So many great songs, so many great childhood memories for me.From someone who has touched so many hearts and made us all smile, Im very sad to hear this news. May he rest in peace.

-- Kiwi (csisherwood@hotmail.com), September 12, 2003

Answers

The lyrics of his most recent seem to me to express the innate knowledge of impending Novissima.

Something to ponder.

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

What do you mean Emerald? Novissima = newness???? explain to the plebs!

-- Kiwi (csisherwood@hotmail.com), September 13, 2003.

Change, Entropy,

rod..

..

..

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

Novissima also refers to the four last things: death, judgement, heaven and hell. I could be imagining things, but it looks like the words of this song are expressing more things than the author intend. From looking around, it seems he wasn't the author of this song and these words but picked up the song at some point and redid it himself. The Nine Inch Nails were the orginals writers of the song from what I looked at last night; I remember one song and video of theirs from a while back that clearly depicted demonic possession and straight, uncut evil.

I know next to nothing about Johnny Cash or the Nine Inch Nails, and the first time I heard that song was yesterday on the radio while working. But I listened to the words and found them to be eerie, so I wrote the name of the song down to look up later, and I did.

People know more than they admit to; that's my theory, that's all. I'm just speculating.

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

Hi Emerald and Kiwi.

Why do I get this feeling that you all's writings dabble in Gnosticism? Am I getting some wrong vibes or what?

All men know more than they actualize.

rod..

..

.

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

Thanks Rod

Emerald Damn I wanted to tell you that,I might be a rubbish apologist but you know Im first and formost Im a world class music geek! ANyway about that song scroll down for a nice article on how Cash brings greater meaning to Renzors already devastingly powerful lyrics in his cover version video; he takes the selfishness and self focus of Renzors drug use away and shows us the Christain understanding of pain, suffering, and the hope of salvation. Awesome, rarely has a man sounded so much like hes been there and survived than Johhny Cash, with that voice. For a youth and beauty selfish world the message of mortality aging and sacrifice he brings to MTV is inspiriational. Oh and the songs cool too!

"You could have it all/ My empire of dirt/ I will let you down/ I will make you hurt.”

"The face of Jesus appears; first, in a portrait and later in footage taken from Gospel Road, a movie on the life of Christ that Cash produced with his own finances in the 1970s. The graphic crucifixion scene is interspliced with concert footage and cheering prison crowds in order to poignantly emphasize that all of humanity carries the responsibility of Christ’s crucifixion."

read more here

http://www.goodnewsmag.org/magazine/3MayJune/mj03straight.htm

.

-- Kiwi (csisherwood@hotmail.com), September 13, 2003.

Hi Rod just read your latest post, I dont know, maybe I am a new ager!

Ive always found even the grandest Cathedrals of Europe pretty dull and boring in comparison to the beauty of the natural landscape of my own country. Then again I aslo find my favourite non Christian music to be more spiritual, and beautiful than even the most beautiful of Church hymns. Maybe I just lack a soul!

-- Kiwi (csisherwood@hotmail.com), September 13, 2003.

Ah! we share the same "eclectic" way of understanding things. I don't think that a little gnosticism is bad in order to understand ourselves and our relationship with God. And, I do see God in many things. Especially, music has a way of bringing inspiration to the mind and soul, even if it is secular music. I'm a musician; what can I say?

rod..

..

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

Johnny Cash had a heart for God, and a heart for humanity, much like other musicians express, Dylan for example. God mercifully has it sorted out. As for Reznik, pray for him.

-- Theresa (Rodntee4Jesus@aol.com), September 13, 2003.

oops, I mean Reznor, Trent, that is

-- Theresa (rodntee4Jesus@aol.com), September 13, 2003.

you know, for all my posts where i try to sound really deep and knowledgable, im going to ask a really dumb question and hope for two things... first, no one laughs at me too much. second, it doesnt forever jeopardize my credibility.

what in the world is GNOSTICISM??? i have never heard of this term before recently here.

finally, i will miss johny cash. what a great loss to folk music

-- paul (dontSendMeMail@notAnAddress.com), September 13, 2003.

In brief, gnosticism was a philosophy during the time of Christ. I call it a philosophy because it generally was a conscience-ness rather than a theology. Gnosticism was a belief in the resurrection of the person's self-realization. The belief dealt with eternal life--not in Christ--but, eternal life in a spiritual sense. When the believer was resurrected, he was brought into a new way of life, morality, and thought withing ones own existence. Gnostics believed that Christ did not surfer on the cross, because the flesh was insignificant. Christ exists in the spirit; therefore, He did not feel the suffering of the flesh--we, of course, do not believe what the Gnostics did/do. Gnostics also believed that we humans are alien to this world. This is sort of hinted in Scriptures, "...we are not of this world...".

The problem with Gnosticism was that it was heretical. Also, Gnostics were concerned with social problems. They wanted to join all theology into one universal theology--Gnosticism.

My comments about a "little gnosticism" was meant in the context of knowing ourselves better and how we are part of the body of God. This would require us to think beyond our flesh and see our existence in the spiritual sense.

r

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

oops!

Christ did not "surfer" on the cross. That should have been "...suffer on the cross".

rod..

..

.

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

Am I getting some wrong vibes or what?

Yep. "All men know more than they actualize." I believe something similiar to that's true, but that doesn't make it Gnosticism; I think that it is simply a readily observable reality if you look hard enough. You can see it in art, where it seems like the product contains more truth sometimes than the artist intended, or at least, speaks more of the truth.

What I said above was a twist on that idea: "People know more than they admit to." That's true of anyone who is deceiving themselves, as in rationalizing away the truth for the sake of justifying a sin, etc. They know the truth but lie to themselves.

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

Yes, that is very true what you've observed. Most people truly know the difference between what is right and wrong. Some have a tremendous struggle to do what is right.

If an artist produces a "truth" that he did not see at first, it is only because he did not perceive it until he produced it on canvas (or any other media). Yet, that truth was in him until it was time for it to free itself. We have the truth; we must accept it and not "deny" it (as you've mentioned). This is perhaps not a pure form of Gnosticism, but a little?

rod..

.

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

I don't know enough about Gnosticism myself to say, but the above ideas about art and knowledge don't appear in any way to contradict the Faith at all. Remember, in every heresy there's an element of the truth, and what makes it an error or heresy is the admixture of some falsity, or drawing something out to a false conclusion.

Maybe Gnosticism takes some truth and twists it into a falsity somehow; I don't know.

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

The scriptural idea of the law is written on the heart is sort of what I was getting at.

In the link above of Cash's lyrics really caught my attention:

I wear this crown of thorns upon my liar's chair

But in all honesty, the thing as a whole seemed to say one thing to me at least.

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

What kind of musician are you rod? What do you play instrument-wise and what type of music? Just curious.

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

Yes, Johnny Cash touched his world and in so doing he touched our world with his music, his artistry, and his thoughts. His music will last for a long time. There is a place in Heaven for wonderful musicians.

rod..

..

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

Hi Emerald.

I'm one of those "jack of all trades" kind of musician. I must be ready for any kind of musical job that comes along, be it weddings, dances, clubs, or you name it. I've played church organ to tuba band music. Mainly, I'm a woodwind player as a major in college (many years ago). I'm also a lead guitar player in a country/mexican band. I've played professionally since I was 16. But, I'm a music teacher by day. There are a number of recordings in my works along with some television soundtrack credits (very small time). Once, I had a dream of becoming a great composer; I chose family (or was that lack of talent).

All music styles are my interest, but I prefer thickly orchestrated jazz compositions bordering on the avant-garde. Most of my compositions make an attempt to "pretend" to be "music". It keeps me sane.

rod..

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

I'm an non-profession part time synth and midi goofer-arounder.

Lots of half finished compositions. People say it would make good music for commercials... lol! I say sometimes that it's just too much trouble. You know what I mean?

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

A one-line definition of Gnosticism, paul, is "salvation by secret knowledge." The name comes from the Greek word for knowledge -- gnosis.

If you or anyone else wants to go deeply into the subject of this ancient heresy, which (like so many others) is having a resurgence, there is a long article on it in the good old Catholic Encyclopedia.

God bless you.
John

-- J. F. Gecik (jfgecik@hotmail.com), September 13, 2003.

-- (clear@link.now), September 13, 2003.

Ah! yes. I have two Ensoniq workstations. I've got friends trying to get me started on PC software via midi. I think I can run circles around their PCs with my workstations or old habits are hard to break?

Moments of inspiration happen late in the quiet night. Eight hours of intense concentration on chord progressions, melody, and orchestration eventually set the foundation for that inspiration to occur--hee,hee.

Yes, I know about those half-finished compositions. They are much like those utterances at the tip of the tongue that just seem to get lost and never come out. Sometimes we get lucky and we find the other half of that composition. Those are the inspired pieces, I suppose.

Which reminds me, I can only conclude that God is present in those great pieces of music: the great symphonies, the great arias, the virtuosi performances, the masters of jazz, the little child at their first piano lesson. God has given us another voice--music.

rod.

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

I've got Alesis and Cubase.

I've got friends trying to get me started on PC software via midi.

Check with the Vatican to see if you can get an indulgence for this... it's that painful; at least for me that is... it's blinding frustration.

I only do good stuff when I'm really depressed, and for about a year now, I haven't been depressed at all. Any suggestions about how I can get depressed again?

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

Kiwi, get me depressed, man... lol! I need to do some music.

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

"I've played church organ to tuba band music." I really meant that I've played church music and even tuba band music. My grammar is horrible.

If you really want to get depressed, listen to some of my music. Just kidding.

Alesis makes some good stuff. I'm sure that the onboard effects are nice.

I've experimented with making musical compositions of abstract thinking. For example, imagine a musical sequence that imitates pi. What form would the music have? What tonalities would one use? What harmonies or chord progression could exemplify pi? What about the rhythm?

Or, what would the musical interpretation of Creation sound like? It has been done before--Haydn, others. But, they maintained a conformity to style, not thought.

BTW, I'm not a Gnostic (in case somebody was wondering). I've been studying their connection with the Church and their heresy.

rod..<

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

"I've experimented with making musical compositions of abstract thinking."

Funny you mentioned that, because that's exactly what I do; no lyrics but an attempt to make the music portray people or places or things.

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

Yes, that kind of music does have a name--Programme Music. I never liked that name.

rod..

..

.

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

Really. I'm totally out of the loop.

Well, I'd say you were lucky being able to be in a profession that's based on a love and a talent of yours. That's a blessing.

-- Emerald (emerald1@cox.net), September 13, 2003.

Thanks, Emerald.

rod

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 13, 2003.

"I'm also a lead guitar player in a country/mexican band."

One more question, rod, sorry to bother you. Is what you do here anything similiar to South-American music? Stuff you might hear out of the Andes Mountains or similiar?

-- (emerald1@cox.net), September 14, 2003.

Actually, no. We do play some old stuff that might resemble to old cumbia style, but with updated drum rhythms. We also play that old late 60's Mexican style known as "Chicano" music. Today, Mexican music in the Texas area is called, "Tejano". I don't like this name, either. "Tejano" is really a musical evolution of "Musica Tropical", but it is far distanced from the original sounds you've mentioned above. As any ethnic or cultural music goes, it always gets changed/corrupted.

rod

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 15, 2003.

I have written some jazz music with that "Andes" flavor. I love the primitive music for its purity and clean simplicity. It is so simple that it is complex, imagine that.

rod

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 15, 2003.

So have I, but kind of mix it with African sound to. It is simple, it's awesome... kids love it, and sometimes that's a good test. It's also fun to mold it into something new as well. Corrupting it? =) That's a good question.

-- (emerald1@cox.net), September 15, 2003.

It is fairly safe to say that when the kids love your music, your music has that "something" in it that makes it a real work of art.

rod p.s. Uh, the kids I refer to are those under the age of 11. After age 11, the concept of "art" is up for grabs.

-- rod (elreyrod@yahoo.com), September 16, 2003.

A Leader of all music, I had to get on this site after hearing the new song from johnny and from the singer of the clash. Bob Marley was the originator. Wow what an eriee feeling they just both happen to be dead. Listen to it it put chills running up my spine. Take care.

-- Jason A Moniz (jmoniz1502@yahoo.com), December 10, 2003.