever lyric can certainly be understood in many ways, but from my understanding this pun certainly alludes to what Gianni B stated about redemption being easily attainable as a popular belief in today’s society. Perhaps Kanye is referring to his ability to overcome what others may have believed to be impossible – i.e. rapping about Jesus and selling records. Moreover, he may be referring to bringing ‘Jesus’ into mainstream hip hop, something that may not be particularly common, but that is a particular feat in his career. Although Kanye’s attempt to incorporate his faith into his music is inspiring in many ways, to what extent is this a tactic ultimately used to sell records? After all, he was certainly able to differentiate himself from other rappers and the all too familiar context of their songs (sex, guns, drugs, gangs, etc.), all the while creating ‘buzz’ around Jesus in hip hop, and in turn himself.

The Orlando Sentinel link for the post below:

http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1994-01-24/news/9401240373_1_simpsons-new-school-bart

Homer the Heretic...

In yesterday's lecture, we had the opportunity to watch a full episode of The Simpsons - you can just imagine how content we all were with watching T.V during class time. What made this whole thing even better is that we didn't watch just any old T.V show, but The Simpsons, which I can assume a large part of us grew up watching - or grew up dying to watch because our parents banned us from doing so in fear of rotting our brains, and any of our remaining morals. At least that was the case for me... but I will come back to that somewhere later on in this post. 

The episode in question, entitled Homer the Heretic, is one that I had previously watched. However, there were many elements which I originally didn't pick up on, seeing that I was only trying to get a good laugh out of it. I found it particularly interesting to see the way in which The Simpsons' creators depicted God - friendly, understanding, light-hearted - not what you would expect from a show that satirizes the whole of popular culture in general, especially race and religion. Originally I would have envisioned God's portrayal as a wrathful, powerful and omnipotent figure, a representation he often takes on in satyric cartoons. What's more, as someone mentioned today, everybody in Springfield is religious! Again, something I had never took note of. This really got me thinking about the portrayal of religion in this popular T.V show, and how contrarily to what I may have initially assumed, it really does address religion in a relatively accepting way. A perfect example of this was seen at the end of the episode when Apu the Hindu, Krusty being Jewish, and Flanders the overly enthusiastic Christian all played a part in rescuing their community member, Homer the 'Heretic' (at least in this episode), from a blazing fire. Although primarily humorous this episode also underlined the strong sense of community formed by the ethnically and religiously diverse characters, although partly a satyrical take on the 'cookie-cutter' American town that is highly dysfunctional, and yet, very typical. 

What's more, I also got to thinking about someone's comment on The Simpsons being one of the most religious shows on television. It suddenly reminded me of all of those childhood years that my parents (well, mostly my mother, who is a Catholic elementary school principal) didn't allow my sister and I to watch this particular show. Why do so many parents ban The Simpsons from their household T.V set? It really doesn't portray religion as badly as you would assume! Naturally, I 'googled' parents ban The Simpsons in the hopes of finding something relevant and interesting on the topic, and alas (somewhat expectedly I might ad, since ridiculous things are easy to find on the internet) I came across a short note in the Orlando Sentinel, a local newspaper in Florida, on this exact topic. This short news report testifies to the ridiculousness that is America, at least in my eyes:

Parents Protest Naming School After 'Simpsons'

January 24, 1994

GREENWOOD, S.C. — Springfield Elementary seemed like a nice name for a new school. But wait a minute: Isn't that the name of Bart and Lisa Simpson's school on The Simpsons? Don't have a cow, man! Given 10 choices, students at the school voted overwhelmingly to name the school after the Simpsons'. School officials said they didn't realize the connection with the television show. ''Quite frankly, none of us look at The Simpsons, said Furman Miller, spokesman for Greenwood County School District 50. But then parents caught on, and they say Bart is a bad role model. The school's parent-teacher association has voted to ask the district board to drop the name.

I mean, it this really that important? I suppose this is just one of those issues parents see as paramount to the 'protection' of their children - as if the naming their school after an 'inappropriate' T.V show affects their learning skills, or better yet, lack thereof.