St. Peter's Cathedral

WOW

Well it seems reasonably obvious what this song is about, but what I find particularly telling is that it isn't a drab or dark song, other than perhaps the subject matter. In converse to the lyrical message, the music is uplifting, powerful, and joyous. The contrast indicates that this is not something to mourn or concern ourselves with, but to realize how rare and unique and special we all are, and how we have this one chance to make it something worthwhile, whatever that means to us.

So don't fucking waste it.

Bleak, but certainly not weak. I see it as a companion piece to "I Will Follow You into the Dark." This song is less personal and more philosophical in nature, however.

Being raised Catholic and having studied architecture, I appreciate his reading of the gesture to the heavens, a yearning unattained. Coincidently, I recently got into an argument with a friend about the afterlife, and the idea that "there's nothing past this."

Why wait until the end of days for salvation? We have the tools to do it ourselves, right here, right now: love and forgiveness. Don't ignore either one as you go through life.

(Because heaven is secretly here.)

Probably the best song off the album. I wasn't too content with this album's rhythm as a whole, but this is definitely a noteworthy song.

Although the message may seem obvious, I think it's important to cut it up and look into it:

"St Peter's cathedral Built of granite Ever fearful of the answer" -People go to church in hopes of finding faith and trying to stay positive about what lies ahead after someone dies, but they still remain "ever fearful of the answer." There's no certainty that there is a God, or an afterlife, and people are afraid of this.

"When the candle in the tunnel Is flickering and sputters And fading faster It's only then that you will know What lies above or down below" -Plain and simple. No one knows what happens to us in the afterlife until we're there, face to face with it.

"Or if these fictions only prove How much you've really got to lose" -A very risky and controversial remark, the speaker is claiming that the Bible is fiction, however, he does argue that the bible has the ability to make one appreciate life more. If you follow God, you have to not take anything for granted.

"At st Peter's cathedral There is stained glass There's a steeple that is reaching Up towards the heavens Such ambition never failing to amaze me" -The speaker gets to the design of a church. So much effort put into it, that it's impossible not to be amazed by how much people believe in a God.

"It's either quite a master plan Or just chemicals that help us understand" -Now this here can go many ways. The master plan can either be: God created the world, and used his disappearance to test people's faith or churches obviously make a profit out of their attendants (so it's an evil master plan). The chemicals that help us understand are the belief that the world was created through science, and that's the best way to understand it. The master plan can also directly refer to the chemicals, as it would have to be a master plan to come up with all this reasoning to help deduce and understand the way the world works. However, in this case it seems that the speaker is leaning towards a "science is our creator" point of view as he later argues that there's nothing past life.

"That when our hearts stop ticking This is the end And there's nothing past this There's nothing past this There's nothing past this There's nothing past this There's nothing past this" -Again a very existentialist idea. No god, no afterlife.

Obviously, whats very ironic about this song is that there actually is something past this - Stay Young, Go Dancing.

I don't know, maybe this has a deeper meaning, maybe to implicate that he is wrong.

I love this song, even though I am Christian. The lyricism is clearly atheist or agnostic. I am not saying that the building itself is the true essence of the symbolism, I'm just saying that if you are religious, or spiritual person, you will eventually realize that supernatural forces exist, and that intelligence requires codes and keys [pun intended]. Intelligent design or God is within us. It's no use to look for it with physical eyes, it's spiritual, it requires faith. How many people come into the realization of God in their death bed...

Anyway, beautiful lyrics, and even better instrumentals, and probably my favorite song of the album as well, but I take it, entertainment for the uplifting vibe it provides. "Imagine" by John Lennon is very uplifting, but it's an atheist and/or agnostic song as well.

The reason why I believe so are the lines I find the most powerful of the song:

"Ever fearful of the answer" (what is the answer? So the artist claims to have it on the song? Although there's no credible authority)

"Or if these FICTIONS only prove How much you've really got to lose" (The candle can also be a metaphor for the sparkle of life, as it fades, you're dying, only then you truly contemplate or not above your life on earth, and the "afterlife." But this is biased because saying that rather you realize if there is heaven or hell, or if it's just a product of our imagination should be mentioned in a way that is impartial. The message dismisses heaven or hell by calling it "fictions." And saying "how much you really got to lose" infers that physical life on earth as we know it is all there is.

"Such ambition never failing to amaze me" (here the message is making a mockery out of religion, because it sounds sarcastic.)

"Or just chemicals that help us understand That when our hearts stop ticking This is the end And there's nothing past this" (Is this the answer? The idea and concept that the message wants to leave in the listeners mind is that after life there is nothing. So live your life for life itself. Whatever aspirations, remorse, and consequence you may ponder about start and end in this life. Thus implying that there is no God.)

This is why I think this song is atheist, and its lyrics should be taking with a grain of salt for they are infused with biased suggestion.

One thing I've been thinking about ever since I first heard this song is an entry from Roger Ebert's blog about religion and death. He and several people in the comments section wrote about NDE (the Near Death Experience) and their similarities when it comes to the specifics of each individual's religious beliefs. They wrote that when the body begins to shut down, hallucinogenic chemicals are released. These chemicals can cause such euphoric events such as the ones described in NDEs. That's what I think about every time Ben sings the line:

"It's either quite a master plan Or just chemicals that help us understand"

Regardless of what you believe, this is a very beautiful, euphoric song. Favorite from the album.

Amazing. After one listen easily the best song on the album. Ben does a wonderful job of just describing that we have no idea if there is a Heaven or a Hell, and to worry our life away about it, is to waste life. This song reminds me of "What Sarah Said" and how amazing it was with a simple repeat of "so who's going to watch you die" was echoed throughout the song. "There's nothing past this" reminds me so much of it. The message is the Cathedral is just a building, and nothing more. To believe that just because an individual attended, or did not attend the Cathedral does not mean they are indeed one step closer to heaven or hell. My favorite lyrics of the song have to be:

When the candle in the tunnel Is flickering and sputters And fading faster It's only then that you will know What lies above or down below

definitely my favorite song off the album. "it's either quite a master plan, or just chemicals that help us understand."

This is the standout track on the album for me. These lyrics are proof of Gibbards stunning songwriting.

He's described perfectly what some of us spend years wondering, in a 4 and a half minutes.