"At the center of the earth is the parking lot . . ."

WARNING: "THIS IS A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT, THIS IS ONLY A TEST" SERIOUSLY- THIS IS WILL NOT APPEAL TO ALL MY USUAL READERS AND IS NOT FOR EVERYBODY. IT ALSO CONTAINS SOME EXPLICT LANGUAGE

This song, in five parts, appeals to the desire about which I preached yesterday and how this gets frustrated and truncated in society, especially in broken families and other societal ills and family dysfunctions brought on in very large part by a situation in which, instead of being people, we become consumers, who, in turn, serve the so-called economy. This is backward. The economy, as such, should exist for the person. Green Day's music speaks to me on so many levels and over quite a few years now. That about which we might disagree becomes, at least to my mind, very secondary bordering on inconsequential given what we would be in solidarity about. So, while they may have mainstreamed punk, thus paving the way for groups like Rancid and The Offspring, they have watered nothing down, as the album on which Jesus of Suburbia appears, American Idiot, demonstrates, nor lost their senses of irony and humor. After all, "I don't care if you don't care" is a double negative. Hence, I care, but don't care if you don't.

This song appeals to me at the gut-level. It overflows with desire and passion. It also speaks to the need to be authentic and real, not silly and sentimental in this "land of make believe that don't believe in me". Needless to say, the Jesus of Suburbia is not the real Jesus, but an idol of our own making and one that is unique to the U.S. and who is something of an anti-Christ. A good pick for a day of penance and abstinence, Jesus of Suburbia constiutes part two of our Friday Καθολικός διάκονος lectio.