Unconventional Bible Study

So, I was at a conference this week that was mostly about helping people under 30 pay attention to a sense of being called into ministry. One of our presenters, Chris Scharen, who wrote a book about the theology of U2, had this really interesting presentation on Boulevard of Broken Dreams by Green Day. He compared it to a story about Jesus' disciples meeting him after the resurrection and not realizing it was him. So, I thought it might be interesting to see if there are other music videos out there that have spiritual content that could interplay in interesting ways with Scripture. So here's one Unconventional Bible Study.

Basic directions: as you watch the video, pay attention to moments or images that stand out to you as having spiritual significance or depth in meaning. Then you can see if I saw & heard the same or different things, and see if my readings resonate for you.

Snow Patrol - Chasing Cars


Read the lyrics to Chasing Cars here

Some random Amy reactions: I'm interested in the water imagery of this video. Is the singer going through a kind of baptism? The lyrics would make me think this song is about/to another person, but the singer is alone. When he says, "your perfect eyes," is he singing to God?

The image of the camera pulling up and away at the end, and the lyrics "if I just lay here," reminds me of this quote from Waiting for God by Simone Weil:

There are people who try to raise their souls like a man continually taking standing jumps in the hopes that, if he jumps higher every day, a time may come when he will no longer fall back but will go right up to the sky. Thus occupied, he cannot look at the sky. We cannot take a single step toward heaven. It is not in our power to travel in a vertical direction. If however we look heavenward for a long time, God comes and takes us up. He raises us easily.

Finally, there are a lot of detailed close-ups of the singer's hands and face. I see some parallels with Psalm 139 - a sense of wonder at the creation. This version is from The Message, a translation by Eugene Peterson (sections).

God, investigate my life;
get all the facts firsthand.
I'm an open book to you;
even from a distance, you know what I'm thinking.
You know when I leave and when I get back;
I'm never out of your sight...

Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out;
you formed me in my mother's womb.
I thank you, High God - you're breathtaking!
Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
I worship in adoration - what a creation!
You know me inside and out,
You know every bone in my body;
You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
How I was sculpted from nothing into something.

Oh man, and I didn't even get into what "the garden bursting into life" could be about.

So, what did you see? (And am I crazy? :) )