Justin Taylor turned off comments at his blog. Then he turned them back on again. The first post after return is a fairly unassuming one, highlighting an interview with a member of the group Owl City, who is a believer. What ensued in the comments and at least one trackbacked post is a good example of the tyranny of hyper-spirituality in action.

For the record, I don't care for Owl City. I think I once made fun of their song on Twitter. I had no idea the guy was a Christian, and even knowing that doesn't make me want to revisit their music. It's a little, um, frou-frou for my taste, I think. In any event, I have no idea how Adam Young lives out his profession of faith in his life, but I certainly can't judge that based on what he does for a living, even if that living is "art." What's strange about evangelicals is how free they feel to tell others how to make "Christian art" while producing heaps and heaps of artistic garbage themselves every year. (In fact, many of those upset with Young for not singing about Jesus probably criticize the current quality of CCM, as well.)

I am a huge fan of Jesus-fixation, but if this guy wants to make his living singing about fireflies . . . well, okay. If I were to approach my need for him to need to always sing explicitly about Jesus, I should also say things like the following:

I demand Christian plumbers also make their, um, plumbing more explicitly Christian. Also Christian hairstylists, carpenters, loggers, software designers, helpline operators, and crossing guards. Why aren't you exhibiting the gospel, slackers?

I think this is what happens when the tyranny of hyper-spirituality kicks in.

What's worse is not the sentiment that Adam Young can't sing about stuff that doesn't mention Jesus, but that Justin Taylor can't even link to it. It's apparently not edifying to talk about a song about fireflies. Even in the context of an interview with the guy explicitly professing Christ!

Straining out gnats to swallow camels?