In 2006, singer/songwriter Duncan Sheik, who was made famous by his 90’s alt-pop song, “Barely Breathing,” brought his concept album, “Spring Awakening,” to life on Broadway. At the time, it starred a young cast and a who’s-who of what would become some of the most successful stars in musical theatre, including Lea Michele (Glee), Jonathan Groff (Frozen, Hamilton), and John Gallagher Jr (American Idiot).
The show, set in a strict, religious private high-school in late 19th century Germany, explores a number of adult topics that would have been deemed controversial at the time and many that still are in certain spheres today, including puberty, sex, homosexuality, abortion, and suicide. The show begins with Wendla lamenting the fact that her parents never taught her how to handle her introduction to more mature experiences, singing, “Mama who bore me. Mama who gave me no way to handle things, who made me so sad. Mama, the weeping. Mama, the angels. No sleep in Heaven, or Bethlehem. Some pray that, one day, Christ will come a-callin’. They light a candle, and hope that it glows, and some just lie there, crying for him to come and find them, but when he comes, they don’t know how…” By the end of the show, after several of the characters have gone through some life-changing situations, there is a bit of a reckoning, as the cast sings, “I believe, I believe, I believe, all will be forgiven…I believe, I believe, I believe, there is love in heaven.”
In the church (and really, in real life), we have a phrase of people who act, “holier-than-thou,” who are quick to point the fingers at others for actions they deem unethical and immoral. Often, it’s only because this sentiment gives these overly judgmental individuals a false sense of pride, especially when they create compartments in their own minds of what is right and wrong, and then always, somehow, place themselves in the “right” box. Another word for this is hypocrisy. Jesus warned strictly against this way of thinking, especially from a religious context, imploring his followers, “You deceive yourself! First take the log out of your eye, and then you’ll see clearly to take the splinter out of your brother’s or sister’s eye.” (Matthew 7:5). Instead, forgiveness, grace, and understanding seem to be Christ’s consistent message, as Paul reminds us in Ephesians 1:7, “We have been ransomed through his Son’s blood, and we have forgiveness for our failures based on his overflowing grace.”
Dear God, remove our arrogance, hubris, and selfish pride, and instead, fill us with an attitude of forgiveness that extends grace to others as we demonstrate the inclusive love of Christ for a hurting, confused, and broken world. Amen.
the harlequin complex 