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New York Times
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
I Don't Know if I Believe in God, but I Believe in Gospel Music
Before I began listening to gospel music about 12 years ago, I was not the most obvious candidate to become a fan of the genre. Raised by divorced parents who were not particularly religious, I didn't give much consideration to faith. Though my father was a longtime member of the Christ Temple Baptist Church — a Black congregation in Ypsilanti, Mich. — he wasn't a regular presence at Sunday service nor did he pressure me to join him when he did go. My mother, who was a nonobservant Jewish woman, spent much of her adult life criticizing what she viewed as a patriarchal religion; we never attended synagogue, and I didn't have a bar mitzvah. My mother's iconoclasm shaped my attitude toward life, including my taste in music. As a teenager I was drawn to punk rock — loud, fast, angry music that reflected my vague and indeterminate outrage at the world. I defied authority, ranting and raving against the powers that be, including cops, politicians, security guards and my teachers at school, though my defiance usually involved little more than cutting holes in my clothes and quoting song lyrics. I was a perpetually cynical and distrustful young man who believed the world's problems could be solved by my music and clothing preferences, not by organized religion. As I matured and entered my 30s, my father and I grew closer. We bonded over Donny Hathaway, Curtis Mayfield and Aretha Franklin, artists who sang love songs distinctly informed by their respective backgrounds in the Black church. These singers were my conduit to gospel. After hearing the Swan Silvertones sing 'Mary Don't You Weep' on a compilation album of early R&B and gospel groups, I was instantly hooked, and I sought out their LPs as well as records by the Davis Sisters, Marion Williams, Brother Joe May and the Blind Boys of Alabama. I was drawn to the music not because of its religious lyrics but because its rhythms and vocal harmonies moved something deep in my core. I felt the music in my soul before I had even acknowledged the existence of a soul. Each minor chord on the piano, each impassioned cry from the singer broke through my cynicism. I was carried away — if only for a few minutes. I came to understand that the music's religious spirit was inseparable from the music: Each served the other, to help us express our connection to and yearning for the ineffable, to give form to that which is unseen. When a gospel vocalist sings of faith and love of Jesus, it sounds to my ears like a higher power is pouring out of them, using the artist as an instrument. At the top of the Staple Singers' 1965 song 'Let Jesus Lead You,' for example, the band leader, Pops Staples, launches into the opening and his three children follow, creating a simple call-and-response: 'Let Jesus lead you/Let Jesus lead you/Let Jesus lead you/All the way/All the way/All the way from Earth to glory,' before Mavis Staples takes over, her voice slowly building, from mortal earth to the heavenly realms. The sound of the Staple Singers' early records is blues-influenced, trading church organs and a large chorus for a small band, stripping the music down to its raw core. But like much gospel, the Staple Singers' music hinges on a buoyant joyfulness that invites the listener to share in their exaltation. Listening to this song, I clap my hands and stomp a foot on the backbeat. My heart swells with each repetition of the refrain, and I feel myself transported to places I've never visited but that the music conjures for me: some storefront church or a down-home revival. I'm connected to a history, to a not-so-distant past that is not a part of my personal experience but is bound up in my cultural heritage. It reached into the hidden, malnourished and underserved parts of my spirit that I so often tried to repress. To paraphrase Mahalia Jackson's memorable description of gospel, the music brought good tidings and good news to my life. In a world that increasingly fosters self-interest and social isolation, gospel points me toward something more intimate, more collective. Though I don't subscribe to any particular denomination, I aspire to lead a life of curiosity, generosity and compassion — all the best hallmarks of any faith and of great gospel music. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
CBC
15-05-2025
- Sport
- CBC
Abrupt end to record-setting '24 campaign fuels Ticats receiver Shemar Bridges
A premature end to a stellar rookie campaign is fuelling Shemar Bridges' preparation for the 2025 CFL season. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats' receiver was the East Division's top rookie in 2024 with 83 catches — a club-record for a first-year player — for 933 yards and four touchdowns. But it could have been much more. Bridges missed the final three games with a quad injury, ending his pursuit of Curtis Mayfield's league record for most regular-season receptions by a rookie (102). "I definitely feel like if I didn't get hurt I could've done some more things and helped the team," Bridges said. "Being able to go to the (CFL) awards show and watch the Grey Cup myself, it fuelled me that I didn't want to be in the stands, I want to be on the field. "It gave me that hunger and I just wanted to work as hard as I can to possibly come ready to help the team." The six-foot-four, 208-pound Bridges has looked good early in Hamilton's training camp. But head coach Scott Milanovich is keeping an eye on Bridges, and plans to save the receiver from himself and give him days off as the Ticats prepare for the upcoming season. Especially after Bridges pushed to continued playing last season after suffering his injury. "You love those kind of guys, right, they want to be out there and they're willing to play with pain," Milanovich said. "The concern with guys coming off injury is just how much pounding can they take on it? "We're going to keep a close eye on him and maybe try to give him a vet day here and there just to make sure we're not pushing him too hard. The tempo out there is fast, there's a lot of running." Bridges got his first "vet day" Wednesday. Bridges comes into camp heavier than last season But if the '24 season taught Bridges anything, it was to take everything — successes and struggles — in stride. "It's a long season so you can have your real high weeks as an individual and as a team and you can also have lower weeks," he said. "You've got to keep the journey even-keeled... you can't get too high or too low, just enjoy the process." Bridges said he had a little trouble last season keeping weight on so he reported to camp Sunday a few pounds heavier. "Not a lot, just enough to give me some strength to be able to endure hits and try to block better," he said. Hamilton (7-11) missed the CFL playoffs last season despite having the league's top-ranked offence. The Ticats were first overall in net offence (406.1 yards/game), passing yards (332.1) and passing TDs (35) and second in offensive points (26.5). Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell was the CFL leader in passing yards (5,451) and touchdowns (32) but also interceptions (18). Bridges tied Canadian Kiondre Smith for third among Ticats receivers (933 yards) behind Tim White (74 catches, 1,164 yards, eight TDs) and current Edmonton Elk Steven Dunbar Jr (75 catches, 1,159 yards, five TDs). And the unit was bolstered by the off-season signing of veterans Kenny Lawler and Drew Wolitarsky, who both won two Grey Cups with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. "We can be special but it's on us," Bridges said of Hamilton's receiving corps. "We've got to come out to work every day and stay accountable. "But it's a great group and I love that we keep each other accountable and work hard." Last season was one of adjustment for Bridges as he not only headed to a different country but had to get acclimated with a new game. With a year under his belt and returning for a second season in the same offence with the same receivers coach (Naaman Roosevelt) and offensive co-ordinator (Milanovich), Bridges is much more comfortable heading into the '25 campaign. "It's definitely a big jump," he said. "Things slow down, especially playing a whole year and having success. "Having the same receiver coach and same OC and playing with a lot of the same guys and having someone like Bo who believes in me just makes things so much easier to come into. But now I just want to take that next step, you can't be complacent, just got to get better every day."
