High Fidelity faith

What distinguishes Christian music from most Top 40 songs isn't the sound, but the lyrics of faith. Some lyrics are deeply spiritual; others are merely spiritual cliches-a Mcfaith for a culture that likes its religion as fast and easy as its food. The music reflects evangelicals' emphasis on a personal relationship with Jesus, but it's largely a soft-sell gospel devoid of social justice themes.

And because musicians sing about faith, fans often revere them as spiritual icons. While veteran singers such as Michael W. Smith and Amy Grant easily articulate a faith, many young musicians are unwilling or unable. "I'm a guitarist, not a theologian," snapped Tony Palacios when an interviewer asked him to describe his faith.

FERNANDO ORTEGA, a singersongwriter from Laguna Beach, California, said that he's bothered by the superficial theology pervasive in the industry. "Some musicians actually believe that they're called to play Christian pop music on the same level as the calling of a pastor-as though it's a ministry to the church," said Ortega, who attends a Reform church. "You hear people say all the time that `God gave me this song.' That's preposterous. Because if God gave you this song, then your little pop song is on the same level as God-breathed scripture."

Researcher George Bama's studies seem to back evangelicals' impulse to reach youths through popular culture. In interviews with hundreds of Gen Xers in the early 1990s, Barna discovered that only half of them defined themselves as "religious." Turned off by institutional religion, they've tuned into a pop culture in which movies and music are rife with eclectic spiritual images and themes, such as Joan Osborne's transcendent pondering, "What if God were one of us?"

Pam Hammerud said she ordered her daughter Kayla not to listen to anything but Christian music after seeing the 11-year-old "obsess" over the Spice Girls, whose foul language and skimpy outfits seemed over the edge. If Kayla idolizes Christian music so be it, Hammerud said, because she's being influenced by positive role models.

"At first it was hard for her to give up the Spice Girls," Hammerud said. "But because the Christian music is structured so much like the mainstream, after a while she didn't feel like she was missing anything. She could have the same sounding music, watch videos and stand in line for autographs just like she could any rock star. Only as a parent, I feel much better now."

The Christian music industry often measures its impact in terms of record sales or how much mainstream attention it garners. But a more interesting gauge might be found in autograph lines. At the suburban St. Paul store, dozens of girls like Hammerud easily rattled off endless trivia about the Spice Girls, even down to their lipstick shades, but few knew similar details about Point of Grace. Yet most could recite the faith lyrics of many of their hits, which music industry advocates say indicates that Christian teens are more attached to the music than the musicians.