Pearl Jam & Catholicism

edited May 2008 in A Moving Train
Hello All

I have got into the band in the last year or so and have bought all the albums and so on.

I have had a slight nagging discomfort having read previous interviews in which Vedder has "mocked" religion.

My own faith is a big part of who I am and I would like to know if there are any others on here with similar views.

Is it possible to be a big devotee of the band and still have your own beliefs.

I certainly don't claim to have the monopoly on wisdom and everyone is entitled to their opinion, just a touch concerned that my own views would be belittled here

Cheers
Post edited by Unknown User on
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Comments

  • DeLukinDeLukin Posts: 2,757
    I think it's possible. You can enjoy the music without agreeing with the message. Ed wears his beliefs on his sleeve, which is a good thing but it also means that there's a good chance he's going to say something that you don't agree with eventually. You've got to accept that and get beyond the urge to judge.

    I also think you've got to be willing to hear the other side of the debate, whether or not you agree with it. Whether it's politics, religion, etc. I've found that hearing the whole argument either helps strengthen my beliefs or makes me want to find out more about the issue. Either way, that's a good thing right?
    I smile, but who am I kidding...
  • swallowedwordsswallowedwords Posts: 1,093
    Hello All

    I have got into the band in the last year or so and have bought all the albums and so on.

    I have had a slight nagging discomfort having read previous interviews in which Vedder has "mocked" religion.

    My own faith is a big part of who I am and I would like to know if there are any others on here with similar views.

    Is it possible to be a big devotee of the band and still have your own beliefs.

    I certainly don't claim to have the monopoly on wisdom and everyone is entitled to their opinion, just a touch concerned that my own views would be belittled here

    Cheers

    If you love their music, you shouldn't worry about what Eddie thinks about certain issues, etc. It's the music that matters....everything else is not very important.
    Free the West Memphis Three
    www.wm3.org

    Ron Paul 2012
  • ReleaseMe...ReleaseMe... Posts: 494
    just because you like a band doesnt mean you have to follow their religion. serious?
    Mansfield II: # 23, since '03

    routine was the theme..

    there aint gonna be any middle any more
  • MakingWavesMakingWaves Posts: 1,293
    Hello All

    I have got into the band in the last year or so and have bought all the albums and so on.

    I have had a slight nagging discomfort having read previous interviews in which Vedder has "mocked" religion.

    My own faith is a big part of who I am and I would like to know if there are any others on here with similar views.

    Is it possible to be a big devotee of the band and still have your own beliefs.

    I certainly don't claim to have the monopoly on wisdom and everyone is entitled to their opinion, just a touch concerned that my own views would be belittled here

    Cheers

    I'm in the same boat as you and of course it is possible to be a big devotee of the band and still have your own beliefs. I love PJ for their music, not for their views on religion or politics.
    There are some people who might say some negative things about you being Catholic but all are entitled to their opinion.
    Seeing visions of falling up somehow.

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  • wwfairfieldwwfairfield Posts: 216
    people who believe in god are like people who believe in bigfoot ...... not very smart




    god is for idiots
    move on
  • I suppose when I think about a song like "do the evolution" I interpret it in the following way:

    people haven't changed and have used resources (one example religion) for their own ends

    Then you have a song like "faithful" which I feel is mocking in tone

    I wonder if it possible to appreciate something when the underlying message is "you are all fools" - which isn't particuarly tolerant
  • rival.rival. Chicago Posts: 7,775
    if you love the music, keep listening for that reason and that reason only then.

    i know there are a ton of people on this board that do not agree with every word that comes out of eddie's mouth.
  • people who believe in god are like people who believe in bigfoot ...... not very smart




    god is for idiots
    move on


    thank you for your highbrow answer
  • wwfairfieldwwfairfield Posts: 216
    thank you for your highbrow answer


    you believe the jesus myth i presume??

    where's nessy?
  • StrykerStryker Upstate, NY Posts: 585
    Threads like this are pointless. They lead to nothing but trolling(see the posts by wwfairfield as an example of this).

    If you enjoy the music, enjoy the music. The personal beliefs of the band shouldn't matter. If you can get past that and respect that other people may have opinions different than yours, you should probably reevaluate more than just the music you're listening to.
  • My apologies - this probably should have went on moving train,

    Again I must stress I am fairly open myself (a bit of a contradiction with the good book I know) and would probably class myself as a liberal at a push

    If one of the moderators could close this, it would be for the best

    Cheers
  • wwfairfieldwwfairfield Posts: 216
    word

    religion & god are like a hard count... they draw me offsides


    religion is trolling
  • Stephen FlowStephen Flow Posts: 3,327
    I think Ed has a good head on his shoulders. I think that when he talks or sings about something, I take what he thinks into consideration, even if it conflicts on how I feel about certain issues... his ideas are thought provoking and are generally positive and I usually agree with what he thinks. As long as you have no problem rocking out to songs like Do The Evolution, or Marker in the Sand (to name a few) even when you understand what they are about then that's fine.. I think the most important thing is to stick to what you believe in but do not let what someone else thinks spoil your fun.
  • Stephen FlowStephen Flow Posts: 3,327
    word

    religion & god are like a hard count... they draw me offsides


    religion is trolling

    Just call Eli Manning Jesus, thanks...

    I find religion very interesting to study... but it's all hogwash really... and there are people in my life who would not understand why I dislike religion... I think you and I dislike religion for different reasons though... I don't denounce God, because I am not certain (on the fence really) but what I dislike is the way most religions are run with scare tactics, it's 2008, people sin, move on... I do tend to believe in scientific theories sooner than I would things that come from the bible, such as the adam and eve tale...

    I'm rambling now but some people just need something to believe in and I do not have a problem with that as long as they don't aggressively push it onto me I am fine.
  • Stephen FlowStephen Flow Posts: 3,327
    BeerBaron wrote:
    There's not doubt that Ed has mocked religion over the years. I always remember one quote of his: "they say it took God 7 days to create man. What I want to know is how many days it took man to create God" ... and that's just one of many. Not to mention the song lyrics with similar references in them.

    Personally, I am not a religious person. At all. I don't judge those who are, it just isn't for me.

    That said, one of my biggest problems with organized religion is the fact that may of those who are stong believers find the need to intertwine religion in to every single aspect of their life and let it determine what and who they like. Pearl Jam is about the music. I can understand if maybe there is a specific song you would choose not to listen to because of some anti-religion lyrics. But why let a few lyrics and a few comments during live shows in the past determine if you like or dislike a band who otherwise have excellent songs with excellent lyrics? Seems narrow-minded to me. And I don't say that in the least way to be insluting. I am just making an observation.

    this.
  • riffrandallriffrandall Posts: 685
    I'm a pretty devout Catholic, I have no trouble reconciling my faith with my love of this band. The two are not related.

    If you go over to "A Moving Train" you might be surprised at the kinds of fans that this band, or at the very least this message board, attracts. White supremacists, anti-semites and just all-out racists and homophobes. Sometimes all in one person.
    "If you're looking for someone to pull you out of that ditch, you're out of luck."
  • MattyJoeMattyJoe Posts: 1,424
    people who believe in god are like people who believe in bigfoot ...... not very smart




    god is for idiots
    move on

    Well then there are billions of idiots and a few million non-idiots.

    I think that it's very possible that Eddie believes in God, in fact I am of the opinion that he does. I can't prove it definitively but that's just the sense I get having seen various performances, interviews, etc. I think that he was mad at God for a long time for various reasons. As far as his views on religion, he opposes religion because it turns people into "sheep," as he has said. That is a very valid and true point. His problem is not with the existence of a God but with the religions themselves which can often turn people into fanatical adherents.
    I pledge to you a government that will not only work well, but wisely, its ability to act tempered by prudence, and its willingness to do good, balanced by the knowledge that government is never more dangerous than when our desire to have it help us blinds us to its great power to harm us.
    -Reagan
  • I_Got_ShitI_Got_Shit Posts: 325
    MattyJoe wrote:
    Well then there are billions of idiots and a few million non-idiots.


    Right, and Nickelback sells millions more albums than Pearl Jam, so they're obviously a superior band.

    You fucking sheep.
    *Does not include encore of Garden and Leash.
  • MattyJoeMattyJoe Posts: 1,424
    I_Got_Shit wrote:
    Right, and Nickelback sells millions more albums than Pearl Jam, so they're obviously a superior band.

    You fucking sheep.

    Why must we resort to insults? You're just making yourself look more ignorant.

    Personally, I am not a very religious person. I believe in God and Jesus but I take issue with the attitudes of many Christians and with many characteristics of Christianity (not views or ideas, characteristics).
    I pledge to you a government that will not only work well, but wisely, its ability to act tempered by prudence, and its willingness to do good, balanced by the knowledge that government is never more dangerous than when our desire to have it help us blinds us to its great power to harm us.
    -Reagan
  • I_Got_ShitI_Got_Shit Posts: 325
    Let me get this straight: I make myself sound ignorant by calling you a sheep, then you edit your last post to include this statement about Ed: "As far as his views on religion, he opposes religion because it turns people into "sheep," as he has said. That is a very valid and true point."

    Ignoring the apparent hypocrisy you just displayed, I don't think you should claim to know anything about Ed's beliefs after watching a few performances. You WANT him to believe in God, because that is what you believe. And you believe in God and Jesus because that is what people told you to believe, which makes you a fucking sheep.
    *Does not include encore of Garden and Leash.
  • riffrandallriffrandall Posts: 685
    I_Got_Shit wrote:
    And you believe in God and Jesus because that is what people told you to believe, which makes you a fucking sheep.

    Hey! I resent that! There are enough parts of me that probably qualify me as a "sheep" (I work for a living, I take mass transit, I watch NBC if I feel like it) but I really don't think you have any right to tell me my religion is one of those things. My religion is deeply personal to me, I was not raised a Catholic, I came to it on my own and it means a lot to me. If Buddhism, or Judaism, or Scientology or even Atheism had appealed to me in the same way then I would study that.

    If you're not a follower of whatever religion, that's your thing, but don't offend everyone because you're going after one.
    "If you're looking for someone to pull you out of that ditch, you're out of luck."
  • zootownzootown Posts: 666
    Well, one thing is for sure, religion certainly brings out powerful emotions in folks-namecalling, defensiveness, insults- no matter what one believes, the power is pretty incredible.
    I hold the pain, release me!
  • DanimalDanimal Posts: 2,000
    Aaaaaaah Christianity.....the only religion that is acceptable to mock.
    "I don't believe in PJ fans but I believe there is something, not too sure what." - Thoughts_Arrive


  • I_Got_ShitI_Got_Shit Posts: 325
    Danimal wrote:
    Aaaaaaah Christianity.....the only religion that is acceptable to mock.

    Really, nobody mocks Scientology?

    And don't you dare say that Scientology is any less of a religion than Christianity.
    *Does not include encore of Garden and Leash.
  • Stephen FlowStephen Flow Posts: 3,327
    I guess some posts were deleted in this thread.
  • MattyJoeMattyJoe Posts: 1,424
    I_Got_Shit wrote:
    Let me get this straight: I make myself sound ignorant by calling you a sheep, then you edit your last post to include this statement about Ed: "As far as his views on religion, he opposes religion because it turns people into "sheep," as he has said. That is a very valid and true point."

    Your version of a sheep is anyone who believes in God. My version of a sheep are the people who become fanatical and extremely close minded about a religion, an attitude which totally opposes what the religion itself teaches and what the person supposedly believes about God. For instance, the word "Catholic" itself means universal and Catholics are called to be open to and understanding of all people because that's how God and, more specifically, Jesus are. However, I know many Catholics who are anything but universal and open. They just follow the example set forth by many other Catholics who themselves have lost track of what religion is really about. They view their religion in an elitist way. I think Christ would actually be very disappointed with many aspects of the Church were He to see it today.
    I pledge to you a government that will not only work well, but wisely, its ability to act tempered by prudence, and its willingness to do good, balanced by the knowledge that government is never more dangerous than when our desire to have it help us blinds us to its great power to harm us.
    -Reagan
  • KatKat Posts: 4,908
    zootown wrote:
    Well, one thing is for sure, religion certainly brings out powerful emotions in folks-namecalling, defensiveness, insults- no matter what one believes, the power is pretty incredible.

    We have Posting Guidelines here and everyone agrees to them when they register. Anyone who does these things is putting their account at risk. We thank everyone for cooperating by elevating the tone and content of their discussions.

    Admin
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  • MattyJoeMattyJoe Posts: 1,424
    I_Got_Shit wrote:
    Really, nobody mocks Scientology?

    And don't you dare say that Scientology is any less of a religion than Christianity.

    I don't think it's necessarily right to mock Scientology. The only problem is that Scientology is a fucking cult that takes advantage of its followers.
    I pledge to you a government that will not only work well, but wisely, its ability to act tempered by prudence, and its willingness to do good, balanced by the knowledge that government is never more dangerous than when our desire to have it help us blinds us to its great power to harm us.
    -Reagan
  • I_Got_Shit wrote:

    And don't you dare say that Scientology is any less of a religion than Christianity.


    hahaha! you can't be fucking serious?!!


    fuck what anybody thinks!! when it comes to religion it's about what YOU FEEL INSIDE,not what others say or feel.I love Ed like a dear old friend and how or what he thinks/feels about God doesn't change my faith or the way i feel about him.
    this country was supposed to be about freedom and being able to agree to disagree.
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