"When the walls, come tumblin' down
When the walls, come crumblin', crumblin'
When the walls, come tumblin', tumblin' down..."
~ John Cougar Mellencamp, circa 1983
So what if they all went away? Were bulldozed or torn down? Those sacred walls dismantled and left open to the elements. I'm referring to the Churches, Temples, Synagogues - all Houses of Worship. If one day those who believe came to Sunday service finding their churches piles of rubble, wood, concrete, brick and stone, would there be a sudden loss of faith?
John Mellencamp wrote the song above about living within the criticism, failure and disappointment once it all was taken away. This at the height of his early rise to pop/rock fame. So now, what if the things we sometimes cling to physically were torn asunder? Would you pray, wail, fall prostrate on the ground? Would you run?
It's a matter of faith. What do you believe? Do you believe in the temporary fame that comes with a hit single played over and over on the radio? Do you look to find belief deep inside or do you believe that God dwells only inside the walls of those tabernacles of old? Inside the contemporary Arena-style mega churches that dominate areas in our country? Does that steeple serve as a conduit to better hear and communicate with an omniscient being?
Or do you look up and realize that Faith, no matter what flavor, comes from somewhere that can't be erected into a building. That the wind carries our voices up no matter where we praise. That maybe a group of like-minded believers can come together in piles of rubble and still sing hymns, chants and choruses that resonate beyond the walls that once held those words in.
It would be quite an experiment. Tear down walls and see what happens. See if our beliefs come more from within or more from the walls...
But what about the internal walls that we build? What if we took those walls and tried the same experiment? Would our true selves be exposed and run and hide, or would we find that those who truly get us, who understand us, would allow our voices to sing no matter how dark or how wounded our insides really are?
"When the walls come crumblin' down..." What will you find?
