Reformation Rap

Reformation Rap

Going from the sublime to the somewhat ridiculous and from the 16th century to the 21st, we continue our celebration with the 95 Theses Rap, created by some students at Yale, who recognize just how COOL the Reformation is, with just the right kind of rebellion against established false authorities:

More about this here. And if, like me, you can’t take in rap lyrics without a transcript, here are the words.

OK, the Yalies are a little confused at some points, but they get Luther’s basic points. My favorite lines:

I warned y’all that Rome best agree to the terms.
If not, then you can eat my Diet of Worms!
You think you done something spectacular?
I wrote the Bible in the vernacular!
A heretic! [What?] Someone throw me a bone.
You forgot salvation comes through faith alone.. . .

“Oh snap, he’s messin’ with the holy communion.”

But I ain’t never dissed your precious hypostatic union!
“One place at one time.” Well, thank you Zwingli.
Yeah, way to disregard that whole “I’m God” thingy!
Getting’ all up in my rosary… you little punk.
Your momma shoulda told you not to mess with no monk.. . .

I’ve come back from obscurity to teach y’all a lesson,
Cuz someone here still ain’t read their Augsburg Confession.
I said Catholicism brings a life of excess,
And we all remember what went down with Philip of Hesse!
But you forgot about me and my demonstration?
Like you can just create your own denomination?
“We don’t like this part, so we’ll just add a little twist.”
Now we Anglican, Amish, and even Calvinist.
I gave you the power, you gone and abused it.
I gave you God’s truth, you just confused it.

HT: Mollie

"I remember Subway stamps, and how the Subway store nearest my apartment had a register ..."

DISCUSS: What Makes America Great?
"Natural science, as a minimalist epistemology orchestrated to give a predictable account of phenomena, was ..."

Weird Science & the New Social ..."
"I know the speculations that are concocted from various aspects of quantum theory. That is ..."

Weird Science & the New Social ..."
"Let's not forget the S&H Green Stamps that the supermarket gave you with every purchase. ..."

DISCUSS: What Makes America Great?

Browse Our Archives