The Life and Times of Bruce Gerencser

Series: Songs of Sacrilege

  • Songs of Sacrilege: You Shall by Frank Stokes

    This is the sixty-first installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

    Today’s Song of Sacrilege is You Shall by Frank Stokes.

     Video Link

    Lyrics

    Oh well it’s our Father who art in heaven
    The preacher owed me ten dollars, he paid me seven
    Thy kingdom come, thy will be done
    If I hadn’t took the seven Lord, I wouldn’t have got none

    Had to fight about it
    What he owed me
    My money, you shall

    Oh well some folks said that a preacher wouldn’t steal
    I caught about eleven in the watermelon field
    Just a-cuttin’ and a-slicin’ got to tearing up the vine
    They’s eatin’ and talkin’ most all the time

    They was hungry
    Leave the rind, brother, you shall
    Save my vines
    Don’ rob me, you shall
    My melons, you shall

    Oh well you see that preacher layin’ behind the log
    A hand on the trigger got his eye on the hog
    The hog said mmm, the gun said biff
    Jumped on the hog with all his grip

    He had pork chops, you shall
    Had backbone
    Had spare ribs, you shall
    Now and the good Lord set me free

    Now when I first moved to Memphis, Tennessee
    I was crazy about the preachers as I could be
    I went out on my front porch a-walking about
    Invite the preacher over to my house
    He washed his face, he combed his head
    Next thing he want to do was slip in my bed
    I caught him by the head, man kicked him out the door
    Don’t allow my preacher at my house no more

    I don’t like ‘em
    They will rob you
    Steal your daughter
    Take your wife from you, you shall
    Eat your chicken
    Spend your money, you shall
    They will rob you
    Plantation, you shall

    Pray mourner, in the morning, you shall
    Feel the spirit
    Help me tell it, you shall
    Now and the good Lord set me free

  • Songs of Sacrilege: The Preacher and the Slave (Pie in the Sky) by Pete Seeger

    This is the sixty-second installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

    Today’s Song of Sacrilege is The Preacher and the Slave (Pie in the Sky), written by Joe Hill and sung by Pete Seeger.

     Video Link

    Lyrics

    Long-haired preachers come out every night
    Try to tell you what’s wrong and what’s right
    But when asked about something to eat
    They will answer in voices so sweet

    Chorus:
    You will eat, bye and bye
    In that glorious land above the sky
    Work and pray, live on hay
    You’ll get pie in the sky when you die (that’s a lie)

    And the starvation army they play
    And they sing and they clap and they pray
    Till they get all your coin on the drum
    Then they tell you when you’re on the bum

    Holy rollers and jumpers come out
    They holler, they jump, and they shout
    Give your money to Jesus they say
    He will cure all diseases today

    If you fight hard for children and wife
    Try to get something good in this life
    You’re a sinner and bad man, they tell
    When you die you will sure go to hell

    Workingmen (folk) of all countries unite
    Side by side we for freedom will fight
    When the world and its wealth we have gained
    To the grafters we’ll sing this refrain

    Last Chorus:
    You will eat, bye and bye
    When you’ve learned how to cook and to fry
    Chop some wood, twill do you good
    And you’ll eat in the sweet bye and bye (that’s no lie)

  • Songs of Sacrilege: Open Letter by The Amity Affliction

    This is the sixty-third installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

    Today’s Song of Sacrilege is Open Letter by The Amity Affliction.

     Video Link

    Lyrics

    This is my open letter,
    this is something to remember,
    I won’t be buried before my time,
    I’m not searching for forever.
    I’ve got my eyes opened wide.

    I’ve been searching under rubble from the past,
    just looking for a reason to make your life last,
    No need to look skyward for you to find hope,
    no need for redemption to be saved from the rope,
    fuck no.

    I’m not searching the sky for a reason
    to live ’cause I found beauty right here
    and found the passion to give,
    so let me give you my heart,
    let me give you my tears,
    let me give you my life,
    let me give you my fears.

    Just so you can hold on and sing while I do,
    sing these words out so loud,
    like I sing them for you.

    This is your open letter,
    something to remember,
    we can still keep on fighting
    even though life is not forever.

    This is my open letter,
    this is something to remember,
    this is my open letter,
    I’m not searching for forever.

  • Songs of Sacrilege: Stardust by Monster on Sunday

    This is the sixty-fourth installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

    Today’s Song of Sacrilege is Stardust by Monster on Sunday.

     Video Link

    Lyrics

    Gaze at the night sky
    See the blanket of stars
    Expanding through space and time
    Suddenly you can’t breathe
    And you wonder why you’re alive
    And who you were created by
    The answer stares back at you
    Though you don’t realize

    We are all stardust
    We are all stardust
    Science has shown us
    We are all stardust

    Mysterious and beautiful
    Violent and cruel
    It’s amazing how the universe
    Is so much like you
    When it’s time for stars to die
    They explode across the sky
    And you would not exist
    If it was not for this

    We are all stardust
    We are all stardust
    Truth is within us
    We are all stardust

    The stars died for you

  • Songs of Sacrilege: Let the Mystery Be by Iris Dement

    This is the sixty-fifth installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

    Today’s Song of Sacrilege is Let the Mystery Be by Iris Dement.

     Video Link

    Lyrics

    Everybody’s wonderin’ what and where
    They all came from
    Everybody’s worryin’ ’bout where they’re gonna go
    When the whole thing’s done
    But no one knows for certain and so it’s all the same to me
    I think I’ll just let the mystery be

    Some say once gone you’re gone forever
    And some say you’re gonna come back
    Some say you rest in the arms of the Savior
    If in sinful ways you lack
    Some say that they’re comin’ back in a garden
    Bunch of carrots and little sweet peas
    I think I’ll just let the mystery be

    Everybody’s wonderin’ what and where
    They all came from
    Everybody’s worryin’ ’bout where they’re gonna go
    When the whole thing’s done
    But no one knows for certain and so it’s all the same to me
    I think I’ll just let the mystery be

    Some say they’re goin’ to a place called Glory
    And I ain’t saying it ain’t a fact
    But I’ve heard that I’m on the road to Purgatory
    And I don’t like the sound of that
    I believe in love and I live my life accordingly
    But I choose to let the mystery be

    Everybody is wondering what and where
    They all came from
    Everybody is worryin’ ’bout where they’re gonna go
    When the whole thing’s done
    But no one knows for certain and so it’s all the same to me
    I think I’ll just let the mystery be
    I think I’ll just let the mystery be

  • Songs of Sacrilege: God May Forgive You (But I Won’t) by Iris Dement

    This is the sixty-sixth installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

    Today’s Song of Sacrilege is God May Forgive You (But I Won’t) by Iris Dement.

     Video Link

    Lyrics

    You say that you’re born again
    cleansed of your former sins
    You want me to say “I forgive and forget”
    But you’ve done too much to me
    Don’t you be touching me,
    go back and touch all those women you’ve made

    Chorus:
    ’cause God may forgive you, but I won’t
    Yes, Jesus loves you, but I don’t
    They don’t have to live with you and neither do I
    You say that you’re born again, well so am I
    God may forgive you, but I won’t
    and I won’t even try

    Well, the kids had to cry for you
    I had to try to do
    things that the Dad should do
    since you’ve been gone
    Well, you really let us down
    You may be Heaven ‘bound
    but you’ve left one hell of a mess here at home

    (chorus)

    and I won’t even try

  • Songs of Sacrilege: Take Me to Church by Hozier

    hozier

    This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

    Today’s Song of Sacrilege is Take Me to Church by Hozier.

     Video Link

    Lyrics

    My lover’s got humor
    She’s the giggle at a funeral
    Knows everybody’s disapproval
    I should have worshiped her sooner

    If the heavens ever did speak
    She’s the last true mouthpiece
    Every Sunday’s getting more bleak
    A fresh poison each week

    ‘We were born sick,’ you heard them say it

    My Church offers no absolutes.
    She tells me, ‘Worship in the bedroom.’
    The only heaven I’ll be sent to
    Is when I’m alone with you

    I was born sick,
    But I love it
    Command me to be well
    Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

    Take me to church
    I’ll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
    I’ll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
    Offer me that deathless death
    Good God, let me give you my life

    Take me to church
    I’ll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
    I’ll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
    Offer me that deathless death
    Good God, let me give you my life

    If I’m a pagan of the good times
    My lover’s the sunlight
    To keep the Goddess on my side
    She demands a sacrifice

    Drain the whole sea
    Get something shiny
    Something meaty for the main course
    That’s a fine looking high horse
    What you got in the stable?
    We’ve a lot of starving faithful

    That looks tasty
    That looks plenty
    This is hungry work

    Take me to church
    I’ll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
    I’ll tell you my sins so you can sharpen your knife
    Offer me my deathless death
    Good God, let me give you my life

    Take me to church
    I’ll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
    I’ll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
    Offer me that deathless death
    Good God, let me give you my life

    No Masters or Kings
    When the Ritual begins
    There is no sweeter innocence than our gentle sin

    In the madness and soil of that sad earthly scene
    Only then I am Human
    Only then I am Clean
    Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

    Take me to church
    I’ll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
    I’ll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
    Offer me that deathless death
    Good God, let me give you my life

    Take me to church
    I’ll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
    I’ll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
    Offer me that deathless death
    Good God, let me give you my life

    Hozier explains what the song is about:

    ‘Take Me to Church’ is essentially about sex, but it’s a tongue-in-cheek attack at organizations that would… undermine humanity by successfully teaching shame about sexual orientation — that it is sinful, or that it offends God… But it’s not an attack on faith… it’s an assertion of self, reclaiming humanity back for something that is the most natural and worthwhile.

    Bruce Gerencser, 69, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 48 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.

    Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.

    You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

  • Songs of Sacrilege: My Church by Maren Morris

    This is the sixty-eighth installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

    Today’s Song of Sacrilege is My Church by Maren Morris.

    Video Link

    Lyrics

    I’ve cursed on a Sunday
    I’ve cheated and I’ve lied
    I’ve fallen down from grace
    A few too many times
    But I find holy redemption
    When I put this car in drive
    Roll the windows down and turn up the dial

    [Chorus]
    Can I get a hallelujah
    Can I get an amen
    Feels like the Holy Ghost running through ya
    When I play the highway FM
    I find my soul revival
    Singing every single verse
    Yeah I guess that’s my church

    When Hank reads the sermon
    And Cash leads the choir
    It gets my cold cold heart burning
    Hotter than a ring of fire
    When this wonderful world gets heavy
    And I need to find my escape
    I just keep the wheels rolling, radio scrolling
    Until my sins wash away

    [Chorus]

    [Chorus]

    [Chorus]

    Can I get a hallelujah
    Can I get an amen
    Feels like the Holy Ghost running through ya
    When I play the highway FM
    I find my soul revival
    Singing every single verse
    Yeah I guess that’s my church
    Yeah I guess that’s my church
    Yeah I guess that’s my church

  • Songs of Sacrilege: Turtles All the Way Down by Sturgill Simpson

    This is the sixty-ninth installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

    Today’s Song of Sacrilege is Turtles All the Way Down by Sturgill Simpson.

    Video Link

    Lyrics

    I’ve seen Jesus play with flames
    In a lake of fire that I was standing in
    Met the devil in Seattle
    And spent 9 months inside the lions den
    Met Buddha yet another time
    And he showed me a glowing light within
    But I swear that God is there
    Every time I glare in the eyes of my best friend

    Says my son, “It’s all been done
    And someday you’re gonna wake up old and gray
    So go and try to have some fun
    Showing warmth to everyone
    You meet and greet and cheat along the way”

    There’s a gateway in our minds
    That leads somewhere out there, far beyond this plane
    Where reptile aliens made of light
    Cut you open and pull out all your pain
    Tell me how you make illegal
    Something that we all make in our brain
    Some say you might go crazy
    But then again it might make you go sane

    Every time I take a look
    Inside that old and fabled book
    I’m blinded and reminded of
    The pain caused by some old man in the sky
    Marijuana, LSD
    Psilocybin, and DMT
    They all changed the way I see
    But love’s the only thing that ever saved my life

    So don’t waste your mind on nursery rhymes
    Or fairy tales of blood and wine
    It’s turtles all the way down the line
    So to each their own ’til we go home
    To other realms our souls must roam
    To and through the myth that we all call space and time

    Note

    Wikipedia defines the phrase “turtles all the way down” this way:

    “Turtles all the way down” is a jocular expression of the infinite regress problem in cosmology posed by the “unmoved mover” paradox. The metaphor in the anecdote represents a popular notion of the theory that Earth is actually flat and is supported on the back of a World Turtle, which itself is propped up by a chain of larger and larger turtles. Questioning what the final turtle might be standing on, the anecdote humorously concludes that it is “turtles all the way down”.

  • Songs of Sacrilege: The Agnostic Gospel Song by Andy Corwin

    This is the seventieth installment in the Songs of Sacrilege series. This is a series that I would like readers to help me with. If you know of a song that is irreverent towards religion, makes fun of religion, pokes fun at sincerely held religious beliefs, or challenges the firmly held religious beliefs of others, please send me an email.

    Today’s Song of Sacrilege is The Agnostic Gospel Song by Andy Corwin.

    Video Link