In spite of growing up in desolated Compton, ca, Kendrick Lamar in his music is able to present h... more In spite of growing up in desolated Compton, ca, Kendrick Lamar in his music is able to present his listeners with hope through the themes of forgiveness of sins, death, and resurrection, as found in the God of Christian faith. Similarly, Christian theologian Paul Tillich capstones The Courage to Be within the same theological concepts. This article explores three pathways to the intersection of Kendrick's musical output and Tillich's existential theology, to uncover the theological underpinnings of Kendrick's search for meaning within the brutalized inner city. (1) Self-affirmation is found when one participates with something that transcends the self, namely God. (2) One must be accepted by God through forgiveness and one must accept God's acceptance. (3) Eternal security is found in having to face one's own death and Christian resurrection.
In Danielle S. Macon’s “To Pimp a Caterpillar: Hip Hop as Vehicle to Spiritual Liberation through... more In Danielle S. Macon’s “To Pimp a Caterpillar: Hip Hop as Vehicle to Spiritual Liberation through the Decolonization of European Ideology” about Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly, she identifies Kendrick’s three-step process of liberation for African-Americans through spirituality: exhibition, revelation, and community orientation. I seek to place her analysis of Kendrick’s music within the context of Daniel White Hodge’s exploration of the neo-sacred secular in Hip Hop, a theological concept containing three elements: a belief that God is in all things, viewing life as having good and bad elements, and a rejection of religionism as the only way to God. Firstly, I will explore how Kendrick takes on himself the tropes of Hip Hop and African-American Street life, not to promote their virtues but to subvert them. Secondly, framing Kendrick’s presentation of an alternative identity built on his reframing of two Christian theological concepts: imago dei and identity as found in person...
In spite of growing up in desolated Compton, ca, Kendrick Lamar in his music is able to present h... more In spite of growing up in desolated Compton, ca, Kendrick Lamar in his music is able to present his listeners with hope through the themes of forgiveness of sins, death, and resurrection, as found in the God of Christian faith. Similarly, Christian theologian Paul Tillich capstones The Courage to Be within the same theological concepts. This article explores three pathways to the intersection of Kendrick's musical output and Tillich's existential theology, to uncover the theological underpinnings of Kendrick's search for meaning within the brutalized inner city. (1) Self-affirmation is found when one participates with something that transcends the self, namely God. (2) One must be accepted by God through forgiveness and one must accept God's acceptance. (3) Eternal security is found in having to face one's own death and Christian resurrection.
In Danielle S. Macon’s “To Pimp a Caterpillar: Hip Hop as Vehicle to Spiritual Liberation through... more In Danielle S. Macon’s “To Pimp a Caterpillar: Hip Hop as Vehicle to Spiritual Liberation through the Decolonization of European Ideology” about Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly, she identifies Kendrick’s three-step process of liberation for African-Americans through spirituality: exhibition, revelation, and community orientation. I seek to place her analysis of Kendrick’s music within the context of Daniel White Hodge’s exploration of the neo-sacred secular in Hip Hop, a theological concept containing three elements: a belief that God is in all things, viewing life as having good and bad elements, and a rejection of religionism as the only way to God. Firstly, I will explore how Kendrick takes on himself the tropes of Hip Hop and African-American Street life, not to promote their virtues but to subvert them. Secondly, framing Kendrick’s presentation of an alternative identity built on his reframing of two Christian theological concepts: imago dei and identity as found in person...
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Papers by Matthew Linder