So this has been.my favorite song of OTEP's since it came out in 2004, and I always thought it was a song about a child's narrative of suffering in an abusive Christian home. But now that I am revisiting the lyrics, I am seeing something totally new.
This song could be gospel of John but from the perspective of Jesus.
Jesus was NOT having a good time up to and during the crucifixion. Everyone in the known world at the time looked to him with fear, admiration or disgust and he was constantly being asked questions. He spoke in "verses, prophesies and curses". He had made an enemy of the state, and believed the world was increasingly wicked and fallen from grace, or that he was in the "mouth of madness".
The spine of atlas is the structure that allows the titan to hold the world up. Jesus challenged the state and in doing so became a celebrated resistance figure. It also made him public enemy #1.
All of this happened simply because he was doing his thing, not because of any agenda he had or strategy.
And then he gets scourged (storm of thorns)
There are some plot holes here but I think it's an interesting interpretation.
Dear little girl
There's so much hurt for such a young age
Trapped inside a pretty little lie
Your body's betrayed
Don't fix your eyes on a fix you'll rely on
Fixed her eyes on a fix she relies upon
Stand unafraid
All the good souls
Stand unafraid
When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war if you're too afraid to fight?
Are you too afraid to fight?
Dear little one, there was so much pain
Time you can't replace
Trapped inside, too afraid to cry
And now hands and bruises cover face
Don't fix your eyes on a fix you'll rely on
Fixed her eyes on a fix
When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war if you're too afraid to fight?
Stand unafraid
All the good souls
Stand unafraid
All of the good souls stand unafraid
When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war
When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war if you're too afraid to fight?
There's so much hurt for such a young age
Trapped inside a pretty little lie
Your body's betrayed
Don't fix your eyes on a fix you'll rely on
Fixed her eyes on a fix she relies upon
Stand unafraid
All the good souls
Stand unafraid
When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war if you're too afraid to fight?
Are you too afraid to fight?
Dear little one, there was so much pain
Time you can't replace
Trapped inside, too afraid to cry
And now hands and bruises cover face
Don't fix your eyes on a fix you'll rely on
Fixed her eyes on a fix
When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war if you're too afraid to fight?
Stand unafraid
All the good souls
Stand unafraid
All of the good souls stand unafraid
When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war
When the light starts to burn, and the pain returns
I just wish that I could heal the hurt you feel tonight
There's life in your veins
These needles are chains to hold you down
How can you expect to win this war if you're too afraid to fight?
Lyrics submitted by TerribleThings___x
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"This song was written about a news paper article I read (I did a graphic modesty guild post about it here modesty.blogspot.com/2006/12/james-chavez-must-die.html). There are hurting people in this beautiful world, I wish I could rescue them all.
I got the title of the song from Emily Haines side project ‘Soft Skeletons’" - Stephen Christian anberlinlyrics.tumblr.com June 2014