On Reddit, a woman debates whether or not she should move in with a friend who tries to impose his own “strict” religious rules on everyone in the apartment.

The 23-year-old shared that she plans to move into a flat next year with her friends Harriet, 22, and Tommy, 23. Harriet is Muslim, while she and Tommy are non-religious.

“Harriet said that when we move in she only wants halal food in the house and I guess I can live with that. However, I can only eat certain textures and eat specific foods from certain places… If that changes I’m freaking out. Same goes for Tommy but he said he would be fine,” the woman wrote via Reddit.

The woman shared that Harriet also asked her and Tommy not to drink alcohol in the apartment, despite the OP [original poster] working as a mixologist.

“I work in a cocktail bar, so I like learning new drinks for my customers to try. I really like that. They want me to quit, which I get. I want to quit too, but I I like to smoke other things once in a while and I don’t want to quit that,” she continued.

However, Harriet also asked the wife and Tommy to pretend to be “married” whenever Harriet’s parents come to visit.

“I talked about how all these changes we’re making to make her feel comfortable make me feel uncomfortable. I said I didn’t feel like I was living the life I wanted and that I wanted to be able to do the things that I wanted to do. I didn’t choose this religion. Why should I follow the rules?” she wrote.

The woman noted that Tommy and Harriet were upset by her comment.

“Tommy was a little more understanding because he had to change [too] but he said I shouldn’t have said that. Harriet just got mad and started crying, now it’s pretty tense in the house,” she shared.

In the comments section, Reddit users backed up the frustrated woman, telling her that Harriet can’t expect her friends to follow her strict religious rules if they themselves aren’t part of her religion. .

“She can’t dictate how you live because of her religion. [If] she can only live with people who follow strict Muslim laws, so maybe she shouldn’t live with you,” one person wrote.

“Do not move in with Harriet. She takes these demands to an extreme. Muslims are not allowed to consume, carry or sell alcohol. The Koran says nothing about roommates who consume alcohol. It same goes for all her demands. forcing her religious beliefs on you, when she has no right to. Tell her to give up or find another roommate,” another commented.

Celebrities who have found religion

Nov. 06 (THEWILL) — Afrobeats singer Ayodeji Balogun aka Wizkid says music was his escape from street life and crime.

The music star, in a recent interview, opened up about his early days and coming of age in the music industry.

He revealed that he could have gone into a life of crime if not for the music.
“Music was more than a hobby to me, more than a talent. It was my escape. I was in the hood. It was either music or turned into a crime. That’s why I don’t mess with the music,” Wizkid said.

“My parents wanted me to be a lawyer or a doctor. It was a very difficult conversation to have when I said I wanted to do music.

“I just had to prove myself to them. They always look at me and think, ‘Aha, that boy!’ How many years did it take me!”

“I am a very spiritual human being. I know I do a lot of club records but I really feel like a pastor,” he said.

Unsurprisingly, it was in church that he discovered his love of music – hymns taught him “how to feel”, he says.

He was the youngest of 11 children, raised by a Christian mother and a polygamous Muslim father, who had three wives. As his mother’s only son, he grew up in a chaotic but fun, female-dominated household in Surulere, Lagos.

Tendency

Anxiety as FG takes terrorist financiers to court

He and his cousins ​​were altar boys at his grandfather’s Pentecostal church. He recorded his very first song over 20 years ago as part of a band with his church friends, Glorious Five.

Even back then, he was trying to make a name for himself as a rapper and was soon taken under the wing of producer, the late OJB Jezreel.

He observed Wizkid shadowing sessions with Afrobeats artists who were dominating the emerging scene. When he skipped school to go to the studio, his older sisters covered for him.

Wizkid, speaking on the theme of his upcoming album, talked about dealing with fame and mastering the ego.

“I consider the Wizkid brand a million dollar business, man. It’s a business, not me. As I get older, I wish people would get 100% Wiz Ayo Balogun. Giving people a person, the real me in my real form.

“Most of the time I don’t want cameras in my face. But I understand why I have to do it. It’s one of the things I’m still fighting against. I just want to live a normal life.

On fatherhood, he added: “Now I pay more attention to what I put in my songs. Because my children listen to my songs.

On Saturday, October 29, at the Embassy Theater in Fort Wayne, Andrew Constantine and the Fort Wayne Philharmonic performed music by Leonard Bernstein, Patrick O’Malley and Carl Orff.

The major work on the program was Carl Orff’s 1937 secular cantata “Carmina Burana” or “Songs of Beuren”, which is a setting of poems from the 11th to 13th centuries, mainly in Latin and Middle German, as well as some old French people. (Beuren is part of the Bavaria region of Germany.) The performers were soprano Maeve Hoglund, tenor Patrick Muehleise and baritone Christian Bowers, who were joined by the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Chorus (prepared by Benjamin Rivera), the Fort Wayne Children’s Chorus (prepared by Jonathan Busarow), the Purdue Fort Wayne University Singers (prepared by William Sauerland), and an expanded orchestra that included extensive brass and percussion. As the stage was filled with singers and orchestra, conductor Andrew Constantine stood on a podium at the very edge of this stage.

It is hard to imagine that such an “earthly” work would have been premiered in Nazi Germany by the Frankfurt Opera in a fully staged version including sets and costumes. Despite some concerns from a rather moralistic and even old-fashioned government, the success of the music convinced the leaders not to suppress or condemn “Carmina”. It has usually been presented as part of a concert and that was the case with this performance.

The music begins and ends with a full chorus that partially translates to “O Fortune, like the moon, you are changeable, ever waxing and waning; the hateful life first oppresses then appeases at the whim; poverty and power melts them like ice.”

It definitely serves as a musical bookend for a work that features lyrics celebrating the joys and pleasures of life, including drinking, eating, playing, and making love. It’s hard to imagine that such texts would be collected by medieval monks, but it’s possible they saw them as things that people should avoid and not adopt. It is difficult for us today to understand or appreciate medieval mentalities, which were often rather vulgar and even obscene by modern standards.

Anyway, the chorus was sung with great diction and precision. The orchestra provided a very colorful and lively accompaniment in this music as well as in all the other pieces of the cantata.

The baritone, Christian Bowers, was the first of the soloists to be heard. He sang with a rich, resonant, and compelling voice that suited the down-to-earth side of the lyrics. He was joined by the male chorus in one of the most difficult parts of the cantata, “When We Are in the Tavern”. This text celebrates gambling and drinking and makes it clear that EVERYONE likes to drink. It was sung as a grand jubilant celebration with considerable gusto and enthusiasm.

Tenor Patrick Mueheise had only one solo, the mournful song about a swan being roasted on a spit and soon to be featured on plates. There is a mixture of tragedy and comedy in the song “Once I Lived on Lakes”. The male choir joins the baritone in this memorable piece. Muehleise sang with a high, pleading and pitiful sound and he was looking for pity or sympathy, but it was a hopeless cause. As a “stage gesture”, he finally fled the stage after singing with such emotion.

Soprano Maeve Hoglund is a tall, imposing woman and she wore a mostly red floral strapless evening dress. She was joined by the children’s choir in one of the riskiest numbers, “Cupid flies everywhere”. This song deals with desire and laments “the girl without a lover (who) misses out on all the pleasures”. Later, she sang the short, ecstatic solo, “Sweetest boy, I give you everything.” She demonstrates considerable virtuosity.

This performance turned out to be a real showpiece for the singers and the orchestra. It is remarkable how Orff varies the accompaniment in the multi-verse songs, providing considerable variety in the mostly melodic musical language. Orff did not attempt to write anything controversial or particularly modern; his music speaks at all times. He was expertly guided by Constantine and was almost uniformly top notch.

Constantine told the preview audience that we should focus on Orff’s colorful music rather than the confusing lyrics because it’s hard for us today to understand what life was like in medieval times. “Carmina” has indeed enjoyed many performances since 1937 and it has transcended the controversial eras and thoughts in which it was created. The lyrics are the product of a bygone era, but the music remains vivid and unique to this day. Indeed, “Carmina” became a virtual “hit wonder” for Carl Orff, whose other works are mostly forgotten and overlooked today.

The concert opened with another product from another time, the “Three Dance Episodes” from Leonard Bernstein’s 1944 musical “On The Town.” It’s essentially a short orchestral suite from Bernstein’s ballet-inspired wartime musical for “Fancy Free.” Both works celebrate three sailors who are on leave in New York from the United States Navy during World War II. The musical’s most famous tune, “New York, New York”, is included in the third section, titled “Times Square: 1944”. Although the story is now dated, the music remains alive and listenable. Constantine made sure we heard the wonderful details of the score, from the jazzy moments of the first and third sections to that “bluesy” and poignant second section.

The Philharmonic had a world premiere with Patrick O’Malley’s Concerto for Viola and Orchestra, “The Horizons”, featuring violist Brett Deubner. The work is divided into four sections: (1) Fantasia – Crystal Visions, (2) Scherzo – Ventures and Motions; (3) Adagio – Solitary Compass; (4) Final decision. O’Malley, who grew up in Fort Wayne, said, “My viola concerto is concerned with a process of rejuvenation, beginning a place of stasis and uncertainty, and moving to a hopeful gaze toward the future. ‘future (the Horizons).’

The concerto begins with a number of musical fragments scattered among the musicians, as if to depict a search, a search, a wandering and a questioning. First, there is a lack of direction or clear purpose. It sounds rather bizarre and abstract, certainly confusing, until the viola begins to deliver increasingly lyrical statements. The first minutes are certainly trying, both for the musicians and for the public. I was aware that some around us were puzzled, confused or troubled by what was happening. However, the musical language eventually shifted to something quite beautiful and meaningful.

The scherzo was, as expected, quite lively and cheerful at times. The soloist displayed great virtuosity and zeal as the section progressed, reaching a climax that fooled some audience members into thinking the concerto was over. However, this was followed by the very intense and introspective third section, the truly “spiritual” part of the work. Here the music seemed to find more meaning and purpose. All of this led to the real finale: a spectacular, exciting and energetic song for viola and orchestra.

Overall, many of us appreciated this very original work, which is a real spectacle for the viola and other musicians. I detected some influence from Sir William Walton, but the concerto was generally quite personal and likeable. Some of us stood to cheer on the violist, Deubner, but others looked puzzled or puzzled. At least the general reception was favorable and I must say that it is a work that should be listened to again, whether in concert or on recording. Perhaps, since the entire concert was recorded, a recording may be released of this performance and other recent Philharmonic performances.

The Philharmonic itself will present mostly “pop” concerts in November and December, as well as another “candlelight” performance of Handel’s “Messiah” oratorio at the Rhinehart Music Center in Purdue Fort Wayne on December 16. at 7:30 p.m. the regular series “Masterworks” will resume on January 28, 2023 at 7:30 p.m. at the Embassy Theater.

Born out of a “good faith” existential crisis, “Link” is Gareth Inkster’s new single. The Golden Feather keyboardist hopes no one can identify with this song.

“If you can relate to it, then you’ve probably suffered a lot of loss,” Inkster said.

Inkster said the new song and upcoming, as yet untitled solo album were inspired by a profound change in his beliefs. The musician does not try to hide his difficulties by working on it, which sometimes seemed “haunting” to him.

“As for this song and the rest of the album, I overcorrected. I was way too obsessed with getting it right, worried about things that wouldn’t make a difference to any listener but me- same. But ultimately, you gotta let it go,” Inkster said.

The 30-year-old said the lyrics “In search of a connection I can trust between the measurable and the meaningful” is an iconic part of the song “Link”.

When Monster Truck’s Steve Kiely started a side project with a Grateful Dead vibe in 2020, they brought in Inkster to be their keyboardist. Golden Feather released an EP in November this year. The five-piece band from Hamilton performs a concert November 25 at Bridgeworks.

A year ago, Inkster went to Northern Ontario and locked himself in a cabin until he was done with the song he had been dreading for so long.

“Because of the tough time I was in when I wrote this song, it was kind of hard to keep going,” Inkster said.

Inkster said he wanted to release the album in the fall because the songs had a family feeling. “But then the lyrics became irrelevant to me again.”

When “Link” was finally finished, Inkster felt a mixture of relief and pride. “What I love about this song is that it’s very honest and I don’t pull any punches,” Inkster said.

Inkster was raised by musicians – his mother plays the piano and his father plays the guitar. He has been releasing music on Spotify since 2018.

In addition to being a keyboardist for Golden Feather, Inkster, who lives in Stipley, teaches music privately and also at Hamilton District Christian High School.

Inkster said he expresses his creativity in different ways. One of them reaches out for songwriting when he’s feeling down.

“I’ve been tasked with doing jingles for podcasts and those still work great. I’m able to come up with something by the end of the week that I’m pretty happy with,” Inkster said. outside of that, songwriting for me is very introspective, like journaling. If I’m able to put it into words and then put it into a song, it’s almost like I can take it out of myself and hold it and look at it from different angles.

Inkster said he felt artistically limited because his songs were about sadness and what was on his mind. “I hope I can get through it. So many songwriters I look up to are much more versatile than that.

The new album was produced by Glen Watkinson, owner of Sheepdog Studios, and Inkster’s brother Robinson played bass. Inkster said some of his influences for the project were Fleet Foxes and Elliot Smith.

What is Inkster’s hope for this album?

“It would be really meaningful to me if people listened to it and found meaning in it for themselves,” he said.

Inkster also stated that a new Golden Feather album is in the works.

TO SHARE:

Travis Greene. COURTESY PHOTO.

By our journalist

Much to the delight of many Christians, internationally acclaimed gospel star Travis Greene has confirmed that he will be visiting Uganda this year.

The “Made a Way” hit singer, “Intentional” will minister in the country on December 6 and 7, 2022 at the Imperial Royale Hotel and the grounds of Lugogo Hockey respectively.

Travis Greene, 38, is expected to join a Forward City side.

“Uganda, finally I’m coming home. I have heard so much about your beautiful country and I will be there for the very first time,” he said in a video.

“It’s going to be amazing,” he added.

At the Imperial Royale Hotel, the entrance fee is Ush 150,000 (platinum) and Ush 100,000 (gold), while at Lugogo Hockey Grounds the entrance fee is Ush 30,000 ( ordinary) and 50,000 Ush (VIP).

Who is Travis Greene?

Travis Montorius Greene is an American gospel musician and pastor.

He married Dr. Jackie Gyamfi in 2011 and together they co-past Forward City Church in Columbia, South Carolina.

The father of 3 boys featured in Tim Godfrey’s song called Nara, which has been a religious hymn in Uganda for years.

His other songs include Good & Loved (with Steffany Gretzinger), You Waited, Be Still, Worship Rise, Respond, Won’t Let Go among others.

Greene’s music has charted on the Billboard Top Gospel Albums and Top Gospel Songs charts and he has been nominated for several awards, including five Grammy Awards and 13 Stellar Awards.

He describes his life as miraculous, having survived resuscitation twice. The first was the day he was born, where he was declared stillborn. Again, when he was four years old, he fell from a four-story building while in Germany.

Bob Dylan is one of the most famous and iconoclastic figures in the history of Western music. He transcended the mere status of a musician and became a lyrical spokesman for his time, a kind of unelected representative of what the youth of the 60s and 70s thought and felt.

Although his voice and words could often be rough and sarcastic, they were also deep and had overt spiritual, philosophical and religious undertones. There’s a good reason it won the Noble Prize for Literature in 2016.

With the release of his upcoming book “The Philosophy of Modern Song,” readers will receive a “detailed masterclass in the art and craft of songwriting,” and specific examples of his favorite tunes and of what makes them great. The book announcement says it “analyzes what it calls the easy rhyme trap, breaks down how adding a single syllable can diminish a song, and even explains how bluegrass relates to heavy metal”. Even more exciting, we’re told that while the essays “are ostensibly about music, they’re actually meditations and reflections on the human condition.”

rock versus folk

Examining the chaotic landscape of the Vietnam-era world, young people (especially those eligible for conscription) became disillusioned with power structures and classic American cultural mores. They responded to this tension in two ways. The first was the kind of radicalism that was on display at the 1968 Democratic Convention or in militant groups like the Black Panthers and the Weather Underground. The second was the classic “hippie” model who embraced peace and love as ideals and was also open to spiritual (if unconventional) ideas.

Although Dylan could lean either way, ultimately he was on the latter side and always kept the transcendent in his heart and his words.

“The thing about rock ‘n’ roll is that for me anyway it wasn’t enough… It had great catchphrases and catchy beats… but the songs weren’t serious or didn’t reflect life in a realistic way. I knew when I got into folk music it was more of a serious thing. The songs are filled with more despair, more sadness, more of triumph, more faith in the supernatural, much deeper feelings.

Religiosity

Dylan was an inveterate maverick. He did things his own way and didn’t seem particularly concerned about what other people thought of him, musically or otherwise. His religious thinking was no different – he tried several spiritualities for size and discarded them when they no longer suited him. (This included a five-year stint as a Christian who produced songs like “Gotta Serve Somebody.)” There appear to be three religious modalities he espoused.

The first is an association of art with spirituality – the idea that the transcendental is most likely to be found in art itself. It’s an old idea and probably why the arts started in the first place – as a vehicle to honor and experience what lies beyond our perception.

Source, CBS News

As Dylan commented to Newsweek’s David Gates, “Here’s the thing with me and the religious thing. It’s the plain and simple truth: I find religiosity and philosophy in music.

The second mode he discussed is closer to the classical monotheistic worldview with its notion of a singular and ultimate global force that created and sustains the universe. The Creator in this model is the one who is aware of what humanity is doing and who cares about the choices we make. It views our physical world as part of a much larger whole that contains a physical aspect and a metaphysical (or beyond matter) aspect.

dylan said to Rolling Stone’s Kurt Loder, “I always thought there was a higher power, it wasn’t the real world and there was a world to come.”

He also explained to 60 Minutes’ Ed Bradley his constant touring schedule as part of a deal he made long ago with the “Commander in Chief – on this earth and in the world we cannot see”.

Finally, we can glimpse a particular form of monotheism in some of Dylan’s works. He was born Jewish, has several observant parents, and even went to meet the Lubavitcher Rebbe in Crown Heights in the 80s. He certainly doesn’t wear it on his sleeve, but it seems clear that the feeling is there, that he takes Jewish ideas seriously, and even if with great subtlety, these ideas found their way into some of his tunes.

Dylan’s Planet Waves album was recorded in the fall of 1973, using “The Band” as their backing band as they rehearsed for a major tour. The album included two versions of “Forever Young”, which became one of his most popular songs. As one reviewer described it, the song projected “something hymn and heartfelt that spoke of father to Dylan”, and Dylan himself commented, “I wrote it with one of my boys and not wanting to be too sentimental.” The opening lyrics are:

May God bless you and keep you always
May all your wishes come true
May you always do for others
And let others do it for you
May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb each rung
And may you stay forever young

Those familiar with the Priestly Blessing – the one recited by parents over their children every Friday night to this day – from the Book of Numbers will recognize the similarity to this opening line. It’s a beautiful feeling and a beautiful song. It’s also the one that seems to capture an unusually tender moment for Dylan. It is instructive and poignant that the words he found to express this universal parental feeling come from the heart of the Hebrew Bible.

To listen to Rabbi Jacobs’ podcast (including music) on this topic, click here.

“The air of Jesus is still beautiful even if the Christians sang out of tune.” I love this line from Australian church leader and historian John Dickson, who was one of the guests featured on the second episode of my podcast Rebuilding Faith.

jesus christ is sung

This analogy of Christianity as a melody to play or a song to sing resonates with me. I point it in The thrill of orthodoxy. It’s not a new analogy – it has an old pedigree – but we need it right now.

In his letter to the Ephesians, Ignatius writes:

In the love of the church, jesus christ is sung.

How’s it going ?

spoil the melody

When we look back we see how Christians have often drifted into beliefs and actions that do not do justice to the melody handed down from the apostles, whether it is the discordant dissonance of warriors committing atrocities in name of Christ or the ostentatious displays of wealth and favoritism so manifestly contrary to the instructions of our Saviour.

But “Christians behaving badly is the report of the minority”, says Dickson (and shows in his book Bullies and Saints). “I would say that in most church centuries, most Christians have sung the tune recognizably.” Even today, when pastors or church leaders sin in a way that scandalizes the church, the majority of Christians are shocked and disappointed, perhaps even more so than people in the world. Why? Because “they sing the melody, they awkwardly go, trying to believe the gospel and trust the gospel, and they are spectacularly disappointed.”

Regardless of the era, you will find Christians mutilating the melody and others singing it beautifully. Sometimes you can be amazed to hear a Christian leader sing one verse perfectly while missing the next completely. We’re a clumsy bunch of believers, after all. None of us are going to get all the right grades all the time, and we may be more like an untrained children’s choir trying to stay on key than the choristers of Westminster Abbey. But humility continues to bring us back to the song as we seek to honor the melody.

Fortunately, we are led by the Spirit as we sing the gospel tune. Basil the Great wrote,

Back to melody

When the church is rocked by scandal and riddled with sin, when there is rot in the house and renovations become necessary, the answer is not to destroy the building. When Christians sing the horribly wrong gospel tune, the answer is not to change the song.

You can take a song and remix it, remaster it, or adjust its tempo, like singers sometimes do when covering other people’s songs. But if you change too many things in the song, you end up with a completely different melody. You cannot reconsider, revisit, redefine, revise, or rework the faith forever and still be committed to the faith. Remixing, remastering and rearranging an old song can bring out the beauty of the original, with flourishes and instrumentals adding a new effect. But once you no longer submit to the melody – once you change the lyrics or modify the melody – you lose the original song.

When the Church is plagued by sin and scandal, the process of renewal can only begin when, as John Dickson says, Christians return to the Gospels and the New Testament, re-read God’s Word and suddenly realize: “We doesn’t look like this!” And God stirs those embers until they ignite, gripping the hearts of believers determined to recapture the essence of Christianity and display its beauty in our churches. That’s when we seek out the melody and sing it to exalt the Savior who gave it to us.

Towards the end of Calvin Miller’s classic book The singerthe first singers of the song given by the Troubadour are freed and charged with spreading the music throughout the world:

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