America’s Gospel by Common Hymnal Lyrics
There is no resurrection until you walk by the pain of Calvary
And catch a glimpse, in the sunlight, of the lynching tree
Crosses and lynching, lynching and crosses
Crosses lynching, lynching crosses
Threads of the same torture
Shaped by empires
And loved with eagles and arrows
Myths of superiority
And fearful of bodies kissed by nature’s sun.
This is where the blues
And form and take cords from plantations
And recast them by men named Thomas,
Sisters named Mahalia, who holler “Precious Lord.”
But America takes thе hand
Choosing to pick strange fruit swinging from southern trees
What is this Gospel you profеss
That diminishes democratic breath?
Say it again
“Prosperity
Cause
Name it and claim it
Your season is coming
Throw your gift on the altar
Destiny has me”
This is not the gospel
But capitalism masquerading in ecclesiastical garments
Forcing people to bow down
To the golden calf of predatory self interest
What is this Gospel
That worships west weapons
Ignores pain
Celebrates exclusion
Pats Mr Patriarchy on the shoulder
And tramples upon the dreams of children yet to be freed
Oh I see, say can you see, by the dawns early light
The Gospel that wears blue, but does not know the blues
A Gospel of knees pressing on throats, arms crushing windpipes
And shots fired in Breonna’s bedroom
Reverend George Floyd preached against this heresy 22 times
With his only sermon:
“I Can’t Breathe”
Taken from the book of Black Lives Chapter 16:19
It is where the black church
The only black church with a call but no response
Where Emmett, Michael and Trayvon lead the praise and sorrow team
With little Tamir giving one part harmony from the children’s choir
What gospel is this, God has never ordained?
Of racial myths, dreams of superiority
Where a melanated savior is de-colorized in order to colonize
A church with no compassion
A ministry with no fire
Preaching with no justice
A choir with no power
And people with no direction?
America’s Gospel
Is not preached by a dark skinned Palestinian Jew
Or taught by black prophets named Moses nor Mary
America’s Gospel
Fears the rebel alliance of love, justice, power and possibility
America’s Gospel
Cannot face the blues
Nor stare at Calvary
America does not know the gospel
Nor ever preached it
This Gospel, I speak of
“The Gospel”
Of the one I talk about
This gospel of true power
The real Gospel that allows Harriet to run
Gave Sojourner her truth
The Gospel that allowed Frederick to speak
And Nat to fight
The Gospel that made Ida well
And Martin a King
This Gospel
Made from the cords of the blues
And sorrows of blues people
This gospel
Has power to break chains
And set the oppressed free
This gospel
Does not see different as deficient
Culture as a problem
Gender as weakness
Brokenness as permanent
Creation as a personal ownership
This gospel
This blue note gospel
Will face tragedy and will not fall into despair
This gospel
This good news
Still believes in dreams unfulfilled
Strength to be revealed
Hopes to be born
This gospel
This gospel I walk by
The one
Is walked and taught by one
A colonized brother
Who taught by a sea in Galilee
Shared a message long
Long before I was born
A gospel that is not American
But America must come to face.
A gospel America has never preached
But must one day face.
And catch a glimpse, in the sunlight, of the lynching tree
Crosses and lynching, lynching and crosses
Crosses lynching, lynching crosses
Threads of the same torture
Shaped by empires
And loved with eagles and arrows
Myths of superiority
And fearful of bodies kissed by nature’s sun.
This is where the blues
And form and take cords from plantations
And recast them by men named Thomas,
Sisters named Mahalia, who holler “Precious Lord.”
But America takes thе hand
Choosing to pick strange fruit swinging from southern trees
What is this Gospel you profеss
That diminishes democratic breath?
Say it again
“Prosperity
Cause
Name it and claim it
Your season is coming
Throw your gift on the altar
Destiny has me”
This is not the gospel
But capitalism masquerading in ecclesiastical garments
Forcing people to bow down
To the golden calf of predatory self interest
What is this Gospel
That worships west weapons
Ignores pain
Celebrates exclusion
Pats Mr Patriarchy on the shoulder
And tramples upon the dreams of children yet to be freed
Oh I see, say can you see, by the dawns early light
The Gospel that wears blue, but does not know the blues
A Gospel of knees pressing on throats, arms crushing windpipes
And shots fired in Breonna’s bedroom
Reverend George Floyd preached against this heresy 22 times
With his only sermon:
“I Can’t Breathe”
Taken from the book of Black Lives Chapter 16:19
It is where the black church
The only black church with a call but no response
Where Emmett, Michael and Trayvon lead the praise and sorrow team
With little Tamir giving one part harmony from the children’s choir
What gospel is this, God has never ordained?
Of racial myths, dreams of superiority
Where a melanated savior is de-colorized in order to colonize
A church with no compassion
A ministry with no fire
Preaching with no justice
A choir with no power
And people with no direction?
America’s Gospel
Is not preached by a dark skinned Palestinian Jew
Or taught by black prophets named Moses nor Mary
America’s Gospel
Fears the rebel alliance of love, justice, power and possibility
America’s Gospel
Cannot face the blues
Nor stare at Calvary
America does not know the gospel
Nor ever preached it
This Gospel, I speak of
“The Gospel”
Of the one I talk about
This gospel of true power
The real Gospel that allows Harriet to run
Gave Sojourner her truth
The Gospel that allowed Frederick to speak
And Nat to fight
The Gospel that made Ida well
And Martin a King
This Gospel
Made from the cords of the blues
And sorrows of blues people
This gospel
Has power to break chains
And set the oppressed free
This gospel
Does not see different as deficient
Culture as a problem
Gender as weakness
Brokenness as permanent
Creation as a personal ownership
This gospel
This blue note gospel
Will face tragedy and will not fall into despair
This gospel
This good news
Still believes in dreams unfulfilled
Strength to be revealed
Hopes to be born
This gospel
This gospel I walk by
The one
Is walked and taught by one
A colonized brother
Who taught by a sea in Galilee
Shared a message long
Long before I was born
A gospel that is not American
But America must come to face.
A gospel America has never preached
But must one day face.