The Gospel Truth

Reading Curve magazine yesterday I read a review of lesbian recording artist Susan Werner. I’d never heard of her, but the review of her album “The Gospel Truth” was intriguing.

A farm girl, raised in a large Catholic family in rural Iowa, Werner started singing (where else??) but in church. But, she asked too many questions and began to struggle with all the baggage that institutional religion creates.

I found this to be too much to resist, so I clicked on over to iTunes and for $9.99 I downloaded the album. I was not disappointed.

All of the lyrics and music are original and have a gospel feel. The first song on the album is “(Why Is Your) Heaven So Small?”

Excuse me sir,
What did you say?
You shout so loud it’s hard to tell.
You say that I must change my ways
For I am surely bound to hell.

Well I know you’d damn me if you could
But my friends, that simply not your call.

If God is great and God is good
Why is your heaven
So small?

You say you know,
You say you’ve read
That Holy Bible up on the shelf
Do you recall when Jesus said,
“Judge not lest ye be judged yourself?”

For I know you’d damn me if you could
But my friends, that’s simply not your call.

If God is great and God is good
Why is your heaven
So small?

With your fists that shake
And your eyes that burn
What makes you do these things you do?
I would not be surprised to learn
Someone, somewhere excluded you.

But my friend, imagine it if you could
A love much mightier than us all

If God is great and God is good
Why is your heaven
So small?

The rest of the tracks deal with themes like forgiving those who have hurt you, even when you don’t want to; the importance of a conscience in a life that is lived well and fully; the kind of peaceful world that God must want (if there even is a God!) and a direct prayer asking God to save us from all the self-righteous people who think they speak for Him.

After listening to the CD for the last two days all I can say is “amen.”