John Lennon’s Imagine is ‘heart-chilling’, says bishop in Christmas homily

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The Bishop of Shrewsbury has described the John Lennon song Imagine as “heart-chilling” in a Christmas homily.
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Reflecting on this year’s Christmas adverts which focus on the First World War, Bishop Mark Davies will say in a homily on Christmas Day: “The events of Christmas 1914 give the lie to the lazily repeated assertion that ‘religion is the cause of wars’. John Lennon would give voice to this ill-founded belief in the lyrics of his song Imagine. This becomes a heart-chilling vision in which Lennon imagines a world with no hope of heaven and no fear of hell. And he adds, ‘no religion too’. Only then, he suggests will ‘all the people’ be ‘living life in peace.’”
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The bishop will continue: “Yet the fact is, the wars of the century past, bringing with them atrocities and destruction on a scale never seen before, were largely inspired by secularist and, indeed, openly anti-Christian ideologies. In reality, it is human sin which lies at the root cause of war. Conflicts, writes St James, arise within the human heart wherever ‘bitter jealousy and selfish ambition’ are found (James 3: 14). Tonight we declare that Christ came to ‘save us from our sins’, to enable us to give glory to God and to bring peace amongst men. Christ calls all who would follow Him to have, as we have just heard in St Paul’s words: ‘no ambition except to do good’ (Titus 2:14).”
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catholicherald.co.uk/news/2014/12/23/john-lennons-imagine-is-heart-chilling-says-bishop-in-christmas-homily/
 
As a huge Beatles fan, I’d have to say I agree. John Lennon’s views on religion and politics were pretty bad.

One of the reasons I’m a little more of a Paul McCartney fan 😉
 
McCall1981 said:
As a huge Beatles fan, I’d have to say I agree. John Lennon’s views on religion and politics were pretty bad.

One of the reasons I’m a little more of a Paul McCartney fan 😉
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Agreed. If Imagine comes on the radio, I turn the dial.

DGB
 
Well, come on, the melody is beautiful - true, the lyrics aren’t so great. But it is a great song. I don’t switch the dial.
 
Doin DiMucci, a practicing Catholic and good friend of Lennon, once said that “Imagine” was his worst song. "Just imagine, he said, “the Chilean miners stuck in that pit years back, arms 'round each other, singing 'imagine there’s no heaven…” Unfortunately, it was the song that embodied that generation perfectly.
 
This song was released when I was a break-away Catholic. I loved the song, and I would often think of the crucifix as a glorification of evil by emotionally insecure people. What else could it be? Today, I still like the song, and I greatly admire John Lennon’s loving soul. Yes, he got some of the lyrics wrong, but I forgive him eagerly and completely.

CHOOSE LOVE! ❤️
 
Finally someone has the gumption to tell it like it is.

Whatever the social protest mentality that led to this song, it was a paean to atheism and communism.

I honestly don’t know why nonatheists and noncommunists love it so much, except the romanticization of the Beatles and the sixties generally.

ICXC NIKA.
 
well, that’s part of it. the melody is superb, the performance riveting, the rest of the words were excellent. lennon was a lost, confused, extremely talented artist who suffered due to bad parenting. may God have mercy on his soul.
 
Belshazzar said:
Doin DiMucci, a practicing Catholic and good friend of Lennon, once said that “Imagine” was his worst song. "Just imagine, he said, “the Chilean miners stuck in that pit years back, arms 'round each other, singing 'imagine there’s no heaven…” Unfortunately, it was the song that embodied that generation perfectly.
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The song “Imagine” is beautiful, musically…but as a believer in Jesus, I can’t listen to the words. I’m a musician & wanted to play this song but I can’t sing the words, in good conscience. So, I play other songs.
 
Belshazzar said:
Doin DiMucci, a practicing Catholic and good friend of Lennon, once said that “Imagine” was his worst song. "Just imagine, he said, “the Chilean miners stuck in that pit years back, arms 'round each other, singing 'imagine there’s no heaven…” Unfortunately, it was the song that embodied that generation perfectly.
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Meaning the Famous “Dion”;

“Imagine” has been a take it or leave it song for me but there are some other songs by him that I do like, “Mind Games” seems to be a bit in the same mode.
 
bisco1 said:
well, that’s part of it. the melody is superb, the performance riveting, the rest of the words were excellent. lennon was a lost, confused, extremely talented artist who suffered due to bad parenting. may God have mercy on his soul.
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I agree. I like Lennon SO MUCH MORE than McCartney’s sappy songs.
But the lyrics for this have always bothered me.
The instrumental music is gorgeous though.
 
GEddie said:
Finally someone has the gumption to tell it like it is.

Whatever the social protest mentality that led to this song, it was a paean to atheism and communism.

I honestly don’t know why nonatheists and noncommunists love it so much, except the romanticization of the Beatles and the sixties generally.

ICXC NIKA.
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And now the bunch that filled these shoes, fill the halls of Congress. Sad indeed. I was born in 1975 and grew up on 80s brit pop and hair metal so I always found the Beatles B-O-R-I-N-G!
 
total_Catholic said:
And now the bunch that filled these shoes, fill the halls of Congress. Sad indeed. I was born in 1975 and grew up on 80s brit pop and hair metal so I always found the Beatles B-O-R-I-N-G!
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You got to like Frank Sinatra, though…he’s not boring!
 
Path_Finder said:
Meaning the Famous “Dion”;

“Imagine” has been a take it or leave it song for me but there are some other songs by him that I do like, “Mind Games” seems to be a bit in the same mode.
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Yes, of course I meant none other than the famous Dion (not “Doin” as I misspelled it):blush:in my earlier post. He even appeared on the cover of Sgt. Pepper.
 
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