Charles Brammall, a Dylan fan seeks the answer.
I still pinch myself that the Bible and theology I love, esteem and admire so much are also coming from such a groovy rocker like Dylan, who I respect and love so much. It’s nearly too good to bear. His Christian songs are quite shocking in their delightfulness. A little glimpse of heaven.
But, many of Bob’s post-Christian songs contain Biblical and theological quotes and allusions as well as Christian thoughts, and snippets of Bible themes.
This is what makes me think he MIGHT still be a Christian, but a more private one, having been bitten by all the attention- negative and positive- he received when he “came out”.
Being a Christian for any of us is hard. Living as a public Christian is even trickier. Being a public Christian in entertainment is even more vexing. But to be a ridiculously popular, world-famous, extravagantly wealthy public Christian in entertainment is so hard it’s well nigh impossible.
(Hence one of our reasons for starting up “ENTER” is the Entertainment Bible Ministry, a mission Chaplaincy to get alongside Christian and non-Christian entertainment people alike. See my coming book, “Thats Entertainment- Reaching the Entertainment Industry for Jesus, with ENTER, The Entertainment Bible Ministry”.)
Dylan has always said that he speaks through his music, not what he says (which is rarely much). So maybe these brief but perfectly placed Biblical and Christian nuggets in his songs are deliberate- they are his new way of revealing to us his surviving relationship with God.
Almost like a code, like “The Revelation”. They have to be discovered to understand whether he remains a believer.
Unbelievers may not notice them, and they may miss them. But for Christians, they’re like a trumpet call signifying Bob’s ongoing membership of God’s family. They are like finding small flecks of gold in the creek at Sovereign Hill, Ballarat.
Seeded there deliberately, and you can benefit from them (our kids did), but some will not. The presence of those small sparkling flecks suggests there’s something bigger going on underneath. Like an iceberg, the vast majority of which is underwater.
Zimmy’s Biblical quotes, allusions, theological themes, and Christian thought might be like a trail of little breadcrumbs (like Hansel and Gretel’s), eventually leading to their true, safe home.
Which in Bob’s case is Jesus?
Non Evidence of Faith.
Or maybe NOT! Maybe Bob’s smattering and nuggets of Biblical quotes and allusions is actually NOT a little coded breadcrumb trail to reveal the answer to his ongoing faith or otherwise. Maybe these lyrics are not, actually, gold flecks in the creek, confirming his relationship with God. Or the super-marine tip of a gigantic iceberg.
Maybe they’re JUST a subset of ALL the powerful literary quotes, allusions, and thoughts that an erudite, articulate, extraordinarily talented lyricist has at their fingertips. Which they choose to use to deepen and enrich their lyrics to create great beauty and emotion.
Many NON-Christian lyricists do this as well- quote and allude to other great literary works, including God’s written Word. Like, The Bard, for example. From their quivers full of all SORT of material, they sometimes draw the Scriptures, sometimes something from some other literature.
Observant Jewish lyricist Norman Greenbaum exemplifies a writer who uses Biblical terminology and concepts in his Christian-ish (but ultimately heretical) song “Spirit in the Sky”. He says “I was inspired to write (it) was after watching a Christian-themed song performed by Porter Wagoner on television.”:
“Going on up to the spirit in the sky.
That’s where I’m gonna go when I die.
When I die and they lay me to rest, I’m gonna go to the place that’s the best.”
WHY will he “… go to the place that’s the best” when he dies? Because… he’s “never been a sinner. I never sinned.”
And THAT is why he’s…. “… got a friend in Jesus.”
It’s heresy because his own good works save him. But a lovely, Christian SOUNDING lyric. Just ultimately not the one true Gospel.
Or yet another Jewish man (and Buddhist monk!) Leonard Cohen’s song “Hallelujah”:
“Now I’ve heard there was a secret chord
That David played and it pleased the Lord…
The baffled king composing “Hallelujah.”
Your faith was strong, but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew ya
She tied you to a kitchen chair
She broke your throne and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah
You say I took the name in vain…
It doesn’t matter which you heard
The holy or the broken hallelujah.
I did my best, it wasn’t much…
I’ve told the truth, I didn’t come to fool ya
And even though it all went wrong
I’ll stand before the lord of song
With nothing on my tongue but hallelujah”.
Again, a hauntingly, tragically beautiful song, but heretical: WHY will he stand before the Lord in glory? Because:
“I did my best, it wasn’t much…
I’ve told the truth, I didn’t come to fool ya
And even though it all went wrong…”.
God will presumably forgive him in the end, as reward for his “Hallelujah!” song.
And Jewish lady Bette Middler’s song “From a Distance”:
“… From a distance, there is harmony… It’s the voice of hope, It’s the voice of peace. It’s the voice of every man
From a distance, we all have enough, And no one is in need
And there are no guns, no bombs, and no disease. No hungry mouths to feed… Playing songs of hope, Playing songs of peace… God is watching us… From a distance.”
Once again, some lovely (and Biblical) sentiments- hope, peace and love. Harmony, cessation of war, and no more need. But God is NOT watching us from a DISTANCE. He is close up! Present to all His creation, and intimately, alertly and constantly sustaining and providing for it second by second for all of history.
Finally
For me, Bob’s salvation is a vexed question, as he flip-flops constantly. I get all-excited about something he’ll say or sing, and then he’ll surprise me with something disappointing or discouraging.
In 1982, he said, “I’m a religious person. I read the scriptures a lot, meditate and pray, LIGHT CANDLES IN CHURCH. I believe in damnation and salvation, and predestination as well. The Five Books of Moses, Pauline Epistles, INVOCATION OF THE SAINTS, all of it.”
In a 1983 “Rolling Stone” magazine interview, he said,
“I’VE NEVER SAID I’M BORN AGAIN; the phrase is just a media term. I don’t think I’ve ever been an agnostic…
“I’ve always thought there’s a superior power, that this is not the real world, and that there’s a world to come. No soul has died; every soul is alive, either in holiness or flames. AND THERE’S PROBABLY A LOT OF MIDDLE GROUND.”
But then he’ll sing something like
“Ya either got faith or ya got unbelief,
And there ain’t NO neutral ground.”!
Good grief! Sometimes, I’d just like him to finally nail his colours once and for all. But he probably never will, and that’s okay because God’s sovereign, so it’s all good. I never claimed to be consistent, either. Except for identifying as one Christ has saved.
So… his use of Biblical quotes, references, and allusions in his post-Christian era lyrics may or may not be a clue that he’s still with the Lord. Who knows? Only the LORD. I can’t know, nor does God need me to.
So I don’t have to worry about it; I can just pray for him often instead, just as I can pray often for all sorts of people I’m concerned about, friends, family and others.
What a strange and vexed but wonderful man is Bob and adored by God.
Image: Bob Dylan 2019, Image Credit: Raph_PH/Wikimedia