'? "God save the most judgmental creeps / Who say they want what's best for me / Sanctimoniously performing soliloquies I'll never see / Thinkin' it can change the beat / Of my heart when he touches me / And counteract the chemistry / And undo the destiny / You ain't gotta pray for me / Me and my wild boy and all of this wild joy / If all you want is gray for me / Then it's just white noise, and it's just my choice"' - Shane Pruitt
We see here the direct tie into what I am saying. It is interesting that she pleads for God to actually save those that are so judgmental, as if they were going to change how she feels about Kelce. As if their opinions will change the chemistry they have or the destiny they may have. As if what they say matters more than what she feels in her life. The reference to not praying for her is a direct response to some who said they were praying for her to break up with Mr. Kelce. Are you sensing the point Shane? She is just not that into you. This has very little to do with being anti-Christian and everything to do with telling off the critics of her love life. The wild boy is Kelce, known for being very outgoing and a partier.
'? "What if I roll the stone away? / They're gonna crucify me anyway / What if the way you hold me is actually what's holy?"' - Shane Pruitt
Swift is known for multiple layers to her lyrical content. I find it interesting that she chooses to use biblical imagery but I am relatively sure to her it is just imagery, probably from her upbringing in church. Given the context of the lyrics however, rolling the stone away is obviously ending her relationship with Kelce. She is basically saying here that even if she gave in to these critics, they would more than likely still be critical, or "crucify her." Not the language believers would use but as Pruitt is fond of pointing out here, unbelievers going to act like unbelievers. The reference to the way you hold me is essentially just saying that shouldn't "love" be what is righteous and not this judgmentalism. Certainly not biblical but not anti-Christian as Pruitt accuses here. Let us not lose sight of the fact that we should be expecting biblical accuracy from Taylor Swift as I do not think that was her goal in writing her songs.
'? "The smallest man who ever lived / I would've died for your sins"' - Shane Pruitt
Dear Lord. Shane Pruitt cannot be this obtuse. I invite you to google the full lyrics for this song, "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived." This is one of the things I absolutely loathe about Christians who try to analyze secular music. To take these 12 words out of the context of the whole song to give the illusion that it is anti-Christian is intellectually criminal. CLEARLY, this song is about another ex-boyfriend of Ms. Swift, who is renowned for writing such songs. She is referring to that ex as the smallest man whoever lived throughout the lyrics. The reference to dying for his sins is just Swift saying that she would have excused his lousy behavior but instead she ended up "dying inside." Now, if you want to be critical of her using the term that is fine but we do not get to pretend that she did so as some kind of stance against Christians. It was a stance against the ex, period. In ironic fashion, Pruit concludes the tweet:
"In transparency I used to listen to Taylor, HOWEVER I think now it's time to reconsider. As Christians, who are filled with the Spirit should we be entertained by, sing with, and expose our kids to lyrics that aren't just different than what you believe, but are actually mocking what you believe?" - Shane Pruitt
Really. First of all, if you are a hypocritical person, posing as a Christian, then maybe some of what Swift does is mocking. In a recent documentary she was quoted as saying that though she was raised Christian, she does not see Christ in the political mess that poses as Christianity today. Guess what? She is right. It is sad when Taylor Swift is more discerning about the NAR than the average churchgoer. The ironic part though is the pearl clutching by Pruitt over exposing our kids to lyrics different than what we believe. So, let's try these on for size:
