Corgan believes in Jesus and didn't care the cost
Seeing other musicians talk about their faith pushed him to say it out loud in the September 23 episode.
Billy Corgan believes in Jesus and doesn't hide it. The Smashing Pumpkins frontman said it in front of Michael Sweet, of Stryper, on his podcast The Magnificent Others, RELEVANT Magazine reported.
The episode came out on September 23. There he said that seeing Sweet and Mark Farner, of Grand Funk Railroad, talk openly about their faith pushed him to make his own decision. It wasn't an isolated moment: sometimes someone needs to see another person say it first.
The "third rail" of rock
Years ago Corgan told Rolling Stone that God was "the third rail of rock and roll." His explanation was direct: if you talk about God, you might as well throw your career in the hole (Sígueme translation).
«If I can't be honest with who I am, what am I asking a fan to believe?»
On the podcast he repeated that idea and added the rest. He said he made his own personal decision to talk about God as he knows most of his generation doesn't in music (Sígueme translation).
And he was more specific: he decided to talk about God with honesty, "believing in Jesus as my Lord and Savior," and if that hurt him, he didn't care (Sígueme translation).
His reason fits in a question he himself asked: "If I can't be willing to be honest with who I am, well, what am I asking a fan to believe?" (Sígueme translation).
The topic isn't new
Corgan has been talking about God for more than 20 years. In 2003, his band Zwan built its biggest song, "Jesus, I," on an old hymn. That same year he told Rolling Stone he didn't have a name for his faith.
What's new is the precision with which he now says it. Talking about Jesus in music didn't come free for others, and he didn't have guarantees either. What he did was stop calculating the price before speaking.
A public statement doesn't make anyone a teacher or a model for anyone. But there's also no reason to ask a musician to hide what he says he believes.
Where it costs you the most to say it
Think about your classroom, the team chat, your family table. Where does it cost you the most to say you believe in Jesus?
You don't have to argue or convince anyone. You can answer a question with honesty, tell why you go to church or say you pray for someone who's doing badly.
Paul wrote: "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek." (Romans 1:16, ESV)
Corgan had a big career to lose. You have a group chat, a lunch and a family. The underlying question is the same: is it worth saying who you are?
You don't need a speech or a long post. This week you can say one honest sentence where it costs you the most: in the chat, at recess, with someone who's known you since you were a kid. Honesty isn't negotiable, not even when it seems to cost. Do you dare to tell me where it was?
