My God, they killed him

Unlike the United States, Good Friday is a national holiday here in the Bahamas. All government offices and nearly all businesses, including supermarkets and convenience stores are closed. Most churches conduct worship services where seven different speakers preach on the last words of Jesus. And the main meal for the day includes fried fish and hot cross buns.

Earlier today, I listened to the Kate Campbell's latest album, For the Living of these Days, which has a number of thought provoking songs on the meaning of Jesus' life and death.

Consider, for example, this excerpt from her song "They Killed Him."

The only Son of God Almighty
The holy one called Jesus Christ
He healed the sick and he fed the hungry
And for his love they took his life away
On the road to glory where the story never ends
Just the holy Son of Man I'll never understand
My God, they killed him

In song after song, Campell's lyrics emphasize the nature of Jesus' engagement with the world, his efforts to transform the social order, and the how those efforts ultimately led him (and sometimes his followers) to his death. For those of us who have chosen to "take up our cross" and follow him, such lyrics challenge us to rethink the nature of our own engagement in the world, to reflect on how we are allowing God to use us to transform the social order and, finally, to take stock of the risks that such commitment entails. Given that this is Easter weekend, this is an especially timely message to help stimulate our reflection on the events we are remembering.

You can see (and hear) the rest of the copyrighted lyrics for this and other Kate Campell songs by clicking here.