{"id":627,"date":"2016-01-12T00:54:24","date_gmt":"2016-01-12T00:54:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theundergroundchurch.net\/blog\/?p=627"},"modified":"2016-01-12T00:54:24","modified_gmt":"2016-01-12T00:54:24","slug":"david-bowie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/theundergroundchurch.net\/blog\/2016\/01\/12\/david-bowie\/","title":{"rendered":"David Bowie"},"content":{"rendered":"

All of us will come to a moment when we must face our own mortality. Few of us will have as spectacular a public forum in which to muse about it as the late singer David Bowie.<\/p>\n

Just 2 days before his death he released his last album, \u201cblackstar\u201d.<\/p>\n

In the video for his mournful new song \u201cLazarus,\u201d David Bowie lies in what looks like a shabby hospital bed, bandages over his eyes, straining his frail body upward.<\/p>\n

\u201cLook up here, I\u2019m in heaven,\u201d he sings over the forlorn wail of a saxophone. \u201cI\u2019ve got scars that can\u2019t be seen.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Unfortunately, while his artistry and boldness can be admired, it appears that his musings about death did not coalesce into a coherent religious experience or something anticipating a beatific vision. In the end his last words to us amount to little more than a spiritual version of word salad:<\/p>\n

The album\u2019s ominous title track, almost 10 minutes long, contains references to death and resurrection.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomething happened on the day he died \/ Spirit rose a meter and stepped aside \/ Somebody else took his place, and bravely cried \/ I\u2019m a blackstar, I\u2019m a blackstar,\u201d he sings.<\/p>\n

The video for the song \u2014 whose imagery includes a faceless monster, crucified scarecrows, a jeweled skull inside a spaceman\u2019s helmet and Bowie singing with bandages (again) over his eyes \u2014 almost defies interpretation.<\/em><\/p>\n

Well here\u2019s genuine word of wisdom from Mr. Bowie:<\/p>\n

\u201cAs you get older, the questions come down to about two or three. How long? And what do I do with the time I\u2019ve got left?\u201d<\/em>(from Thought Catalog<\/a>).<\/p>\n

RIP David Bowie. Our thoughts go out to his heartbroken family, friends, and fans.
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