Is There a Satanic Element in Rock Music?

[Chrystal-J]

If you read about Dylan's history, he struggled with addiction in his younger years and had a conversion experience in the 1970's. Neverthehless, his religious identity is very complicated (born to a nominally Jewish family, vaguely Christian in the 70's and 80's, etc.), and he keeps his beliefs close to his chest.

That puts the "deal" in perspepctive. We're talking about 12-steps type spirituality, not a pact with Satan.

He devoted a lot of music to his Christian faith. I wouldn't call it "vague". Maybe he was scared by what he had done previously.

 

[FireDragon76]

He devoted a lot of music to his Christian faith. I wouldn't call it "vague". Maybe he was scared by what he had done previously.

I've known people that were Jewish that had Christian conversion type experiences, and it can leave people feeling confused or conflicted. It may be something he doesn't care to identify with too openly.

I think it's best to give Dylan the benefit of the doubt. That is the charitable thing to do.

 

[Chrystal-J]

Nobody ever says that gospel music is "metaphoric", it's always taken literally. Yet with some rock, that has obvious Satanic references, they're always called a metaphor or in some way not 'really' what it says it is.

 

[christian-surfer]

Some lyrics could be seen as non Christian. I think working at a job or living in a capitalist or socialist society on any level has similar things.

I like some Christian rock but some of that music is bland in some way if you like musical talent which includes aspects of a song that aren’t as much lyrical but say the instrumentation. Christian rock is good for worship even if it seems lacking in some ways and I find that very significant even if often prefer music that has a lot of instrumental talent, but worship music is good in its own way. Some of that is even kind of loud for some people I suppose. There is a verse in the Bible I think about worship the lord with a loud sound but I think silence also has a lot of value on the flip side

You can say rock music is loud and see that as negative , that’s true but you can like loud music sometimes but at other times you like quiet as well.

 

[dzheremi]

In the music, no; in the industry, ehhhhh...

My father worked in the rock music industry from 1970 until his retirement in 2010, so he worked with basically everyone over that time-period and exposed my family to a lot famous rock people as they actually are (good and bad). My brother still works in the industry, as he has for about the past 20 years. The industry itself is full of weirdos and some really dark stuff (as is true of many industries, I should say; looking at you gymnastics, film, textiles, professional wrestling, etc.), but it's a bit of a stretch to say that the music itself is therefore satanic. A not-insignificant number of people involved in the music that might be most objectionable to Christians on this website are actually Christians. For example, godfather of 'shock rock' Alice Cooper is an Evangelical Christian who teaches Sunday school; the lead singer of the heavy metal band Slayer is in fact a practicing Catholic from Chile; the guitarist from the band Korn has given several interviews on his conversion and status as a born again Christian, etc., etc.

Marketing is marketing, and people are people. Sometimes the marketing does reflect at least some aspect of how the people actually are (e.g., Ozzy Osbourne really did have a crazy drug habit for many years and did many outrageous things while under the influence), but it's not at all uncommon that the marketing plays up or sometimes manufactures out of whole cloth the image of their artists. The famous rapper Ice Cube, for instance, has a diploma in architectural drafting that he got while in NWA in 1988 in order to have something to fall back on if his rap career didn't work out, and has been married to the same woman since 1992, and has five children with her. That's a pretty big break from the stereotype of hedonists having no plans for the future, having many children with different women, etc. But I'm sure that there's a certain kind of person out there who would hear an Ice Cube song and conclude that he must actually be out there shooting people as though it's nothing, based on foolishly taking his lyrics literally without ever considering that it's better for his career if he doesn't write a song about how it's been a good day because he didn't have to use his architectural drafting education.

 

[Joseph G]

Nuh uh, if you play that Pink Floyd dude backwards he's singing about Satan's tool shed.

No need to play PF backwards. Read the lyrics to Sheep on the Animals album - a mocking perversion of Psalms 23. Or Roger Waters' song What God Wants, 1 and 2. Or from The Hero's Return' "Jesus, Jesus, what's it all about? Trying to clout these little ingrates into shape".

Or if one really digs deep, how about the Professional Victim Mentality strewn throughout his lyrics, reaching it's glorious height in that whine-fest known as The Wall. As for all the characters who abused poor Pink, ever pondered just who the obscene Judge represents? Damned for showing feelings of an almost human nature? Come on now, the poets and the artists should be idolized, even the one's that literally spits into the face of a fan!

Now play that crap over and over and sing along, firmly planting it in your thinking until your world view becomes a pity-fest of "look what they've done to me, everybody owes me, nobody really loves me, why was I created so thin-skinned, God isn't fair! God wants jihad, tee-hee! Ain't I clever? I think I'll reward myself by performing the same 15-20 songs for 50 friggin' years till I'm just drooling on stage and hungering for, yes Rog, "more... and more... applause."

The certain pathetic end for ALL of our idols.

Satanicly inspired? Well consider who the top Adversary of God and the world is - The Original Professional Victim. "Why should I be damned for wanting to establish my throne above God's throne? It's not fair! Look how beautiful I am, how perfect... I will be my own god and worship myself above all. And in my great wrath, I will inspire all of God's creation to worship idols, who by virtue of glomming onto them actually becomes self-worship... see what good taste I have and how deep I am?

I'll leave poor Roger alone now. Just wanted to provide one example of how I choose my music after accepting Jesus Christ and spending considerable years to replacing wordly (read: satanic) music and thought with His thought from His Holy Bible. Thank the good Lord saved me from all the garbage I was saturating my mind with.

Choosing music has become really easy now. Read the lyrics- wordshipping Self or worldly wisdom? BUZZ! Worshipping God and His awesome Son? BING!

But hey, I'm just talking about myself. Each man has the freedom to decide what he fills his mind with. For myself, I choose to reject the Deceiver no matter how he dresses his fare in bubble gum and lolly-pops. Ain't working no more, dude. Blast off!

I have, however, devoted myself to praying for all my former idols, emphasis on FORMER idols. Thank you, Jesus, for setting this captive free, just like you promised.

[end rant]

 

[ozso]

No need to play PF backwards. Read the lyrics to Sheep on the Animals album - a mocking perversion of Psalms 23. Or Roger Waters' song What God Wants, 1 and 2. Or from The Hero's Return' "Jesus, Jesus, what's it all about? Trying to clout these little ingrates into shape".

Or if one really digs deep, how about the Professional Victim Mentality strewn throughout his lyrics, reaching it's glorious height in that whine-fest known as The Wall. As for all the characters who abused poor Pink, ever pondered just who the obscene Judge represents? Damned for showing feelings of an almost human nature? Come on now, the poets and the artists should be idolized, even the one's that literally spits into the face of a fan!

Now play that crap over and over and sing along, firmly planting it in your thinking until your world view becomes a pity-fest of "look what they've done to me, everybody owes me, nobody really loves me, why was I created so thin-skinned, God isn't fair! God wants jihad, tee-hee! Ain't I clever? I think I'll reward myself by performing the same 15-20 songs for 50 friggin' years till I'm just drooling on stage and hungering for, yes Rog, "more... and more... applause."

The certain pathetic end for ALL of our idols.

Satanicly inspired? Well consider who the top Adversary of God and the world is - The Original Professional Victim. "Why should I be damned for wanting to establish my throne above God's throne? It's not fair! Look how beautiful I am, how perfect... I will be my own god and worship myself above all. And in my great wrath, I will inspire all of God's creation to worship idols, who by virtue of glomming onto them actually becomes self-worship... see what good taste I have and how deep I am?

I'll leave poor Roger alone now. Just wanted to provide one example of how I choose my music after accepting Jesus Christ and spending considerable years to replacing wordly (read: satanic) music and thought with His thought from His Holy Bible. Thank the good Lord saved me from all the garbage I was saturating my mind with.

Choosing music has become really easy now. Read the lyrics- wordshipping Self or worldly wisdom? BUZZ! Worshipping God and His awesome Son? BING!

But hey, I'm just talking about myself. Each man has the freedom to decide what he fills his mind with. For myself, I choose to reject the Deceiver no matter how he dresses his fare in bubble gum and lolly-pops. Ain't working no more, dude. Blast off!

I have, however, devoted myself to praying for all my former idols, emphasis on FORMER idols. Thank you, Jesus, for setting this captive free, just like you promised.

[end rant]

Wow. Personally I haven't put much thought into musicians, much less worshiped them. BTW when I said Pink Floyd dude, I was joking about people thinking Pink Floyd is a person rather than the name of a band. But I don't know the names of the members of a lot of bands.

 

[timewerx]

I think some praise and worships songs are more satanic than rock music.

At least many rock music lyrics is about NOT conforming to this world and even hating the world, being hated by the world, the world being evil, the broken nature of mankind, and about the struggles of the weak. While many praise and worships songs is all about prosperity and having a good life in this world and nothing about the harsh realities of life.

Yet Jesus actually speaks badly of having a good life in this world: John 12:25, Luke 6:24.

We shouldn't be loving the world: 1 John 2:15-17, James 4:4

The chosen will be hated by the world: John 15:19

The world is under the grasp of the evil one thus, reality is rife with many hardships and sorrows: 1 John 5:19

Blessed are you when everyone is against you: Luke 6:22

The teachings of Jesus fits rocks music better!

 

[Aaron112]

I think some praise and worships songs are more satanic than rock music.

Everything of the flesh is flesh, and profits nothing.
There is no rm in heaven, nor from heaven.

 

[Aaron112]

If you actually read the lyrics to many songs, you can almost hear the devil speaking.

It is not necessary to read nay anything to hear the devil and demons. WIckednesses fill the world non-stop until Jesus returns.

However, instead, for life, for freedom, for truth
hear what Jesus Says instead.

 

[Joseph G]

Wow. Personally I haven't put much thought into musicians, much less worshiped them. BTW when I said Pink Floyd dude, I was joking about people thinking Pink Floyd is a person rather than the name of a band. But I don't know the names of the members of a lot of bands.

Well then you're a better man than I. It was a painful experience allowing God to destroy all my idols - but life is much better for it. Thank you, Jesus!

And yep, it was a running gag with the band that people thought Pink was a person in the band. I'm sure that's why the boy in the movie was called Pinkie. And.. you'll be delighted to know that there was indeed a genuine backwards message on the vinyl cut of The Wall. It said, "Congratulations, you have discovered the secret to The Wall. Send your response to Old Pink, care of [indecipherable] Funny Farm, Westchester [something]." Or that's the best I could make out.

It's not like I set out to worship anyone. I just bought most of their stuff because of the music, then learned all I could about the band's backstory, learned all the words and sang along. Their words, along with about 50 or so other rock bands, thus permeated my thinking and philosophies about the world. And at the time I got no differing perspective because I wasn't reading the Bible, praying regularly (except when I was in a jam), or going to Church.

So though I didn't set out to worship anyone, I maintain emphatically that whoever one's words are filling our minds habitually, is who we are worshipping. We've given them the throne in our mind to decipher reality, and it's decidedly hostile to God's perception of reality according to His Word. And easy to see, is that the morality of the secular worldview and what it excuses or even champions is certainly at odds with what God calls sin.

Quite bluntly, secular artists inspire their fans to sin.

Another example from today - Taylor Swift. If there was ever a poster girl for idol worship, it is her. I saw a vid of her recently and the audience was chock-full of teenage girls weeping and jumping up and down, mouthing along to every single lyric. And what is the predominant theme of her material? Trashing her ex-boyfriends and reeking girl-power vengeance upon them. Most men are basically scum. Good stuff to fill those teenage heads with that will serve them really well in their relationships throughout their lives.

My heart actually hurts for Taylor. That is just too much adulation. When the record sales finally begin to diminish (she has had a remarkable run I must say) and her feet of clay becomes more prominent, and the chasm between fantasy and reality become further and further apart, I'm afraid she is in for a spectacular fall. Emotionally, mentally and spiritually. I've prayed more than once that God would perform a miracle and protect her from that fall.

And frankly, that's how we treat all of our idols, in music, entertainment, sports, politics, ect. Heaping obscene amounts of money on them has to have them thinking, "Hey, I must be something special!"

Why do we do it? Why do we create "stars"? I'm gonna totally violate my argument by appealing to a secular artist who I believe nails it. Styx. Musta been heavenly inspired in spite of the artist...

Welcome to the Grand Illusion
Come on in and see what's happenin'
Pay the price get your ticket for the show
The stage is set the band starts playing
Suddenly your heart is pounding
Wishing secretly you were a star

Don't be fooled by the radio
The TV or the magazine
They show you photographs
Of how your life should be
Attached to someone else's fantasy

So if your life is just complete confusion
Cause you never win the game
Just remember that
It's a Grand Illusion
Deep inside we're all the same

Unfortunately, Styx hasn't listened to their own words. They are still out there, racking in the adoration and the big bucks, yes, playing the same 15-20 songs over and over for decades now.

My buddy used to have a bumper sticker that sums the reality of this 'ole world quite nicely...

"The devil's playing a game, and you're it."

Better to suss out his deceptions in this life, than to do so when it's too late.

As for the Deceivers fate, just a snippet of the humiliation he will suffer in the eyes of the world, then cast away and silenced forever. Yes, in this we rejoice, because one is not real happy about being deceived by one masquerading as a being of light. A little man with a big mouth.

Vengeance is the Lord's.

My little interpretation of how this snippet should be emphasized:

[astonished] "Really? THIS is the man who ______"

Isaiah 14:16-17 NIV

"Those who see you stare at you,
they ponder your fate:
“Is this the man who shook the earth
and made kingdoms tremble,
the man who made the world a wilderness,
who overthrew its cities
and would not let his captives go home?"

biblegateway.com

 

[ozso]

Well then you're a better man than I. It was a painful experience allowing God to destroy all my idols - but life is much better for it. Thank you, Jesus!

And yep, it was a running gag with the band that people thought Pink was a person in the band. I'm sure that's why the boy in the movie was called Pinkie. And.. you'll be delighted to know that there was indeed a genuine backwards message on the vinyl cut of The Wall. It said, "Congratulations, you have discovered the secret to The Wall. Send your response to Old Pink, care of [indecipherable] Funny Farm, Westchester [something]." Or that's the best I could make out.

It's not like I set out to worship anyone. I just bought most of their stuff because of the music, then learned all I could about the band's backstory, learned all the words and sang along. Their words, along with about 50 or so other rock bands, thus permeated my thinking and philosophies about the world. And at the time I got no differing perspective because I wasn't reading the Bible, praying regularly (except when I was in a jam), or going to Church.

So though I didn't set out to worship anyone, I maintain emphatically that whoever one's words are filling our minds habitually, is who we are worshipping. We've given them the throne in our mind to decipher reality, and it's decidedly hostile to God's perception of reality according to His Word. And easy to see, is that the morality of the secular worldview and what it excuses or even champions is certainly at odds with what God calls sin.

Quite bluntly, secular artists inspire their fans to sin.

Another example from today - Taylor Swift. If there was ever a poster girl for idol worship, it is her. I saw a vid of her recently and the audience was chock-full of teenage girls weeping and jumping up and down, mouthing along to every single lyric. And what is the predominant theme of her material? Trashing her ex-boyfriends and reeking girl-power vengeance upon them. Most men are basically scum. Good stuff to fill those teenage heads with that will serve them really well in their relationships throughout their lives.

My heart actually hurts for Taylor. That is just too much adulation. When the record sales finally begin to diminish (she has had a remarkable run I must say) and her feet of clay becomes more prominent, and the chasm between fantasy and reality become further and further apart, I'm afraid she is in for a spectacular fall. Emotionally, mentally and spiritually. I've prayed more than once that God would perform a miracle and protect her from that fall.

And frankly, that's how we treat all of our idols, in music, entertainment, sports, politics, ect. Heaping obscene amounts of money on them has to have them thinking, "Hey, I must be something special!"

Why do we do it? Why do we create "stars"? I'm gonna totally violate my argument by appealing to a secular artist who I believe nails it. Styx. Musta been heavenly inspired in spite of the artist...

Welcome to the Grand Illusion
Come on in and see what's happenin'
Pay the price get your ticket for the show
The stage is set the band starts playing
Suddenly your heart is pounding
Wishing secretly you were a star

Don't be fooled by the radio
The TV or the magazine
They show you photographs
Of how your life should be
Attached to someone else's fantasy

So if your life is just complete confusion
Cause you never win the game
Just remember that
It's a Grand Illusion
Deep inside we're all the same

Unfortunately, Styx hasn't listened to their own words. They are still out there, racking in the adoration and the big bucks, yes, playing the same 15-20 songs over and over for decades now.

My buddy used to have a bumper sticker that sums the reality of this 'ole world quite nicely...

"The devil's playing a game, and you're it."

Better to suss out his deceptions in this life, than to do so when it's too late.

As for the Deceivers fate, just a snippet of the humiliation he will suffer in the eyes of the world, then cast away and silenced forever. Yes, in this we rejoice, because one is not real happy about being deceived by one masquerading as a being of light. A little man with a big mouth.

Vengeance is the Lord's.

My little interpretation of how this snippet should be emphasized:

[astonished] "Really? THIS is the man who ______"

Isaiah 14:16-17 NIV

"Those who see you stare at you,
they ponder your fate:
“Is this the man who shook the earth
and made kingdoms tremble,
the man who made the world a wilderness,
who overthrew its cities
and would not let his captives go home?"

biblegateway.com

I wouldn't say better, just a lot more out of touch. I remember I liked Fleetwood Mac. And I remember liking the Bee Gees. Most of which is whatever I caught on the radio. I wasn't the least bit familiar with Pink Floyd. Except the "we don't need no education". The back masking I was referring to is actually Stairway To Heaven. Apparently it sounds something like "sad satan in a tool shed" or whatever.

 

[Joseph G]

I wouldn't say better, just a lot more out of touch. I remember I liked Fleetwood Mac. And I remember liking the Bee Gees most of which is whatever I caught on the radio. I wasn't the least bit familiar with Pink Floyd. The back masking I was referring to is actually Stairway To Heaven. Apparently it sounds something like "sad satan in a tool shed" or whatever.

I think you're right. I also remember Rob Halford of another band (I won't repeat the band name because I consider it blatantly blasphemous) being brought into court because a parent's teenage son had committed suicide while listening to one of their songs - which they claimed had a satanic backwards message saying, "do it, do it, do it". Shrug... I'm sure they lost but I did appreciate that Rob Halford said it was tragic and felt ill at the prospect that their music might influence such a deed. Of course, that didn't prevent the band from producing more garbage.

Sigh...

 

[ViaCrucis]

One of the problems I have with this rhetoric is that the origins of this way of talking goes back to Blues and Jazz, because of the "African" influences.

One of the major reasons why "rock music" was considered evil at the Fundamentalist Baptist school I attended was that the percussion had its roots in African drum beats, and was therefore evil.

To put that into more clear terms: It was about black people being bad and therefore "black music" bad, whereas white people good and therefore "white music" good.

It's rooted in blatant racism. Just because the racism isn't highlighted as much now, or is downplayed or even ignored, that's where the rhetoric originated. The arguments mold and shift to be more "politically correct", but it is still based on blatant racism. You can color it up with a nice pretty paint of religious piety, it doesn't change what's underneath.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[Joseph G]

Er, I attend a 99% black Church and I'm white. I LOVE the worship music - it would never occur to me to foist 'my' music onto 'them'. WE, my brothers and sisters in Christ, joyously celebrate our Savior as one body.

Not a good idea to broad-brush everyone. There really isn't a racist crouching behind every bush... especially identified as such by the most extreme irony, the color of their skin. Not the best way to encourage conciliation, I humbly suggest.

I'm moving on up, to the East side, to a delux apartment in the sky... whee!

 

[ozso]

I think you're right. I also remember Rob Halford of another band (I won't repeat the band name because I consider it blatantly blasphemous) being brought into court because a parent's teenage son had committed suicide while listening to one of their songs - which they claimed had a satanic backwards message saying, "do it, do it, do it". Shrug... I'm sure they lost but I did appreciate that Rob Halford said it was tragic and felt ill at the prospect that their music might influence such a deed. Of course, that didn't prevent the band from producing more garbage.

Sigh...

I actually happened to see an excerpt of that trial. What I remember him saying is if they were going to put in a secret message it would be "buy more records". He was pointing out that getting your customers to kill themselves wasn't very good for business. And I thought he had a pretty legitimate point. Another I know of is an Ozzy song that goes something like "I tell you to enjoy your life" which got misheard as "I'm telling you to end your life".

 

[Joseph G]

I actually happened to see an excerpt of that trial. What I remember him saying is if they were going to put in a secret message it would be "buy more records". He was pointing out that getting your customers to kill themselves wasn't very good for business. And I thought he had a pretty legitimate point. Another I know of is an Ozzy song that goes something like "I tell you to enjoy your life" which got misheard as "I'm telling you to end your life".

Right you are. Wasn't the Ozzy song Suicide Solution? And didn't he respond that the song was actually discouraging suicide? Memory is hazy...

Edit: Just checked out the lyrics. Nevermind! Not only does it encourage suicide without any suggested irony, but also praises the nameless one. Not surprising from a supposed christian who identifies himself as the prince of darkness. Double sigh...

 

[ozso]

Right you are. Wasn't the Ozzy song Suicide Solution? And didn't he respond that the song was actually discouraging suicide? Memory is hazy...

It was Paranoid from that band who's name also probably shouldn't be posted. I actually became more familiar with some of this stuff in my 40s. I understand though how easy it is to get too wrapped up in secular stuff, especially for teens and early 20s. I was more of a bookworm.

 

[Niels]

Well then you're a better man than I. It was a painful experience allowing God to destroy all my idols - but life is much better for it. Thank you, Jesus!

And yep, it was a running gag with the band that people thought Pink was a person in the band. I'm sure that's why the boy in the movie was called Pinkie. And.. you'll be delighted to know that there was indeed a genuine backwards message on the vinyl cut of The Wall. It said, "Congratulations, you have discovered the secret to The Wall. Send your response to Old Pink, care of [indecipherable] Funny Farm, Westchester [something]." Or that's the best I could make out.

It's not like I set out to worship anyone. I just bought most of their stuff because of the music, then learned all I could about the band's backstory, learned all the words and sang along. Their words, along with about 50 or so other rock bands, thus permeated my thinking and philosophies about the world. And at the time I got no differing perspective because I wasn't reading the Bible, praying regularly (except when I was in a jam), or going to Church.

So though I didn't set out to worship anyone, I maintain emphatically that whoever one's words are filling our minds habitually, is who we are worshipping. We've given them the throne in our mind to decipher reality, and it's decidedly hostile to God's perception of reality according to His Word. And easy to see, is that the morality of the secular worldview and what it excuses or even champions is certainly at odds with what God calls sin.

Quite bluntly, secular artists inspire their fans to sin.

Another example from today - Taylor Swift. If there was ever a poster girl for idol worship, it is her. I saw a vid of her recently and the audience was chock-full of teenage girls weeping and jumping up and down, mouthing along to every single lyric. And what is the predominant theme of her material? Trashing her ex-boyfriends and reeking girl-power vengeance upon them. Most men are basically scum. Good stuff to fill those teenage heads with that will serve them really well in their relationships throughout their lives.

My heart actually hurts for Taylor. That is just too much adulation. When the record sales finally begin to diminish (she has had a remarkable run I must say) and her feet of clay becomes more prominent, and the chasm between fantasy and reality become further and further apart, I'm afraid she is in for a spectacular fall. Emotionally, mentally and spiritually. I've prayed more than once that God would perform a miracle and protect her from that fall.

And frankly, that's how we treat all of our idols, in music, entertainment, sports, politics, ect. Heaping obscene amounts of money on them has to have them thinking, "Hey, I must be something special!"

Why do we do it? Why do we create "stars"? I'm gonna totally violate my argument by appealing to a secular artist who I believe nails it. Styx. Musta been heavenly inspired in spite of the artist...

Welcome to the Grand Illusion
Come on in and see what's happenin'
Pay the price get your ticket for the show
The stage is set the band starts playing
Suddenly your heart is pounding
Wishing secretly you were a star

Don't be fooled by the radio
The TV or the magazine
They show you photographs
Of how your life should be
Attached to someone else's fantasy

So if your life is just complete confusion
Cause you never win the game
Just remember that
It's a Grand Illusion
Deep inside we're all the same

Unfortunately, Styx hasn't listened to their own words. They are still out there, racking in the adoration and the big bucks, yes, playing the same 15-20 songs over and over for decades now.

My buddy used to have a bumper sticker that sums the reality of this 'ole world quite nicely...

"The devil's playing a game, and you're it."

Better to suss out his deceptions in this life, than to do so when it's too late.

As for the Deceivers fate, just a snippet of the humiliation he will suffer in the eyes of the world, then cast away and silenced forever. Yes, in this we rejoice, because one is not real happy about being deceived by one masquerading as a being of light. A little man with a big mouth.

Vengeance is the Lord's.

My little interpretation of how this snippet should be emphasized:

[astonished] "Really? THIS is the man who ______"

Isaiah 14:16-17 NIV

"Those who see you stare at you,
they ponder your fate:
“Is this the man who shook the earth
and made kingdoms tremble,
the man who made the world a wilderness,
who overthrew its cities
and would not let his captives go home?"

biblegateway.com

You bring up a good point. Celebrity worship is arguably Satanic. The danger is similar regardless of whether we're talking about musicians, actors, athletes, public intellectuals, or even famous pastors. We have no business worshiping our fellow humans. Only God is to be worshiped.

Which isn't to say that the fault lies with artists, performers, or public figures. They're just doing their job. We need to remember that they're people like the rest of us. There's a running joke in my family that if one of us meets a famous person we'll give them our autograph. This is silly, of course, as we're not famous ourselves but it keeps things in perspective. I may like their music, their movies, or whatever, but I have no interest in getting their autographs or treating them differently than I would anybody here.

 

[Joseph G]

You bring up a good point. Celebrity worship is arguably Satanic. The danger is similar regardless of whether we're talking about musicians, actors, athletes, public intellectuals, or even famous pastors. We have no business worshiping our fellow humans. Only God is to be worshiped.

Which isn't to say that the fault lies with artists, performers, or public figures. They're just doing their job. We need to remember that they're people like the rest of us. There's a running joke in my family that if one of us meets a famous person we'll give them our autograph. This is silly, of course, as we're not famous ourselves but it keeps things in perspective. I may like their music, their movies, or whatever, but I have no interest in getting their autographs or treating them differently than I would anybody here.

This brought a funny to mind. Back around the days of Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Roy Harper and Michael Irvin, I got to attend my only professional Cowboys game, against the New York Giants. It was a championship year and they annihilated the Giants. At one point I actually made an astute observation to my buddy. I said, "Hey, do you realize we've paid a lot of money to watch a bunch of millionaires toss around a slab of pigskin, all for the thrill of *squeal* bragging that we saw them in person?"

Well here's my point about human inconsistency. We stopped at a convenience store after the game and as I approached the door, out stepped Tony Dorsett. I froze, starstruck, and we just stood there staring at each other. He kinda gave me a pointed expression that said, "Well, are you gonna ask? I can't stand here all night". I just continued to stand and stare. He finally shrugged and moved on. Triple sigh...