{"id":3290,"date":"2024-04-24T06:13:12","date_gmt":"2024-04-24T13:13:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionmatters\/?p=3290"},"modified":"2024-04-27T17:08:56","modified_gmt":"2024-04-28T00:08:56","slug":"reverend-taylor-and-the-church-of-swifties","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionmatters\/2024\/04\/reverend-taylor-and-the-church-of-swifties\/","title":{"rendered":"Reverend Taylor and the Church of Swifties"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

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{CC Photo by UltimateWarrior13 for Wikimedia; Church of Swifties}<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For many millennials (not to mention others), Taylor Swift is a religious experience. One such person calls me Mom. My daughter\u2014the same age as Swift\u2014drove the backroads of rural Tillamook County blaring Swift\u2019s earliest albums from a beat-up sedan that won \u2018Worst Car\u2019 her senior year. To daughter Madison, Swift comes close to perfection. Deciphering the genius and intent of her songs, the closest thing she has to religion. Her attendance of Taylor\u2019s Eras Tour last year was her observance of high holy days\u2014almost akin to a pilgrimage as she traveled halfway across the country to attend with her best friend.<\/p>\n

In this column, I assert that all people are religious<\/a>. We all have sacred meaning systems that offer us stories, rituals, community, beliefs, and values to live by. Most of us have multiple religions, and many hold them unconsciously. Examples of \u201csecular\u201d religions might be football, party politics, or grandchildren. Though everyone has these meaning systems, many don\u2019t realize they are shaped by a religion. They might think of religion in turns of dominant faith traditions, period.<\/p>\n

As long as people\u2019s religions are healthy for themselves and others, I have no problem with this breadth of religion. Humans have been religious since our earliest imaginings because we need<\/em> meaning systems. I do regret when people are unconscious of their religions. If we are to critique our religions and fold in our doubts, we need to hold them consciously.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t mind that Taylor is one of my daughter\u2019s religions (and she does seem to hold the religion consciously). The stories, rituals, beliefs, and values she gleans from Swift\u2019s work challenge her, make her think, evoke her powers of perception and analysis, and perhaps most importantly, move her. From formal faith traditions to basketball to political elections\u2014emotional buy-in is clearly key to religion. One example, the Psalms. I see the power of these story-songs in their expression of the full human catastrophe and their probing for the meaning of life. At their best, the Psalms move us.<\/p>\n

{CC, jazills at https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/94347223@N07\/858895044}<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n*
** *Telling Stories that Empower and Inspire Us<\/strong><\/p>\n

But honestly, most of what the Psalmist talks about, I struggle to relate to. While I appreciate the emotions expressed in the Psalms, I can be moved to tears by Taylor\u2019s expressions of heartache; her stories of seeking connection, finding it, losing it, repeat. At the crux of her discography are stories of a rocky and disappointing love life. In a 2023 interview<\/a>, she described her song-writing as sucking the poison out of a snakebite and depriving it of its power. For some, singing along with her songs has this same effect. A song from her album Midnights speaks to my experience so potently, I automatically exchange for \u201cNew York,\u201d the word \u201cNehalem\u201d because that\u2019s where I was during the experience:<\/p>\n

"\n*
** *When the silence came, we were shaking blind and hazy \/ How the hell did we lose sight of us again? \/ Sobbin\u2019 with your head in your hands \/ Ain\u2019t that the way shit always ends? \/ You were standin\u2019 hollow-eyed in the hallway \/ \u201cCarnations you had thought were roses, that\u2019s us\u201d \/ I feel you know no matter what \/ The rubies that I gave up \/ And I lost you, the one I was dancin\u2019 with \/ In New York, no shoes \/ Looked up at the sky and it was maroon<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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