David Bowie used religious imagery in his "Next Day" video(Photo: Adam Bielawski)

Pop artists are fond of provocative religious imagery, but Ted Turnau says that should not be surprising for Christians and rather than getting offended, they should be looking for ways to come alongside today's secularised pop stars to help them use such religious imagery appropriately.

Turnau teaches cultural and religious studies in Prague, his adopted city, and in his latest book "Popologetics: Popular Culture in Christian Perspective", he expounds the importance of engaging in popular culture because of its influence on many aspects of society.

He believes the use of religious symbols reflects the desire people have for spirituality but not for religion.

"We want something spiritual, but we want our freedom and we hate religious authority and the abuses that we know go with it,"he says.

In the last few decades, post-Christian Western societies have seen large numbers of people leave the church. These people "have largely lost their way"and explored other paths, says Turnau, but "besides proclaiming their freedom to live as they please and endorse an increasing number of alternative lifestyles, there really is little by way of positive direction for living".

Ted thinks most people looking to live a good life end up concluding that "consumerism makes a lousy life-philosophy"and they turn inevitably to spirituality. But again, he stresses, they want it on their own terms.

"Many popular cultural figures grasp at religious symbols in a gambit to find something meaningful, while also attempting to domesticate it to their own perspective."

High profile artists like David Bowie, Lady Gaga and Madonna have used religious imagery in a way that has upset Christians or just left them plain confused. Much has been written about Lady Gaga's song "Judas" and the many ways it can be understood.

"In the age of Madonna and Lady Gaga, this kind of use of religious imagery is to be expected,"says Ted.

Originally posted here:

Pop culture and spirituality without religion