Songs About Losing Faith/Religion
Have you ever felt your faith slipping? You may have lost faith in God or found church unwelcoming. It can seem like losing a part of yourself. Thankfully, several amazing composers have been through something similar and left us with songs about losing faith or religion.
These songs are for anyone who has doubted or lost their faith. Many church-raised kids lose faith in God. Whether religion is lost due to personal problems or growing up and questioning things is unknown. This list is for others who have likewise struggled with their spirituality.
5 Songs About Losing Faith/Religion
1. “Devil’s Work” By Joyner Lucas
Joyner Lucas, the subject of “Devil’s Work,” is a rapper who doubts the existence of a higher power because of the evil he sees in the world. For instance, he wonders why some people he considers to be good died while others who “deserve to die” are still among the living.
He says, whenever he tries to understand God’s image, all he sees is disaster. All these, and many more have led him to question his faith in God.
2. Dear God By Dax
Dax is confused by the multiplicity of faiths, given that there can be only one Creator. Wow! That’s a really interesting query. His underlying premise is based on logic: since every religion has a different view of God, it must be false that they are all correct. As though the answer could never be known, he next questions how we can tell which religion is the right one, if there is a right one.
Dax wonders aloud where God was when his life was in shambles. This is a common question, and I’ve been asked it before for the same reason that Dax does. Instead of giving Dax a quick response to his hard query, I’d rather get to know him and his grief. Dax sings about how he feels like a lot of people think they know him, but they’ve only ever looked at the surface, like a book’s cover, without ever bothering to read what’s inside.
Dax asks the question no one else will. If God exists, he wonders, then why are there so many unhappy people? I should be afraid of you, he says, but you haven’t shown me any reason to be so far. Dax wonders why he should have faith in or be afraid of something whose existence cannot be verified.
Dax insists that prayer is the key to finding wisdom. Why hasn’t God answered everyone’s prayers and helped fix the world’s problems yet? At the end of his song, Dax wants everyone to know he has no malicious intent with this song, but he will only accept an explanation from God. This is one of the best songs about losing faith/religion.
3. “One of Us” by Joan Osborne
American singer-songwriter Joan Osborne is known for her song “One of Us.” Despite popular belief, the song’s author, American singer-songwriter Eric Bazilian, claims he wasn’t inspired to write it by his own religious beliefs.
Bazilian explained that the song is about having an eye-opening experience. His explanation for this phenomenon includes everything from a chance meeting with an alien to direct communication with God to a brush with death. All the things you thought you knew turned out to be false.
The song “One of Us” poses the question, “How would you relate to God if He was just an ordinary person, a slob just like us?” to its listeners. In addition to asking what God’s name would be and what God’s face would look like, the lyrics also wonder if the listener would want to see God’s face if doing so required faith in several things, such as Jesus Christ and the afterlife.
What if God were human like us? is a song by Joan Osborne that poses this question. She conceives of a universe in which God feels love and loss just like we do.
In times of difficulty, many find solace in the belief in a loving and caring God. But suppose this God was human and made mistakes. Is it possible that God erred? You know, what if God didn’t know everything?
The song implies that it would be very difficult to move on after losing faith in such a God. Faith gives us direction and hopes when we have none other. A lot of people can relate to the feelings of uncertainty and despondency conveyed in this song.
4. God’s will by Martina McBride
Martina McBride is responsible for writing the song God’s Will, which is a reflection on the issue of losing faith. The song’s lyrics depict the story of a woman who has endured a lot in her life and is fighting an uphill battle to keep her faith despite the challenges she has faced.
She has doubts about the efficacy of prayer and questions why God allows horrible things to occur to decent people. She has doubts about God’s benevolence and questions why He allows suffering to befall the good. Even though she has her doubts, she decides to continue putting her trust in God and His purpose for her life.
This song speaks to the experiences of many people who have been through trying times and battled to maintain their faith amid such times.
5. I saw God By George Strait
Last on our list of songs about losing faith/religion is The song “I Saw God” by George Strait. This song is an emotional look at grief and belief. A sight of horrible devastation is described at the outset of the song, but the narrator shifts the focus from the damage to the impact the event has had on his faith.
When he was younger, he had faith that God was constantly watching out for him, but now he feels alone and confused. He is still on the lookout for evidence of God’s existence despite this.
In the final lyric, he finally accepts the possibility that he will never see God again, but that he will always know that God is there. This song beautifully depicts how faith can be tested by tragedy but eventually offers solace and hope.
