In the series finale of Outlaw's Evidence of the Unseen, hosts Ray Curenton and Tim Dillinger are joined by artist/activist Juba Kalamka, author of Son of Byford (published by Black Lawrence Press), to discuss Adamma Ebo's mockumentary Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul., a film that examines the construct of the megachurch and how it intertwines with capitalism, homophobia, and sexism to create a machine through which greed, shame, and power coalesce.

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Get Juba’s book, Son of Byford at https://bookshop.org/p/books/son-of-byford-juba-kalamka/18559472?ean=9781955239318

Follow Juba’s band, Commando: @commandosucks

Support Juba's music on Bandcamp: https://commandothebando.bandcamp.com/

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The FOX network once called her frenzy “the most compelling footage ever caught on tape.” We’re talking, of course, about Marguerite Perrin, most commonly known as “The God Warrior.” Tim and Ray revisit both of her classic appearances on the reality show Trading Spouses: Meet Your New Mommy, including her infamous “mother of all meltdowns” that has inspired memes and parodies ever since it first aired in 2005. The hosts discuss how Southern Christian paranoia and fear of the “dork-sided” got its first major mainstream showcase in possibly the most epic moment of reality television ever.

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We’ve been promising it for weeks and here it finally is! In this very special episode, Tim and Ray discuss the Christian obsession with end-time prophesy. In addition to talking about their individual deconstructions around believing in the rapture, our hosts review six of the most well-known rapture films and analyze the use of the promise of an impending apocalypse as an evangelical scare tactic. Time stamps for the start of each film review below:

0:20:03 - A Thief in the Night (1972), dir. Donald W. Thompson

0:52:08 - A Distant Thunder (1978), dir. Donald W. Thompson

1:09:28 - Image of the Beast (1981), dir. Donald W. Thompson

1:31:55 - The Prodigal Planet (1983), dir. Donald W. Thompson

1:40:04 - Left Behind: The Movie (2000), dir. Vic Sarin

1:51:24 - Left Behind (2014), dir. Vic Armstrong

Further Reading:

“A Thief in the Night: The Christian Apocalyptic Thriller That Spawned an Industry” by Dustin T. Cox

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Purchase Cheryl Wills’ Isn’t Her Grace Amazing!: The Women Who Changed Gospel Music at your local bookstore

G’day, mates! In this episode, our hosts review the new three-part Discovery+ documentary series, Hillsong: A Megachurch Exposed. Founded in Sydney, Australia by Brian Houston and made famous through its never-ending worship music products, Hillsong is an international megachurch, media conglomerate, and Christian college mired in a plethora of abuse scandals. Throughout the episode, Tim struggles to retain former Hillsong pastor Carl Lentz’s name (or remember who Chris Pratt is) while also wondering how none of the leadership of the church saw his improprieties coming. Ray contemplates the culture of sexual abuse in evangelicalism and the notion of growth and wealth as false evidence of a church’s righteousness. What pastor isn’t a narcissist? What were people even getting from these Ted Talk sermons? Are evangelical churches meeting or dictating consumer demand? Along the way, they also discuss the obsession with clothes and “looking expensive” in church culture and the dangerousness of “mainstreaming” churches by integrating the conceptions of celebrity, influencers, and prosperity. Is Hillsong an outlier or just a highly visible example of the everyday norm in evangelical churches today?

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In this episode, Tim and Ray talk all about science⁠—or more so⁠, all about how science often gets thrown out the window in faith-based communities. What are the origins of this ideological clash? Galileo and his heliocentrism? Darwin and his common ancestors? Are faith healers and their promises of “miraculous healing” completely full of it? Why do evangelicals give more authority to their pastors when it comes to health outcomes and natural phenomena than they do to actual doctors and science experts? Is the Bible ableist? And why do so many Christians keep it a secret (or just flat out ignore it) when they take ill? The hosts close the show discussing how these seemingly personal problems are to the detriment of all of society when played out on a macro-level (think: dominion theology and Christian nationalism), and offer some alternative ideas for reconciliation.

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He expanded the possibilities of the gospel sound. He dared to defy the borders of race and integrate Christian music audiences. He shared his platform with many of the most brilliant vocalists and musicians of our lifetime. And then he brought gospel music to the rest of the world. In this episode, Tim and Ray discuss the life and music of gospel legend Andraé Crouch. As always, they dig in deep, covering his beginnings in COGIC (and his first group, the COGICs), his top-notch rolodex of collaborators (including Billy Preston, Bill Maxwell, Danniebelle Hall, Táta Vega, Phillip Bailey, Stevie Wonder, Howard Smith, Linda McCrary, Kristle Murden, and his very own twin sister Sandra Crouch), his prolific works released through Light and, later, Warner Bros. Records, his right-wing politics, his 1982 drug arrest scandal, and his crossover era working in major Hollywood films (The Color Purple and The Lion King, anyone?) and with pop megastars like Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Madonna, and Rick Astley.

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Well, at least they didn’t hate the film as much as they thought they would. In this follow-up episode to their discussion on praise and worship music, Tim and Ray review the latest documentary on contemporary Christian music, The Jesus Music. In between giving their thoughts on what they (mostly dis)liked about the film, the hosts do their best to supplement the narrative with all of the Jesus movement and CCM history left out of the movie—from the dozens of essential Christian artists that went completely unmentioned (How do you tell this story without Randy Stonehill?) to the avoided industry and religious politics that defined the trajectory of the music over its 50+ year history. (Side note: Why were so many music acts shown as being interviewed for the film if nothing they actually said was going to make the final cut?) Opening banter includes part one of a two-part, long-overdue rant about our societal and governmental failures regarding the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Stay tuned for the second half of this conversation which will dig deeper into the life and career of gospel and CCM legend Andraé Crouch!

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Tim: @timdillinger

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Resources/References:

The Jesus Music (2021) dir. Andrew and Jon Erwin

Frisbee: The Life and Death of a Hippie Preacher (2005) dir. David Di Sabatino

Fallen Angel: The Outlaw Larry Norman (2009) dir. David Di Sabatino

Jesus People (1972) dir. David Adams

Not By Might Nor By Power: The Jesus Revolution by Lonnie Frisbee with Roger Sachs

Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music? Larry Norman and the Perils of Christian Rock by Gregory Alan Thornbury

God's Forever Family: The Jesus People Movement in America by Larry Eskridge

“Jesus, drugs and rock ’n’ roll: How an O.C. hippie church birthed Contemporary Christian music” by Randall Roberts

“Who killed the contemporary Christian music industry” by The Week

“CCM industry stays silent on LGBTQ inclusion as queer artists carve inroads” by Kathryn Post

Formulaic songwriting that reduces music composition to nursery rhyme chants! Self-deprecating, unimaginative lyrics in appeal to the most narcissistic version of God possible! Chord progressions of…well really just about 2 or 3 chords. But synth strings! Don’t forget the synth strings!! In this episode, Tim and Ray discuss the bane of their existence: praise and worship music. What is the difference between CCM, gospel, and praise & worship music, and how have these differences been rendered almost completely moot by the monopoly of the latter? How does the music reinforce Christian gatekeeping and the hierarchies that allow only the singers with a certain sound, look, and “lifestyle” to be worship leaders? And what of how the creation of a consolidated Christian “worship” experience has disproportionately redefined the identity of the Black church and eradicated the viability of traditionally Black-sounding gospel music? Tim digs into the history of the genre from the early days of the Jesus People and Maranatha! Music to Integrity’s Hosanna Music to Hillsong Worship. And Ray critiques the current leading purveyors of Black worship music, Maverick City Music, and the collective’s role in upholding white supremacy in the Christian/Gospel music industry. Opening banter includes this year’s Grammy nominations and why the awards (especially those in the Gospel field) are so bad at actually honoring the best music of the year. Disclaimer: you may hear the occasional little snore or cough from a sleeping dog on Tim’s lap in the background.

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Tim: @timdillinger

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Resources/References:

“We’ve No Less Days to Sing God’s Praise, But New Worship Songs Only Last a Few Years” by Daniel Silliman

“Meet ‘J.C.’ — The First-Ever A.I. Gospel Artist Making His Debut On Meta” by Keenan "HIGz" Higgins

“How Maverick City Music Is Breaking the Worship Music Mold,” Relevant Magazine