"I'm not a christian, but it feels good to be in The Chapel", Ed Kowalczyk Options

[livebat]

I've just listen again all my bootlegs of Live and right now I'm listen "I Alone" for the concert in the Chapel, date: 2000-03-13.

Just want to share, again, like everyone, how much I miss Ed... If this thread is repetitive, it's because all we are concerned in different ways... Like I said: It's not religions fault, but in a way the people who didn't know what to believe, finds the wrong answer on them.

Want my +Live+ back!!!

[OutToDry]

Good stuff there man. At least you'll have your old recordings to commemorate those times. See what the future holds.

[gotigrz]

the thing is, is that ed (from everything i've heard or read) IS a Christian, now. and, when and if someone TRULY becomes a Christian... then they become a different person than what they were.

ed's old lyrics were edgy... full of angst... and, uncertainty. that was because he was mad at the world (much like a lot of '90's rock) and he was out looking for answers to "truth". well, if ed's claim of being a Christian is, in fact, honest truth... then he has found what it is that he's been looking for. the reason ed's voice has changed is cause his soul has changed. what was angst... is now joy.

the thing is, is that in live's old stuff... we all loved their stuff cause you could feel ed pouring his heart and soul out in every lyric. and, if you were not a Christian... you could really connect with what ed was saying. that's why, as a Christian and live fan, i had trouble with connecting w/ ed's lyrics. i LOVED live's "sound", but i had difficulty w/ ed's lyrics. but, now... i believe, ed is, once again, pouring his heart and soul out in his lyrics again... they're just lyrics based on a faith in Christ. and, if you're not a believer in Christ... you won't be able to connect with what ed is saying like you use to.

honestly, i don't dig on ed's new sound... it's a lot more "busy" than what i like, but, i can totally connect with what he's saying. if you're a Christian, then you'd happily replace your "want" for your favorite music with your "want" for someone's salvation. so, with that said... i'm very happy for ed.

i get the sense that many of you hope that live will one day get back together and "start over" in a sense... and start rocking out like the old days.... i can promise you that ain't gonna happen. they may get back together,... but, it'll never be the same. ed cannot be a Christian... and, write and sing songs like the songs of old. why do you think he's changed the lyrics in so many of his old songs? it's not cause he's trying to be cheesy and change the lyric to a happy Christian one... it's cause he has a conflict w/in his soul that wont let him sing those lyrics w/ any meaning.... cause he doesn't mean them, anymore.

as you all know, i am a Christian... and, i physically prayed for the salvation of ed's soul around the time that ed pretty much made it well known that he had found Christ. so, i don't claim to be the reason of ed's salvation... but, i do claim that my prayer was answered. and, i can only pray that anyone here that doesn't know Christ will, someday, get to know Him.

peace.

[Pokey]

i physically prayed for the salvation of ed's soul around the time that ed pretty much made it well known that he had found Christ.

Fuck .. so it's your fault Live went to shit and Ed's creativity deserted him? At least we know who to blame now!

[deepenoughtodive]

I prayed the same thing for a couple of years so you can add me to the list. His creativity seemingly deserted him long before I started praying for him.

Fuck .. so it's your fault Live went to shit and Ed's creativity deserted him? At least we know who to blame now!

[gotigrz]

Again the same could be said from his beliefs at any point in time in his career. Ed seems to always have had belief. In his younger years he seemed to have issues with organized religion but he had spiritual beliefs. Were those 20 years of belief non-genuine? Your argument can always be reduced to "Christianity is just, um, somehow different". In reality it's not. There's nothing special about Christianity that makes a genuine believer stick to it anymore so than another belief.

Also, for the section I added in bold, that seems to be more of the Christian logic that is an umbrella catch all.

When Christians do a good thing, it's because they're good Christians
When Christians do a bad thing, it's because they didn't really believe in the first place

It sounds similar to the "Well the Lord works in mysterious ways" retort that follows every basic question like "Why did God let those babies die in the Japanese Earthquake?"

i believe that his beliefs were genuine, but i don't believe that what his beliefs were in were genuine. like, i believe that a muslim genuinely believes in the word of the quran, but i don't believe that the quran is qenuine.

and, my argument of Christianity as just being different... well, actually i believe that Christianity is different... i believe it to be different because i believe it to be genuine. and, for that.. i believe when someone TRULY becomes a believer in It.... it sticks.

When Christians do a good thing, it's because they're good Christians
When Christians do a bad thing, it's because they didn't really believe in the first place

Christians... all of them... do bad things every day... it's called sin. i think a lot of people that don't agree with Christianity think that Christians walk around with this "holier than thou" attitude that we do no wrong... let me be the first to raise my "red right hand" and say that i am guilty of sinning every day. but, that doesn't make me any less of a Christian. being a Christian isn't about anything that i've done good or bad.... it's about me accepting the fact that Jesus did no wrong, yet died for all that i have done wrong. and, when i say "died for"... i mean "make atonement".

This post has been edited by gotigrz: Mar 29 2011, 1:02 pm

[PurdueSteve]

i believe that his beliefs were genuine, but i don't believe that what his beliefs were in were genuine. like, i believe that a muslim genuinely believes in the word of the quran, but i don't believe that the quran is qenuine.

Nuff said.

The Quran ins't genuine. Neither is the Torah. I bet you think the rain gods and sun gods that Native Americans believed in were sort of silly to.

I always find it interesting when someone, who believes in an imaginary being, dismisses the possible existence of other imaginary beings. You're an atheist. You don't believe that Zues, or Athena, or Allah or many of the thousands of other Gods that other people believe are real. The difference is that I believe in one less God than you, the Christian God. Tell me why your particular God, or Bible is genuine, but none of the others? You won't and can't.

[deepenoughtodive]

You seem pretty angry Steve.

Christians can't prove He exists, you can't prove He doesn't. What's your point?

Nuff said.

The Quran ins't genuine. Neither is the Torah. I bet you think the rain gods and sun gods that Native Americans believed in were sort of silly to.

I always find it interesting when someone, who believes in an imaginary being, dismisses the possible existence of other imaginary beings. You're an atheist. You don't believe that Zues, or Athena, or Allah or many of the thousands of other Gods that other people believe are real. The difference is that I believe in one less God than you, the Christian God. Tell me why your particular God, or Bible is genuine, but none of the others? You won't and can't.

[PurdueSteve]

You seem pretty angry Steve.

Christians can't prove He exists, you can't prove He doesn't. What's your point?

I'm really not angry. I just love illustrating the whack logic of Christians. Like your latest post.

I also can't prove that there isn't a giant 3 legged frog with a unicorn horn sticking out of it's back spewing tiger blood that lives on a yet to be discovered planet. Does that mean people should believe in the creatures existence? Do you believe in everything that's yet to be shown not to exist? Sheesh.

Call me a skeptic but damn, I have a tendency to not just believe in things because they haven't proven not to exist. That, and it's really damn hard to prove a negative in the first place.