Misguided: The Soundtrack To My Life

Chapter Four – Revolution For JesusMusic featured in this chapter:Revolution – The BeatlesThis is one of the shortest chapters in my memoir. I cite a 1971 TIME magazine article titled, “The Alternative Jesus: Psychedelic Christ”, about the Jesus People Movement. The cover pictured a hippie-like Jesus, haloed with the words: “The Jesus Revolution”. I then cite a publication by cult leader David Berg titled “Jesus People? Or Revolution!” in which he writes:“This is a Revolution! We are not compromising and conforming to the damnable System church! We are not conforming to the damnable Commercial System! We have dropped out economically! We have dropped out religiously, spiritually! And the only reason we stay at peace with the political System is because God’s Word commands it for the sake of peace! We have dropped out educationally from the hellish, fiendish, Devil’s own Satanic propaganda education--educational System! You, the Children of God are God’s revolution for this hour and this day!”I then write:... a common call-and-response slogan in the group started with someone shouting, “Revolution!”, and everyone else responding, “For Jesus!”, as they thrust one arm in the air with a three-finger salute representing the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It was a unifying gesture, one of several characteristics that set the Children of God apart from other groups in the Jesus movement.A follow-up TIME article describes the Children of God as “the storm troopers of the Jesus Revolution”.As the previous chapters in this series show, I was heavily influenced by The Beatles. I had memorized almost every song in their double White Album, including this one.Revolution – The BeatlesYou say you want a revolution Well you know We all want to change the world You say you got a real solution, well, you know We’d all love to see the plan You say you’ll change the constitution, well, you know We all wanna change your head You tell me it’s the institution, well, you know You better free your mind insteadUnfortunately, that spiritual revolution did not “set my mind free”. Instead it “changed my head”, chained my mind to dogma within a spiritual prison, as I wrote in the final paragraph of this chapter.I was a disciple of Jesus now, set free by the truth, or so I was misguided to believe by John 8:31,32: “If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” I never anticipated that the same dogma that supposedly set me free would come to control every aspect of my life. It narrowed my worldview, closed my mind, and broke my will. I was now a prisoner of God’s will, as determined by my new spiritual superiors with their literal interpretation of the Bible. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit perrybulwer344598.substack.com