American Idol’s Chris Sligh on theology
February 21st, 2007
American Idol contestant Chris Sligh has a blog called Theological Digressions, in which he makes some observations about his life as a follower of Christ. Here’s an excerpt from his post on “Forgetful of Grace”:
The big question I’ve always had is this: when does grace end and responsibility begin? I think we as Christians have to struggle with this. I’ve never had a Christian friend who is honest who doesn’t struggle with the balance between grace and responsibility or consequence. When do we cross the line of abusing grace and discarding liberty for freedom?
But in asking these questions, I think that we miss the point of what grace is. Grace is not overlooking sin and poor choices. It is looking those poor choices straight in the face and saying that His grace is enough to get past them. It is being able to forgive without forgetting, because as humans we don’t forget. We don’t have the ability to seperate it as far as the East is from the West. Yet Christ’s grace is so much better than my feeble attempts to explain it. His grace does seperate it from his memory; He doesn’t remember my faults.
That’s cool. I nearly fell off my chair when he started into MuteMath’s “Typical” last night - awesome song choice.
I hope he takes advantage of this tremendous platform to share his faith.
I hope he wins, too.
We made a great fan site for Chris!!
http://www.chris-sligh.info
((hugs))
GOOD LUCK CHRIS!!
I liked this guy already.
I guess I’m the only one who thinks he’s a jerk for his comments to Simon the other night. It was just very offputting to me, regardless if it was meant as a joke or otherwise.
And I also have to question his theological beliefs in that, before he was forced to take down his main blog, he wrote one defending Borat. I don’t know that he’s the ideal Christian example everyone seems to think he is.
I don’t know anything about the Borat post, Stephen. I just saw this post of his and thought it was worth mentioning.
What’s wrong with Borat?
I don’t think he’s a jerk, even after his comments to Simon. It was disrespectful, but I wouldn’t classify him as a jerk because of it, and I certainly wouldn’t call into question his Christian example, anymore than I would call Stephen’s into question for calling a brother “a jerk.”
His sense of humor is dry, it is what got him where he is so far, and he was, in my mind, just trying to be funny and take a jab at Simon.
The fact is that Sligh is a Southern Baptist who leads worship at his church, and obviously has an interest in theology. I think that’s cool, and I wish him all the best.
Originally I had picked him to win, but in my current blog post, I have him in sixth, behind five girls. I hope he makes progress next week.
What’s good about Borat?
Maybe we have different definitions of jerk. To me, a jerk can be someone who acts disrespectfully. Christian or not, his lack of respect isn’t a positive or endearing quality. To me, he just couldn’t take the criticism and lashed back.
His humor hasn’t gotten him to where he is… his singing ability has.
Wasn’t Clinton a Southern Baptist?
Oh come on Stephen. How can you honestly sit there and compare Bill Clinton and this young man? I don’t even know what to say to that.
What is good about Borat? Its called “satire.” And its pretty cool.
Chris’ singing ability aside, when he said that many people compare him to Christina Aquilera, I lost it. He is a good singer, and can be disrespectful, but his sense of humor is what makes him memorable.
http://www.pluggedinonline.com/movies/movies/a0002953.cfm
“Pervasive, crude and grotesque. Borat is shown masturbating inside his pants while standing on a busy sidewalk. At a hotel, he walks in on a completely naked Azamat masturbating. (His hand is visible.) The two then get into an agonizingly long scuffle in the nude. (Borat’s penis is censored with a black box; Azamat’s is mostly tucked away by his layers of fat.) Worse, their wrestling is played off like a pornographic film—complete with positional references to anal and oral sex. Among other things, each man’s genitals get mashed up against the other’s face.”
Yes, this is what Christians should be watching and promoting.
With the Clinton comparison I was simply saying that simply calling yourself Southern Baptist and being in the spotlight doesn’t inherently make you a role model.
You’re right, his sense of humor makes him memorable, but his singing got him to where he is.
Let’s see: He’s a Christian, enjoys crude humor (Borat), is sometimes disrespectful to those older than himself, has a soul patch and hip glasses…no worries for this guy. If Idol doesn’t work out he’s a shoo-in for a job as a youth minister in a mega-church.
Wow.
Is it even REMOTELY legitimate to compare a kid who made a stupid joke with a President that committed adultry and was a pathological liar?
For the life of me, I can’t understand why we eat our own brethren alive. Did Chris ever state that he was “the ideal Christian example”? I didn’t see it on his site.
Dude is funny. He’s obviously given his beliefs some thought (which is more than most can say). And he has an enormous stage where God may choose to give him a platform (if only for a while) to point to Himself. I pray the best for him.
Jasonk agrees with Jason non-k. Some of you people are really amazing. What do you expect from him? He’s a guy, he can sing, and he is interested in theology. But he is hip, and cracks jokes, and like satirical humor, so let’s avoid the Christmas rush and start hating him now. Give me a break. Its no wonder the church in America is shrinking. If you don’t get in line and act like everybody else, you’re labeled, and destroyed by “mature” Christians. Please.
It was just a joke! At least on my part. I too hope the guy does well and that God gives him the opportunity to use this for His glory.
…even as a youth pastor, huh Larry?
(I knew you were playin’. No worries.)
well the jerkstore called…
Borat was funny.
Sorry, guys. I’ll just take my church-shrinking, Borat-bashing comments elsewhere. Thanks for the discussion.
Stephen,
I’ve thought a little about your comment in which you said Chris acted like a jerk.
I’ll admit that if his remark were in another setting, it could have been out of line, and I see how someone could have taken it that way.
But given the fact that Simon Cowell likes to dish it out as much as the next one, I considered Chris’ comment to be more playful banter than anything. I don’t think he would have said something like that to Paula, for instance, and maybe not to Randy.
Maybe I’m reading it wrong, but that’s how I took it.
As for Borat, I haven’t seen the movie, so I don’t consider myself qualified enough to speak on its merits or deficiencies.
NOT
To me, it would have been more impressive if Chris had just taken the (very mild) criticism from Simon instead of firing off an insult. Yes, Simon certainly isn’t one to mince words, but I think the contestants who choose to graciously accept what he has to say (like AJ and Phil, who both went after Chris and received worse criticism but reacted better to it) end up looking far more mature than those who become defensive. I think Chris’s response made him look arrogant, and I’ll be curious to see how he responds to criticism in the future. Furthermore, as Christians especially it seems that our responsibility isn’t to fight insult with insult, but to treat the person with the grace God extends to us. It’s a little thing called “rising above it.”
I can respect that opinion, Tim. It’s just my personal choice to like someone more who can take criticism respectfully, especially in what is equivalent to a job interview. Not saying anyone’s wrong for liking him, it’s just easier for me to like someone like Blake or Phil who says they’ll work harder to do better.
I haven’t seen Borat either. Focus on the Family has a movie review site called Plugged In Online that reviews the movie here: http://www.pluggedinonline.com/movies/movies/a0002953.cfm.
Last entry, thanks.
I agree that it’s easy to like those who take criticism graciously. That’s one of the reasons I’d like to see Melinda do well. Here’s a girl who’s totally unpretentious and humble, and a breath of fresh air for the show.
Stephen, don’t leave on my account. I respect your opinion, even if I think the Clinton comment was extreme.
Tim’s site tends to have good, solid, sometimes heated discussion - but that’s why most of us come back. I’d welcome your continued participation.
…not that you asked. I just thought I’d offer.
That said, you don’t have to agree 100% with a brother in Christ to still BE brothers in Christ. For example, I consider Zoner a brother even though - GET THIS - HE’S A CUBS FAN!
Breaking News: Chris Sligh apologized for appearing disrespectful of Simon earlier in the week. He said he was only engaging in good natured ribbing, but upon further review, he realized that his comments sounded disrespectful, and said he was sorry. He also said that he loves Simon.
Does everyone feel better now? :>)
No. I was happier when he gave Simon some grief.
I like Cowell, but at times he is purposefully antagonistic. Did you hear his response to Sligh’s apology?
“I love this guy.” (loose translation)
Why is it when someone sucks they all say it wasn’t the right song? I sing Row Row Row your boat pretty well. I think its my right song. Basically the 3 judges don’t know squat about music just what they like and don’t like. When they try to sound important and smart about music they just sound stupid.
Nephos–I wouldn’t expect Simon to respond well to an apology, but I have heard him apologize before. Last season he made fun of a girl who was overweight. Later, when she made it to the finals, he said he was sorry for what he said, and gave her a hug.
Newman–I don’t know that these three are the “be all, end all” of music judges, but they do know a lot about music, because they’ve been in the biz for such a long time. Simon especially knows what will sell. The other two are just trying to be nice. Song choice can make a big difference in how you sound. If I tried to cover a Steven Curtis Chapman song, it would sound bad, because I don’t sing in his range. But give me some Lyle Lovett, and I’m going to sound a lot better. Still, I think Randy and Paula blame poor performances on song choice, when it is really anything but.
I appreciate Simon’s honesty. Even if he is being antagonistic at times. He is telling them the truth, when no one else will. And watch the singers when they await the judges’ comments. They are not surprised when Randy and Paula praise them, but if Simon praises them, they know they really did well. That says a lot.
jasonk,
I agree completely with your assessment of SC. His response to Sligh’s apology seemed lighthearted. I think he genuinely likes someone who doesn’t wear their feelings on their sleeve. Much of his attitude seems to be for show. After all, would as many people watch if they didn’t love/hate Simon? I don’t think so.
Go Cubbies! 85 wins takes the central this year!
I just don’t understand our myopic search for the next great Christian spokesperson. Do we really belive that the world will be changed by some athlete or entertainer spouting off about their faith. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t see any problem with it. I just don’t see where this is really having the effect that we think it’s having.
Who’s searching for the next great Christian spokesperson?
How about an American Idol-like show titled:
“The Next Great Christian Spokesperson”
Maybe we can get Simon to get behind it… We can have auditions and can you just imagine the judges?
Randy Jackson = Stephen Baldwin
Paula Abdul = Rob Bell
Simon Cowell = John MacArthur
Guest Judges anyone?
I’d watch it for it would probably be highly entertaining…
Okay, okay. You guys talked me into it. I’ll be a Christian spokesman and start speaking for you guys on any and every issue we discuss on here.
No christians can easily lives their faith properly after being on american idol…One of the main reason people decide to go is because FIRST they want to be FAMOUS!! 2ND they want to be RICH.Christians who go there undercover with the “feeling”that they want to share their faith are motivated by those two strong desire.Period.
Carrie Underwood, Jennifer Hudson…,all denies Christ everyday of their lives in front of millions trying to please the crowds and throwing a “JESUS”in their song of their speech now and then and at the same time;doing what the crowds expect them to do otherwise they will lose the attention and the fame…Trust me ,the Faith thing get easily behind the cupboard…or else it is a huge struggle to overcome…
I wouldn’t advice a christian to audition fot=r the show only because he will be forced to serve someone else than GOD.
LET THOSE WHO HAVE EARS LISTEN
Sounds like someone is a little jealous.
Jojo, how do you know? How do you know that Carrie Underwood and Jennifer Hudson deny Christ every day? How do you know they ever stood for Christ in the first place? And what makes you think that every single AI contestant is only out for the fame and the money? These people sing for a living. They want to reach the top of their careers, like anyone else does. The fast track to the top is American Idol. Some are in it for the fame, and others for the money, but not everyone. And even if they were, what do you expect? We are fallen people, living in a fallen world.
May I suggest that you take a look at George Huff and Karen-Clark-Sheard? Both are former AI contestants who have signed record deals with Word Entertainment, to create urban Gospel music.
And what’s wrong with wanting to be rich? I’d like to be rich.
In a blog, wouldn’t it be more appropriate to say “Let those who have eyes read”?
Tim - I am always looking for new clients.
Just curious Jojo, would you say that to their faces?
I seriously think that christians should be careful.I said a christian cannot EASILY live PROPERLY their faith.I don’t know the people u r talking about JasonK As far I have become a watcher of the show(only this year) and there is a great difference being a contestant and a winner.I have only my eyes to see what I can see. There is nothing wrong wanting to be rich,Tim but…again one has to be careful about how he chooses to be.
and with all my respet, I haven’t seen yet a christian make an impact in the world by being on the show!
What difference has this shris sligh made since being in there?when he wins,I hope he won’t be known as the humourist or strategist chris who manage both world,struggling in between two Gods…
jojo,
Chris Sligh sang last night, and he performed a Christian song.
The singer I was referring to before is George Huff, who was in the top 12 on Idol three years ago, I believe.
You are mistaken when you say that only the winner of the show becomes rich and famous. Making it to the top 12 almost guarantees that a person will be able to make their living in music. George Huff could have chosen to make any kind of record he wanted, but he chose to make a gospel record. Good for him.
If Chris Sligh wins, or loses, I hope he uses the personality that God gave him, humorous, strategist, and all, to bring glory to the Maker.
Do you struggle between two gods? Like, the God of Heaven, and the god of pride, or judgement of others, or doubt, or whatever? Do you earn a living, and if so, do you find it hard to live a Christian life in the workplace? Do you find that the wolf is always at the door, tempting you to compromise your values? Well, it is the same in the music business.
Don’t be so hard on Chris Sligh, he is your brother. Love him, support him, rejoice in the Lord for him.
Jasonk,precisely because of all these trouble you don’t want to create others for yourself…I Love him that is why I personnally wish he doesn’t win…;he has gone far enough to succeed in his singing career.
it is not the first time someone sings a christian song on idol…
Jasonk,precisely because of all these trouble you don’t want to create others for yourself…I Love him that is why I personnally wish he doesn’t win…;he has gone far enough to succeed in his singing career.
it is not the first time someone sings a christian song on idol…
I think Christian should be budy doing something more important…
American idol seems like a trap to me…for christians…
What seems like a trap for you is an open door for others, jojo.
Here’s what you do. First, do not audition for American Idol.
Second, pray for all those competing, and for all those who are watching, that they would see God in a fresh way, and that if it hasn’t happened already, that God would turn their hearts toward Him. Pray that whether he wins or loses, Chris Sligh will live up to the commitment to Christ that he has made.
Jojo- you should probably go to Chris Sligh’s blog and leave your comments there.
Hi,Jasonk!!!
I pray even for all of us christians to have our eyes opened; when the Devil is opening doors that looks like opportunities to us.We are going there like sheep to be slaugthered…and pray that the Lord will deliver us!!
The Zoner I just left a message on his blog…didn’t even know he had one!!!
why is any of this an issue? chris is a christian, and he is a singer/entertainer. it is what it is.
It is an issue because jojo forgot to cut the medication in half.