Dear God- a song to check out
Oh my, I am going down a memory lane. There are many but this one is particularly great. XTC’s “Dear God”. Man, when I first heard this song I was so moved. Questioning religion, this song was thrilling to me. I was raised a good Catholic girl. I attended Our Lady Of Mount Carmel in Virginia. I was there long enough to be brainwashed to some extent. My sisters were 4 and 5 years older than me. Enough of a difference in ages to be worlds apart. They were dating boys and I was being schooled in all that was sinful. I caught my sister making out one day with her boyfriend and I told her she was going to hell. I really did. Crazy. Three years in that school taught me well and that most things were evil. It freaked my sisters out. Afterward, it freaked me out. One year out of that place had me sneaking out in England, where we lived for my eighth grade year, to drink beer and flirt with boys. Some things just do not take.
What rocked my world was when my mom said to me one day in 9th grade, that she believed the bible was a gathering of stories to live by, not necessarily the truth or history. I was amazed. Raised to believe that the bible was factual, I was sent reeling. I had so many questions in Catholic school that our teacher, a nun, got frustrated with me and sent me to the priests to discuss my inquiries. There I happened to get Father Norbert. He was an aging priest who patiently listened to my doubts about God. His words have always stayed with me. I was lucky to have found him. He said God is whatever and whoever created us. No BS about the man with the beard in the sky. Whatever and whoever created us? That meant we are here by something that made us. I could not deny that. Something did create us. Big bang? Random evolution? I could buy into “whatever or whoever”. Father Norbert was the first to open my eyes to accepting that we do not know anything really but we are still amazed.
I went to college in Tx from my little school in Germany and met a friend who exposed me to this song. I was blown away. The song said it exactly. I may not believe in you and these stories but I wear my heart on my sleeve, just in case. Moving. Powerful. Check it out.
