As a child he searched to find definition for three words that were, for him, skewed: man, black, and confident. Interested in the arts it was his rapping ability that got him noticed and accepted by others. It is this very passion for the current culture and its issues of significance that fuels the fire behind Faith-based Spoken Word.īorn in 1979, the son of a Black Panther heavily involved in the Civil Rights movement and the only black kid growing up in an impoverished “Mexican neighborhood” known for its violence, Propaganda found an outlet for his creativity in graffiti.

It is noted that they “hold both conservative and liberal views simultaneously” (Chamberlain 330) and are less concerned with ideas about being “left or right.” This group of evangelicals has “picked up their bibles and read them” which has put them at “odds with the evangelical establishment” (337). While the younger generation of Evangelical Christians adhere to the tenets of Christian faith, they are less driven by the man-imposed doctrines of the church. Many of their sermons, in fact, have many of the same attributes found in Spoken Word today. These messages, which attempt to address change in the church are mirrored in sermons from forerunners like Martin Luther King and SM Lockridge. Poets like Propaganda and Jefferson Bethke use Spoken Word as a platform to confront the ills they see in the church and provoke a conversation that many church-going people might like to avoid. The message is still “prepare ye the way of the Lord” ( NAS Bible, Mark 1:3), yet it also reflects a prepare-me-to-school-you-in-my-belief-system as well. Faith-based or “Christian” Spoken Word seeks to give a voice to a generation of followers of “The Way” ( NAS Bible, John 14:6), who are reluctant to continue in the patterns of their predecessors they embrace change, question traditional ideals and values, and reflect a culture that is tired of religious status quo-they are the voices of those “crying out in the wilderness” (John 1:23). To challenge long-held doctrinal beliefs and initiateįaith-based spoken word poetry challenges tra ditional doctrinal beliefs yet reflects a discourse relevant to the current generation in that it does not conform to an old mindset, but represents an authentic shift in a belief system which merges intellect and faith.

Word poetry, is a contemporary art form whichĬonfronts ideas and issues in Christendom in order A 'Godless' Generation - Jon Jorgenson Spoken Word-0Ĭhristian Performance Poetry, like all Spoken

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