Response To Bob Dylan's Slow Train Coming

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The release of Bob Dylan’s album, Slow Train Coming, in August of 1979 was the beginning of a three-year period of Christian music releases. Dylan had already branched into several different genres and styles of music, even using different vocal styles previously, but had never released anything with such an overtly religious theme. The response to this album varied some, but was mostly negative. People thought that Dylan should retain the sound they had associated him with previously. The tracks on this album seem to show a progression in Dylan’s personal faith, beginning with “Gotta Serve Somebody,” which states that no matter who a person is or what they do, they will end up serving someone whether that someone is “the devil or the Lord.” …show more content…

These stages are well represented by three specific songs: “Precious Angel,” “I Believe in You,” and “When He Returns.” “Precious Angel” is more than six minutes long and speaks of Dylan’s experience in finding his faith. The “angel” is a feminine character that could represent a significant female figure in the Bible, Dylan’s own soul or conscience, or even a woman Dylan was interested in at the time. It might have been one of the backup vocalists on this album, Carol Dennis, who was married to Dylan several years later, but is commonly thought to have been an actress named Mary Alice Artes (“Girlfriends”). The question “how weak was the foundation I was standing upon,” refers to the parable in the Bible in Matthew chapter seven about the wise and foolish builders. The wise man built his house on a foundation of solid rock and it withstood the storm. The foolish man built his house on sand, a weak foundation, and when a storm came the house crashed to the ground. Jesus compares the wise builder to people who hear his words and practice them. In some ways, it restates the theme of the …show more content…

Many people questioned his sincerity in his faith, others rejected him altogether because of the change. Jesus is speaking to his disciples in John 16:32 when he says, “You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me (Holy Bible, NIV).” Hebrews 13:5 reiterates the promise of God from the Old Testament, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” This is the root of Dylan’s assuredness that he is not actually alone. The chorus further emphasizes the strength of his belief through the bad times and the good, even when God is not physically present, and “even on the morning after” the trials of night. The second verse displays a desire to stay close to God and not stray from faith and contentment with what is provided. It is almost like Dylan writes “no matter what they say” as an encouragement or reminder to himself to stay strong in what he believes. The second chorus makes the same points as the first but rewords them. The last verse is a last request to God to help Dylan remain devoted and “set apart.” Being set apart is a common theme throughout the Bible in both the Old and New Testaments. The Israelites were God’s chosen people, set apart from all other nations. Similarly, Christians are supposed to be set apart in the way they live, like in Matthew 5:14, “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be

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