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top 200 commentsshow 500

[–]nutri-matic 359 points360 points ago

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Hank Hill is the best kind of redneck.

[–]teamhex 205 points206 points ago

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sip

Yep...

[–]singularmoment 123 points124 points ago

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Mm-hmm....

[–]wavefunction84 130 points131 points ago*

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I'll tell ya hwut...

[–]SpruceWayne 112 points113 points ago

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dang ol'...yep...

[–]itsprobablytrue 156 points157 points ago

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Yeah man, I tell ya what, man. That dang ol' Internet, man. You just go on there and point and click. Talk about W-W-dot-W-com. An' lotsa nekkid chicks on there, man. Click. Click. Click. Click. Click. It's real easy, man.

[–]EddyMac 58 points59 points ago*

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You're not talking your way outta this one Boomhauer

[–]bumbledbeze 44 points45 points ago

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You know what makes Rock n'Roll better, man? Propane.

[–]angrybread 37 points38 points ago

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Have you ever listened to Rock n'Roll... ON PROPANE?

[–]BuildMeARocket 20 points21 points ago

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Mother of god it's all toilet sounds! 6 AM and already the boy ain't right..

[–]navynmr 23 points24 points ago

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That boy just ain't right Peggy..

[–]van_gofuckyourself 0 points1 point ago

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[–]quzox 5 points6 points ago

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rocking back and forth like this, all I can think about is sustainable agriculture.

[–]arrowheadt 12 points13 points ago

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sip

Uh huh...

[–]CircleJerkAmbassador 57 points58 points ago

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Bobby: "Dad, can I have a gun rack on my bike"?

Hank: "If you weren't my son, I'd hug you".

[–]Weakgrip 19 points20 points ago

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IIRC that isn't what he said. Hank's response was; "Do you know how long I've waited for you to ask me that?"

[–][deleted] 7 points8 points ago

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True, but the other line was used in a different episode.

[–]ipauljr44 39 points40 points ago

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"I'm not a racist. I sell propane."

[–]contextsdontmatter 23 points24 points ago

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so are yaw chineeese or japaneeese?

[–]zHellas 26 points27 points ago

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'Lay ocean'? What ocean?

[–]phantomneko 9 points10 points ago

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Eryup, he's a Lao-ation.

[–]Hank_R_Hill 24 points25 points ago

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I am a proud citizen of Arlen, Texas.

I am a husband, a father, a friend, and a son.

I am a proud provider of fine propane and propane accessories at Strickland Propane.

I am Hank Hill.

[–]shawndw 16 points17 points ago

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Hank Hill man of reason.

[–][deleted] 6 points7 points ago

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Not a redneck? I mean I know he is meant to be... but I've never actually met or even heard of a redneck in real life anything like him. He's the best kind of redneck because he was created to be the best kind of redneck. Good luck actually finding that in real life.

[–]phtll 6 points7 points ago

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This. There are many kinds of redneck, including rednecks with good jobs and lots of money. There are none who are so exceedingly modest, forthright, and upstanding as Hank Hill. He's just a good regular Texan.

[–]everbeard 5 points6 points ago

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I don't think he's a redneck. He's not unpleasant in any way.

[–]hipphopopotamus 5 points6 points ago

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who says you have to be unpleasant to be a redneck?

[–]mattattack69 190 points191 points ago

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One Christian rock band got it right.

[–]jooes 114 points115 points ago

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"I want to get down on my knees and start pleasin' Jesus!
I want to feel his salvation all over my face!"

[–]SabineLavine 19 points20 points ago

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I've got the good lord going down on me!

[–]GreeneRockets 23 points24 points ago

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The creators of South Park are absolute geniuses. Hilarious, glorious geniuses

[–]schugi 11 points12 points ago*

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I wish they went with the idea of making a real Faith +1 band.
Edit: Source

[–]arrowheadt 38 points39 points ago

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The Body of Christ! Sleek swimmer's body, all muscled up and toned!

The Body of Christ! O, Lord Almighty, I wish I could call it my own!

[–]Qcto 3 points4 points ago

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[–]The_Milk_man 26 points27 points ago

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Is it a good or bad thing I knew it would be faith + one?

[–]360walkaway 22 points23 points ago

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Says so in the link's URL.

[–]Weakgrip 1 point2 points ago

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So few of us look at the URL before we click on links. How do you think the novelty account linking to just spider pictures gets so many people?

[–]360walkaway 1 point2 points ago

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I miss the "actually_two_llamas" one.

[–]bettaproger 9 points10 points ago

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now stand over there and look distracted!

[–]RonaldFuckingPaul 2 points3 points ago*

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I thought you were talking about Stryper

[–]MetalGuitarist 7 points8 points ago

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You mean the lameass hair band that throws bibles out at the crowd? No.

[–]KennyFuckingPowers 1 point2 points ago

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[–]negative_epsilon 22 points23 points ago

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He doesn't sell Christianity and Christian accessories.

[–]ThereAreDozensOfUs 11 points12 points ago*

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but he does sell popcorn and popcorn accessories

EDIT: So, no one ever saw the Manger Babies episode, have y'all?

Weak

[–]YesYesLibertarians 10 points11 points ago

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Too right Hank. C.S. Lewis said we need fewer Christian authors and Christian musicians, and more authors and musicians who happen to be Christians.

[–][deleted] 3 points4 points ago

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As a Christian, I wholeheartedly agree. The bands like Thrice and Switchfoot who have Christian members and occasionally a Christian message but don't preach it and sell it make me happy.

Fuck Casting Crowns, Hillsong, and MercyMe though.

[–]YesYesLibertarians 2 points3 points ago

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While they probably go in the "explicitly Christian" pigeonhole, I have a warm place in my heart for Five Iron Frenzy. :)

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points ago

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Definitely so! Them and OC Supertones were my two first Ska bands as a kid.

[–]YesYesLibertarians 3 points4 points ago

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You may be interested to know that FIF is making a comeback.

[–]thefauxphantom 3 points4 points ago

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I'm Laotian.

...You're from the ocean?

[–]Eolianrec 13 points14 points ago

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One thing I've never understood... Painters can be Christians and make beautiful paintings of nature, people, other things unrelated to Christianity. Authors can be Christians and write incredible prose that doesn't specifically reference God.

See what I'm getting at? It seems to me that Christians need to recognize what their own scripture says. "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things." (Phil 4:8)

I'm not against Christian musicians writing songs related to Christianity, but why can't it be about the music? Other Christians in different art forms seem to have a better grasp on this.

All that being said, I want to hear a Christian instrumental band that plays music because they find music itself beautiful.

[–][deleted] 12 points13 points ago

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To be fair there are likely a lot of amazing musicians who are Christians that you know and love that are making regular secular music. Christian music is kinda it's own circuit that's held together by mainly singing worship songs. Basically I think there's Christians making music, and then there's Christian music almost as a genre.

[–]bluescrew 9 points10 points ago*

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There definitely are a lot of amazing musicians who are Christian, but those aren't included in the "Christian" genres. Music that's labeled Christian is a for-profit enterprise above all- there is a huge market in parents who are terrified of their children being exposed to anything "bad," and they see Christian bands as a way to let the kids enjoy music while guaranteeing that the lyrics won't encourage sex, drugs, talking back, or independent thought.

Edit: And don't get me started on Christian pop, where female singers bigger than a B cup are told to get a breast reduction or get out. The consumers can't have their sons and daughters thinking that breasts are normal. Jessica Simpson and Katy Perry, both ex-Christian-pop-artists for this reason.

edit: spelling

[–]slipperyottter 3 points4 points ago

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You mean this this?

One of the lines is essentially "listen to your parents or God will ensure your life is short."

[–]soccerman 2 points3 points ago

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Thrice uses a lot of Christian imagery

[–]cowsareinvading 2 points3 points ago

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[–][deleted] 1 point2 points ago

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[–]Ferbtastic 89 points90 points ago

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While this is funny, I don't entirely understand why it is r/athiesm. I think we should change this to r/anythingevenremotelynegativepertainingtochristianity.

[–]hotcaro 20 points21 points ago

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Atheism is shorter.

[–]mikeash 13 points14 points ago

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The content in here makes a lot more sense if you think of it as "discuss religion from an atheistic viewpoint".

[–]biggbuckz 4 points5 points ago

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This post does not do that.

[–]I_AM_LARS 9 points10 points ago

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...or does it? I want a thesis by Friday.

[–]biggbuckz 7 points8 points ago

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Awwwww.... by FRIDAY!? But the big game is this week!

[–]schwobroda 1 point2 points ago

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You can waste time with your friends when your chores are done. Now get those two droids cleaned up.

[–]minno 62 points63 points ago

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http://www.reddit.com/r/atheism/faq

Why focus on Christianity, shouldn't you make fun of all religions equally?

While there are several stories submitted daily that touch on Islam, Judaism, Scientology, Mormonism and even Buddhism, the majority of what newcomers see is likely to be Christian related. This is for several reasons but mostly because the demographics of Reddit are such that most people are familiar with Christianity, ergo they talk about Christianity and its effects on their country. In this respect other religions are harder for most people to find quality news sources for due to Arabic/Hebrew/etc language barriers, and for them to make jokes about because they're not as familiar with the theology and rituals. If you would like to see more of something, submit it and be the change you want.

[–]Ferbtastic 29 points30 points ago

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But it isn't even making fun of the religion, its making fun of music.

[–]Gentleman_Named_Funk 54 points55 points ago

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True, but to be perfectly honest, it's shitty and it's religious, and that's enough for me.

[–]Ferbtastic 8 points9 points ago

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best explanation I have seen so far, thanks Funk

[–]natophonic 1 point2 points ago

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Eh, for me at least, shitty and religious is pretty played out in terms of comedic value.

Now, shitty and musical is a fertile field, of which Tenacious D and Flight of the Conchords only scratch the surface.

For Example

[–]etherealmorning 5 points6 points ago

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Music which is supposed to be, in some way, representative of the religion.

[–]The_Third_One 9 points10 points ago

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YES finally someone who understands that mormonism is not Christianity. Mormons don't understand this. Hey, you added a book, the book of Mormon, A WHOLE FUCKING BOOK, Christians are not Jews because they added a book, that's the rule. Thank you /r/athiesm I'm home.

[–]another_mouse 7 points8 points ago

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If you put it that way then Protestantism and Catholicism are separate too. It seems reasonable to lump them all in under Christianity.

[–]The_Third_One 3 points4 points ago

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How many protestant variants can you name that added another +50% religious texts?

[–]another_mouse 4 points5 points ago

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I meant to comment that the Catholic bible has additional books in it making it different from the Protestant bible. You seem to know a bit about Mormanism. If it bothers you I'd love to know why. I don't know anything about it myself.

[–]The_Third_One 1 point2 points ago

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Yeah, I wasn't talking about the "books" I was talking "Old Testament" "New Testament" "Book of Mormon." Which are all of comparable length.

[–]leigao84 2 points3 points ago

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Wait what? The Protestants and Catholics still use the same book. True, one is translated to the vernacular and the other is still in Latin, but they just have different ways of interrupting said scripture and didn't add or subtract anything.

[–]MghtMakesWrite 5 points6 points ago

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Sorry, but I think you may be mistaken. There are a lot of books considered apocryphal to protestants.

[–]FuhQue 1 point2 points ago

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Thanks for that link. Several times here I have seen references to books of the bible that just didn't ring a bell to me. They must have been Catholic and I suppose I've only ever seen Protestant bibles.

[–]another_mouse 1 point2 points ago

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Sorry I should have been more clear. The Catholic and (after looking it up) Eastern Orthodox bibles have additional books in them compared to the standard Protestant bible.

[–]Counterman 1 point2 points ago

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True, one is translated to the vernacular and the other is still in Latin,

Straying into r/atheism, I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised, but... no, the catholics got their first English-language bible in 1582. They have had masses entirely in national languages since the second Vatican council in the early sixties.

but they just have different ways of interrupting said scripture and didn't add or subtract anything.

Interpreting? But this is technically not correct either: catholics and protestants disagree on certain minor old testament books, the so-called deuterocanonical books. True, it does not matter much, as they are irrelevant to Christian beliefs, and even the catholic church considers them more or less optional.

[–]goodolarchie 0 points1 point ago

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Traveling around the US, nobody is trying to shove Islam, Judaism, or otherwise down my throat. Just Christianity.

[–]The_Third_One 8 points9 points ago

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And mormonism.

[–]goodolarchie 4 points5 points ago

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Oh, youtube sponsored videos..

[–]ashishduh 3 points4 points ago

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Not a big fan of this explanation. We European reditors have lots of experience with Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs (ever been to London or Paris?) but we make fun of American Christians because they are extremist in their interpretation of their religion.

Even Gandhi, who probably was not an 18-34 white male redditor, said "I like your Christ, but I do not like your Christians.

[–]nnotserPx 6 points7 points ago

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Except Gandhi never said that. I really get sick of people misattributing that to him.

I have found no authoritative source for Ghandi saying this. The actual quote is attributed to Bara Dada, "Jesus is ideal and wonderful, but you Christians -- you are not like him." Source - Jones, E. Stanley. The Christ of the Indian Road, New York: The Abingdon Press,1925. (Page 114)

[–]Counterman 4 points5 points ago

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Thanks for that. I always thought it was a weird quote for Gandhi. Not only is it negative about people in an uncharacteristic manner, but a good deal of the Christians he knew were Quakers.

[–]The_Third_One 1 point2 points ago

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It's pretty hard to dislike Quakers. If you've ever been to one of their congregations, they are quite enjoyable.

[–]micahi21 8 points9 points ago

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I feel r/badmusic is a better choice. Even when I was Christian I could recognize that Christian Rock was not very rockin'.

[–]The_Third_One 3 points4 points ago

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Suggestions like these are silly, if it was there I would have never seen this picture. I want to see this picture too: it made me laugh. Maybe if this was a perfect reddit where you were subscribed to every possible subreddit that could have content you were interested in automatically.

[–]micahi21 2 points3 points ago

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Yes, it was a silly suggestion. I'm not even sure if r/badmusic is a real sub-reddit but I made the comment because I found it moderately humorous.

[–]ArecBardwin 2 points3 points ago

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That's why it should be in /r/funny

[–]ChillyWillster 9 points10 points ago

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Why is everyone so uptight about a silly (and accurate) cartoon?

[–]wolfpaq777 1 point2 points ago

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A certain religion started bombing innocents around the world because of a certain cartoon.

Why? Idiocy, pure and simple.

[–]Ferbtastic 5 points6 points ago

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Not uptight, it is funny. However, if you look at the episode of king of the hill surrounding that one line joke it is actually a very pro religion. Just seems like a stretch for this subreddit, but then again most things in r/atheism fit that bill lately

[–]bluescrew 7 points8 points ago

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I didn't actually see this as anti-Christian. I saw it as anti-Christian-rock. You can hate that shitty music without commenting on the merits of Christians as a whole. Most of the Christians I know hate Christian rock because it is shitty.

[–]Abomonog 1 point2 points ago

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Then you don't know shit about the genre. If you listen to top 40's rock then about 1/3rd of what you hear is christian rock.

Kansas, U2, Creed, Evanescence, and The Simple Minds (to just name a few). Janis Joplin, despite her drug addiction, made her fortune singing what is basically christian blues.

Sharon Osbourne once controlled Light/Asylum records, An early christian label. Ozzy himself has professed christianity and has spent much of his time on his last 3 albums doing so. In fact much of Black Sabbaths more "satanic" tunes are really christian anthems. The band merely researched their writings and rewrote biblical stuff in a dark tone.

Iron Maidens "666" is another christian anthem disguised as secular rock. The band was even surprised then christians panned the tune as it was written for them.

And then there is Bob Dylan and Larry Norman.

Norman is really significant as he is arguably the most recorded guitarist in history. He's sat in for so many too stoned 60's musicians that if you've listen to any amount of 60's and early 70's music, then you've probably heard his work. He's cleaned up everything from The Beatles to the Doors to Pink Floyd and even some of Hendrix's work. He did his own christian rock on the side. In fact Larry Norman invented the genre.

But him and Dylan together also invented rap music. Homesick Subterranean Blues and Readers Digest are the 2 songs that mark the beginnings of Rap music. They sound so alike because the pair worked together for years.

Now here's some example of the lack of shittiness of the genre.

Metal circa 1983. Motley Crue was the big band then. Compartively, Crue sucks to this. In fact there weren't very many 80's bands that skilled.

Or how about something bluesier? That strange instrument you hear is a dulcimer. There is no other rock song that I know of that uses one.

The same band under the influence of Ms. Osbourne. Notice how prophetic that song was and how relevant it is today. It's basically the anthem for the 21st century.

25 years ago today's corporate meltdown was neatly predicted. They don't even mention god. The song just flat out tells you you're being fucked by the banks.

So how about bucking up and quit panning things that you don't know about? Or take advice from a real shitty band that wasn't christian.

"A good tune can be found anywhere." -Axel Rose

FYI: I'm no christian so forget even going there.

[–]jbigboote 9 points10 points ago

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this is what happens when a subreddit becomes a front page default. for the record, the current default subs are:

  • ADVICEANIMALS

  • ANNOUNCEMENTS

  • ASKREDDIT

  • ASKSCIENCE

  • ATHEISM

  • AWW

  • BLOG

  • FUNNY

  • GAMING

  • IAMA

  • MUSIC

  • PICS

  • POLITICS

  • SCIENCE

  • TECHNOLOGY

  • TODAYILEARNED

  • VIDEOS

  • WORLDNEWS

  • WTF

I don't particularly care about r/athiesm. I never visited it before, but now that it's a default, I see it all day every day. and no, I am not subscribed to it, but I browse reddit via RSS, and as far as I know, there is not a way to easily create a single customized RSS feed. if there is, somebody please enlighten me, and I'll never darken your doorstep again.

[–]BobisOnlyBob 17 points18 points ago

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easily create a single customized RSS feed

Create an URL like this:

http://www.reddit.com/r/science+games+wtf.rss

That will give you the RSS feed of those subreddits separated by + signs.

[–]jbigboote 8 points9 points ago

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Thank you! I swear I tried this long ago, and it did not work. I think my problem was it appears the URL is case sensitive, and I was using uppercase for some characters.

In any event, this worked. No more /r/wtf and /r/atheism in my feed. sweet.

[–]redorodeo 2 points3 points ago

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But where will you learn how to do this.

[–]executex 7 points8 points ago

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This was like this before atheism became default. The reason being is, that atheism is about religious philosophy---and what do philosophers who study religion talk about? RELIGION.

Where do most Redditors live? US, Canada, Europe, Australia and other developed nations where the major religion is Christian mostly.

So what religion are atheists in the developed world likely to talk about? Christianity.

So there's nothing strange going on here, you just don't seem to understand that atheists will mostly talk about religion as there is nothing else atheists identifying themselves as atheists would talk about.

[–]down_vote_magnet 8 points9 points ago

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WTF? When did athiesm, adviceanimals, askscience and aww become defaults? I am 99% sure I subscribed to them all manually at separate times.

Does this mean all new accounts are automatically subscribed to /athiesm? If so, that's pretty disgraceful.

[–]qwer777 4 points5 points ago

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About a month ago I think. Changed the number of defaults to 20, so 10 were added

[–]nightzirk 1 point2 points ago

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If anything, I think it should be in r/music.

[–]neblasian 5 points6 points ago

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Well, when is the last time you saw a post not pertaining to Christianity in r/atheism?

[–]asw138 14 points15 points ago

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Post about Muslims from 3 hours ago. A lot of people on /r/atheism are in the US. Christianity is the largest religion in the US. So, we mostly talk about Christianity.

[–]gamer31 2 points3 points ago

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When there was a post about Islam?

[–]Aedan91 6 points7 points ago

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I think there were two.

[–]hotasmonkeys 1 point2 points ago

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In July, I posted about a Christian girl I knew who got an Islamic crescent tattoo for her boyfriend named Curtis (I added that part but I didn't make it up, somebody jokingly suggested it in the facebook comments so I guess it's partly true).

[–]biggbuckz 2 points3 points ago

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I'm going to make r/pizza (well, I assume it already exists) but it's just going to talk about how horrible all the other foods are.

[–]bluescrew 4 points5 points ago

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Actually that's a faulty analogy, it would be more fitting to make r/hunger and then talk about all the foods, except that implies that one needs religion to live, which is also false.

[–]Ferbtastic 1 point2 points ago

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a better analogy would be to make r/pizza and then make a post about someone on king of the hill stating a neutral fact about hamburgers

[–]biggbuckz 1 point2 points ago

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You're very right about this post... but the majority of r/pizza will be insulting other foods... but even stating neutral facts about hamburgers would be silly. Really an even betten analogy would be someone on king of the hill insulting people her serve hamburgers.

[–]Sir_Duke 1 point2 points ago

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To be fair, Christian rock is pretty awful.

[–]crippless 6 points7 points ago

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Not if you're The Chariot. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ermp7sY3UIY

[–]Dtrain323i 8 points9 points ago

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I think Nickelback and Kesha have done more to ruin rock than christian bands. I still listen to POD and MXPX on occasion.

[–]ProfessorCrumbleton 6 points7 points ago

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mxpx is christian? TIL.

[–]spyd3rweb 1 point2 points ago

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MxPx is a pop punk band from Bremerton, Washington with connections to the Christian punk scene.

Christian punk scene... I never knew there was such a thing.

[–][deleted] 2 points3 points ago

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I'm absolutely shocked that r/atheist doesn't like Christian music!!!

But it's just like the music industry at large; talentless hacks get all the media while true artists are ignored and have to scratch out an existence on their own.

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-A0Q-tYVT8Y)

[–]mtme 2 points3 points ago

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It's so true! Growing up I tried so hard to stick with Christian metal and then punk but it was just so terrible! Bands like Petra and White Heart came out with horrible metal that was ten years too late. Then I moved on to some punk bands that were pure garbage. My christian friends hounded me about what I listened to. Words could destroy me! I couldn't take it anymore and went back to secular bands. You wouldn't believe the crappy bands that would never, in a hundred years make it in the real world. And yet they get signed by Tooth and Nail Records because they scream Jesus in the lyrics. That being said there are some truly gifted artists who happen to be in the christian music scene. There are others who suck and are doing it for a paycheck and who don't even care about religion one way or another.

[–][deleted] ago

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[deleted]

[–]ridetherhombus 7 points8 points ago

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My favorite band during my Christian years was mewithoutYou. Even though I'm now atheist, I still rock out to Catch For Us The Foxes on a nearly daily basis.

[–][deleted] ago

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[deleted]

[–]nonviolentprotestor 4 points5 points ago

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Starflyer 59. The only Christian band I've been able to consistently listen to over the past 15 years.

[–]executex 20 points21 points ago*

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Don't you get the underlying layer in this submission?

You don't have to declare yourself a "Christian band" in order to be a Christian in a band. Almost all bands are somewhat Christian in the Western world.

The whole point of what a "CHRISTIAN BAND" is, is one that writes Christian lyrics to influence and shove religion down other peoples' throats. It's an obsession by the band members to limit their music to only religious themes in an effort to sell to a Christian audience or potential converts.

It's proselytizing.

I am a big fan of Megadeth, who's lead singer/writer/guitarist became a born-again christian and is extremely devoted (even prays before every concert) and does have Christian-influenced songs.

But make no mistake about it, Megadeth does not advertise itself as a "Christian band" and they don't ever limit themselves to religious songs and they aren't trying to convert anyone or sell solely to Christians. Such a band is honorable because they care about the music--which is what all bands should do.

What would you think if someone made a "Conservative rock band" to preach only about conservatism? Or a "Liberal rock band" to preach only about liberalism? How about an "Atheist rock band" to preach only atheism? Or a "neo-nazi band" to preach neo-nazism? All these things are stupid and silly, and deserve to be ridiculed.

But go ahead downvote me because I'm not being politically correct or tolerant of Christian proselytizing.

EDIT: Some commenters are under the impression that "force down someone's throat" expression, means literal forcing down someone's throat and not simple proselytizing. Perhaps they don't understand what proselytizing means, but it means to attempt to convert people, and that is the reason such bands label themselves as Christian-bands, because they want to give Christianity a positive image through music. Otherwise they would just be 4-5 Christian musicians in a regular "band".

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points ago

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There's a difference between Christian rock and praise music, ya know.

[–]francis_goatman 1 point2 points ago

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I wanted to downvote you because current Mustaine and Megadeth sucks, but then I got to your last paragraph and your overall point is valid.

[–]executex 1 point2 points ago

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Thanks. Mustaine and Megadeth are not up to par to anything they did since 1997, but they are not making bad music, it certainly does compare positively to quality music of our time and they are achieving success because of it commercially. But yes, they will probably never achieve the multiplatinum legendary status of the 80s/90s, because they are not even the same band anymore and Mustaine doesn't write music in the same way anymore.

Some chalk this up to the fact that Mustaine wrote good music in the past due to drugs, or maybe it's the simple way neurology works when someone is young and is simply more creative back then. Perhaps it was the producers and others around him that had great influence in how his music was created (or other bandmates).

Perhaps it's the simple inevitable fact that once a musician writes their master pieces it's hard for them to ever top it. (or that the success they got, has made them lazy and less emotional or desiring of success--making them produce lesser quality songs)---or perhaps their celebrity status creates yes-men around them, and makes them unable to self-criticize their own music and perfect it.

I do believe I listed every single possible reason imaginable, but I still don't agree that they suck, because they are definitely still one of the top metal bands out there.

[–]biggbuckz 2 points3 points ago

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I was going to comment to your ridiculous comment somewhere up there ^ but someone beat me to it... luckily you struck again!

Christian bands are not attempting to shove anything down anyone's throat, because Christan bands cannot force people to listen to them. Typically they are singing about / praising something they believe in. If you don't agree with it, don't listen. Is Rhianna trying to force the world of S&M on me through her terrible music? No. Of course not. But its something she enjoys (or maybe just something that will make her millions of dollars) so she sings about it.

[–]DJ_Tips 1 point2 points ago

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Yeah, that's like arguing that people praying inside of a church are trying to "force things down your throat", considering that NOT hearing Christian Rock is quite possibly one of the easiest things to do in life.

Also:

What would you think if someone made a "Conservative rock band": Southern Rock

Or a "Liberal rock band": Rage Against the Machine/Incubus/Green Day

How about an "Atheist rock band" to preach only atheism?: Tool/A Perfect Circle to an extent

Or a "neo-nazi band" to preach neo-nazism?: Skrewdriver

All of the above are successful bands with fairly transparent political influences. Political leanings have been a major inspiration in style and lyric since music was first written on paper, so I really don't understand the argument that it deserves "ridicule".

[–]ABroWithACoolStory 1 point2 points ago

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downvote me

Ask and ye shall receive.

[–]Cool_Story_Bra 1 point2 points ago

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Skillet. Kick ass mother fucker right there.

[–]edgarallanboh 3 points4 points ago

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Thrice. That's the absolute best example I can think of. The singer is a christian, but uses his beliefs to make outstandingly deep songs, as opposed to the "god is great" way of making music.

edit: not a really a christian band. just uses thematic influences.

[–]nachosrule 11 points12 points ago

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Is this what passes for rock and roll these days?

[–]unfinite 1 point2 points ago

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I would have agreed with you up until their latest album, Major/Minor. What a big Jesus-boner let down that was. There are some good songs, but a few of them are so Jesus heavy it ruins the whole album for me.

He laid aside his crown
All our crimes he carried
Was lifted from the ground
With our burdens buried
The shadows all had flown
In the light diminished
He emptied out his lungs
Crying it is finished

Fuck.

Also, I find The Artist In The Ambulance a little too punk-rock for my liking. I prefer their newer sound, since Vheissu. Some good songs for the people that though your song sucked: Daedalus, Beggars, Burn the Fleet.

[–]dquizzle 1 point2 points ago

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I thought Chevelle was the same way, but apparently they just had a Christian record label and wanted to get away from being labeled Christian band. Interesting segement on wikipedia - There was a lot of controversy with them playing Ozzfest, and they are referring to themselves as recovering Catholics.

[–]mcmbs 1 point2 points ago

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I think you're forgetting that Tom Araya, the lead singer for Slayer, is catholic. Callisto is also a great christian band, even though most probably don't know who they are.

[–]MasterOfTheMoon 2 points3 points ago

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The guys in Slayer get in character to perform, but that is not how they are in real life. Nobody could sustain that level of awesomeness 24/7.

[–][deleted] ago

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[deleted]

[–]Chairboy 1 point2 points ago

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Your memory is flawed:

http://kingofthehill.wikia.com/wiki/Reborn_To_Be_Wild

It was a church-group and most definitely not a band 'using Christianity to sell records'. Perhaps you're thinking of another show?

[–]gngrbeb 1 point2 points ago

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Truth to be expected from Hank Hill

[–]nclash 1 point2 points ago

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VIA LA KING OF THE HILL!!

[–]Throwawayalphaprime 1 point2 points ago

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The Devil Wears Prada got christian rock right

[–]jarjarbinksing 1 point2 points ago

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Underoath and The Devil Wears Prada are both christian bands and they're amazing.

[–]buckie33 1 point2 points ago

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Have you let the goodness of Propane into your life?

[–]BobLeBuilDerp 1 point2 points ago

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Pocket sand!! Shshshaaaa

[–]tombutt 1 point2 points ago

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Five Iron Frenzy is pretty great.

[–]ABroWithACoolStory 1 point2 points ago

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LOL@everyone below listing shitty christian bands as the exception.

The music in this genre is fucking terrible, and that is why no one outside your little xtain circle listens to them. Because they're shit.

[–]dltn97 1 point2 points ago

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Mother of god it's all toilet sounds!

[–]FlowerNinja 1 point2 points ago

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All life's lessons can be learned through this show!! As well as all of life's problems!!

[–]unpredictableX 1 point2 points ago

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As someone who worked for a Christian radio station, this 1000 times yes.

To this day I only need to hear a fraction of a second of Christian "rock" to immediately change to the next station.

[–]cloudfoot3000 1 point2 points ago

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hank hill's my hero.

[–]Grateful_max 1 point2 points ago

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Seen this so much; But i dont care, It will never cease to be true. Upvote for you sir!

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points ago

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lol @ all these butt hurt christian rock fans. get over it, christian rock SUCKS

[–]xXShatter_ForceXx 6 points7 points ago*

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Not a christian but I do like The bands:

Red

Anberlin

12 Stones

Skillet (Great Live)

Switchfoot

Project 86

Flyleaf

Thousand Foot Krutch

Jars of Clay ('Flood' is my fav. Rest are meh.)

Demon Hunter

Decyfer Down

All of these bands are worth checking out IMHO. Christian or not they can play play me some good tunes.

Edit: There are plenty more I am missing these just came from the top of my head.

[–]S_knight 4 points5 points ago

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Dude Red is my favorite, They are amazing live too

[–]xXShatter_ForceXx 2 points3 points ago

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Red is amazing. They had a style I felt was very unique. Sadly there are more bands, nowadays, that have similar styles but that is because they have been around a while so their style rubs off onto newer upcoming bands looking to them for influence.

It is common in music for this to happen, I just think Red is the shit and don't want to hear people dogging on them for sounding like 'band X' when 'band X' should be dogged on for sounding like Red.

[–]S_knight 1 point2 points ago

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Dude I know exactly what you mean i feel the same way, when new records come out from other people me and my friends will say something like"did you hear that new breaking Benjamin album featuring Red... lol

[–]pizzaman66 3 points4 points ago

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THIS. Project 86 is a super talented band.

[–]xXShatter_ForceXx 1 point2 points ago

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Yup, Heard Spy Hunter years ago. Been with them since.

[–]executex 7 points8 points ago

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There are good tunes made by Christians that do not advertise themselves as "Christian music" but may have Christian influenced lyrics.

But if you're limiting yourself to only "Christian music", then you're not a real musician, you're a missionary using music to influence others.

[–][deleted] 6 points7 points ago

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Isn't that what every artist does? Every single band with any substance whatsoever uses their own lives and beliefs to influence their works. Kurt Cobain sang about his recreational drug use and Third Day sings about their beliefs openly. Rappers go on about how much they like sex and Switchfoot give a musically beautiful, secularly geared, testimony of the inner struggles that moral people (not just Christians!) face every day while presenting something you can rock to.

If you have ever seen a good Christian band play live, then you know what I mean. For example, I saw Skillet and tobyMac when they were touring last year. They rocked the house. Going in, people knew their message and it was no surprise when they would tell how their belief in Jesus influenced their music, but there was also no doubt that they weren't shoving anything down anyone's throat. Look up some lyrics and you will see that there are obvious Christian influences but that they are also much broader, equally meaningful songs for everyday life. Not every Christian band is cut from the same cloth as Casting Crowns (musically beautiful but probably "too religious" for you to ever consider just on principal), but they are definitely Christians who happen to be exceptionally talented musicians.

[–]ArecBardwin 1 point2 points ago

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Exactly. The best Christian music doesn't advertise itself as such.

[–][deleted] ago

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[deleted]

[–]ireallylikecake 2 points3 points ago

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Hank-ism #1

[–]Cameltoezors 3 points4 points ago

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So. Fucking. True. When it's not apparent in the lyrics it's fine, otherwise they should keep it in hymns.

[–]whoputsandinmymouth 3 points4 points ago

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Skillet all the way :(

[–]wjjeeper 3 points4 points ago

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Old school: Stryper, Tourniquet, Mortification Skip 1 minute in: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmuxmtiK06o

[–]RationalArgumentMan 6 points7 points ago*

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What's this got to do with Atheism? Or are we just making fun of religious people again for no good reason?

Edit: Disregard this post, I don't know why I waste my time getting agitated about issues in /r/atheism. Carry on whatever you guys want to do. Just got RES (Reddit Enhancement Suite) and blocked /r/atheism and /r/starcraft!

[–]obsidianop 19 points20 points ago

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Oh lighten up. Christian rock is incredibly funny.

[–]xchrisxsays 6 points7 points ago

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HEY GUYS LOOK, RATIONAL ARGUMENT MAN GAVE US HIS PERMISSION TO DO WHAT WE WANT! WE'RE FINALLY FREE!

[–]SpicyCage 3 points4 points ago

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As an atheist who likes rock 'n' roll, I agree with Mr. Hill's assessment of Christian rock. The quality of what would otherwise be a fine genre of music for any godless heathen to enjoy is corrupted by... well, by people like Pastor K.

Religion poisons everything, even good music.

[–]TheMeansofProduction 2 points3 points ago

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Religion poisons everything, even good music.

You have clearly never listened to Marvin Gaye.

[–]niccagelover 1 point2 points ago

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No love for Relient K?

[–]jabb0 1 point2 points ago

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You would think music from the savior would be so awesome that nothing could ever compare.

Instead you get Petra

Or lets not forget Get on your knees and fight like a man...

[–][deleted] ago

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[deleted]

[–]lurkerturneduser 1 point2 points ago

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What? I didn't go to Catholic School but I did go to Catholic Church and can verify no rock music - only pipe organ.

[–]Aristox 0 points1 point ago

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August Burns Red Killswitch Engage Demon Hunter Underoath As I Lay Dying Skillet

There are plenty of Christians and Christian bands making brilliant rock music.

[–]jaql 27 points28 points ago

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In my opinion, none of these bands are too good, let alone brilliant, unless you're between the ages of 16 and 18 and just found out about the metalcore genre.

[–]dungeon-us-crab 1 point2 points ago

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Thank you for saying this so I didn't have to.

[–]doedanzee 4 points5 points ago

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And have never heard any other metal genre.

[–]maverickrenegade 13 points14 points ago

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August Burns Red Killswitch Engage Demon Hunter Underoath As I Lay Dying Skillet

I've never heard of that band, do they use a fiddle?

[–]are_you_are_winner 6 points7 points ago

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To quote the guitarist/singer/producer T-Bone Burnett (Dylan sideman, Oh Brother Where Art Thou sndtrack)

"You can sing about the Light, or you can sing about what you see because of the Light. I prefer the latter."

Rock-musicians-who-are-Christians, like Burnett, can and have made outstanding music.

Almost by definition, Christian Rock blows, however.

[–]twelvefortyAM 2 points3 points ago

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...Killswitch Engage is Christian? TIL.

[–]natophonic 1 point2 points ago

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I didn't know either. Then again, that's the thing about good Christian rock... it isn't ostentatiously Christian.

[–]etherealmorning 1 point2 points ago

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I don't think the issue is necessarily the music, but more so the lyrical content that comes with it. Most Christian music (or Christian "themed" music) have lyrics that are downright terrible, from a poetic standpoint. Granted, so do a lot of secular artists, but that doesn't help them make their case.

I wouldn't call most of that music brilliant either. It is catered to a specific niche and does little to stray from it.

[–]Cluskerdoo 1 point2 points ago

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I read that last band as Dying Skillet.

[–]TheStreisandEffect 1 point2 points ago

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Alice Cooper, Blindside, Chevelle, Dave Mustaine (Megadeth), Kings X, Me Without You, Sufjan Stevens...

[–][deleted] 2 points3 points ago

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uhhh..brilliant?

[–]123GoTeamShake 1 point2 points ago

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Thanks, I wanted to mention this. August Burns Red is fucking amazing, and it's not immediately apparent they are Christian. As I Lay Dying is the same, but a bit more obvious due to some lyrics.

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points ago

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Using a sound that was originated by bands that weren't so keen on Jesus.

[–]Aristox 1 point2 points ago

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I'm not sure how that affects anything?

[–]cowzilla3 0 points1 point ago

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Awesome. Just great.

[–]Lokikong 0 points1 point ago

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[–]jujuqueen 0 points1 point ago

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"It's all loop-de-loops and flibbertigibbet."

[–]Goombatron 0 points1 point ago

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One of my favorite lines from my favorite shows...

[–]Sweddy 0 points1 point ago

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Wisdom...

[–]meticadpa 0 points1 point ago

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Neal Morse nailed it. Dat guitar solo (at 27:00). The whole album's brilliant if anyone is looking for some all-round brilliant music with some tasty guitar solos.

[–][deleted] 0 points1 point ago*

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I'm curious what r/atheism thinks of this song...there's a reason this Christian band is unpopular in church circles...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_aiH5EGZ6I4

The guy on the left on was Island records and released his breakthrough album the same month Joshua Tree dropped....oops

The guy in the middle did the Neverhood soundtracks...