Winchester Cathedral, you're bringin' me down

Winchester Cathedral, you're bringin' me down,
You stood and you watched her, my baby left town.
Abodeodo Abodeodo Abodeodo Abodo.

I'm flying in Winchester Cathedral,
Sunlight pouring through the break of day.

Listening to Crosby, Stills and Nash yesterday in the car, I was reminded about how both of these songs, one by the New Vaudeville Band and the other by CSN were about the same place.

I like both of them for different reasons.

The first one was a hit when I was a kid, and everyone would imitate the sound of the vocals, which, if you are under 45 were a Rudy Valleesque vocalist singing through a megaphone. It is goofy, and I like it.

The CSN was big in my circle of friends when I was in college. I have the album somewhere. There is a mysterious aspect and a passion in this song.

The first is a silly song where an inanimate object is blamed for not ringing bells to stop his girl from leaving town. Huh?

The second also contains an element of blame, as in the lines,
"Open up the gates of the church and let me out of here!
Too many people have lied in the name of Christ
for anyone to heed the call.
Too many people have died in the name of Christ
that I can't believe it all."

Interesting. Shall we put the blame where it should be?

In the first song, maybe the cathedral saw that the guy was a real jerk, and she was right to leave him. Maybe the bell portrays a silent assent to her plans to leave her abuser. Any way you see it, the cathedral can't be held responsible for the breakup of this relationship. Even if it did give them bad relationship advice. Which it didn't.

In the second song, maybe Christ is being misrepresented by his followers, and we are a stumbling block to those who would come to Christ if not for us. Maybe we should be lights instead of jerks. (Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good.) Maybe we should show love for one another, like God demonstrated His own love for us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. I guess He could have run over us with a tank. That would have been a solution.

Or maybe the "blame the bad Christian" gambit is just an excuse to ignore Christ, and a refusal to allow Him to be seen as he would be seen in the scriptures and in the lives of those who take his name. Seriously.

What do you think?

http://www.winchester-cathedral.org.uk/

I'm flying in Winchester Cathedral. Winchester Cathedral, you're bringin' me down. And I am high, above the altar. All religion has to have its day.
Abodeodo Abodeodo Abodeodo Abodo. Doh!