breathing [2002]

Luke tells an intriguing story, in the 19th chapter of his Gospel, about Zacchaeus meeting Jesus. Like most of biblical narrative, we don’t get a lot of details. But I’m always fascinated by the details we do get. A couple of things stood out to me: Jericho was where this all happened- a town “cursed” ever since Joshua and the Israelites a few hundred years earlier “fit the battle… and the walls came a tumbling down (doobie down doobie down doobie down).” And that Zacchaeus climbed not just any old tree, but a sycamore. This ancient story then comes literally right back into my own backyard where stands a real live sycamore tree- a monstrously beautiful thing and a God-send on a hot day. I find myself retracing the journey Zaccheus takes and asking myself: how have I been small? …cheated the poor? How and to whom do I need to give back times four? Confession and redemption are all there lying in the shade. -tgz

Luke 19:1-10

The place I learned and continue to learn how solidarity with and love for people in need forces one at some point to become political is the faith community I call home, namely Immanuel Presbyterian Church. I started this song with Werner Marroquin (community organizer and leader in the Salvadoran American community- the same man with whom I along with an Immanuel delegation journeyed to San Salvador in 2000 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Archbishop Romero's assassination) it was Werner’s idea to write a song based on the mission statement of Immanuel. To compose it bilingually took on added significance since our congregation is doing what very few churches attempt- that is call ourselves one congregation yet speak two languages during worship and most activities.
The real challenge is bringing together two societies that rarely relate closely as peers in Los Angeles- but toward that end, as Tom and I finished the tune and played it for some Salvadoran events, we know music does indeed go a long way. -tgz

Faith is never quite well explained in words for me. It’s lived out. The author of Hebrews gets at a wild concept by describing faith as being sure of what is not there or certain of what you can’t see yet. How can I be so foolish as to think peace between Palestinians and Jews is possible? Faith. How can I visualize a world that acts out of abundance, sharing all resources and eliminating huge disparities in wealth and opportunity? Faith. I can’t really live out that faith without first allowing it to be as close as my own breathing and then letting it resonate with, respond to, and be empowered by my faith community. -tgz

Hebrews 11:1-3

The text comes from the familiar thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians. I enjoyed setting this text to a funk groove and playing with some phrase sequence while never straying too far from the actual New Revised Standard Version translation. My thinking here was to wrestle with the words but not to rewrite them. Let the ancient words speak. -tjz

1 Corinthians 13

This song was originally written to commemorate the 110th anniversary of Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles. During the service that Sunday, several members representing different generations prayed and blessed one another. This liturgical element directly inspired the second verse. The bridge comes from an old hymn called "O Sing a Song of Bethlehem." -tjz

Getting up in the morning has become a bit of a game for my wife and me. It’s enough to even inspire a song- the wisteria vine we’ve got out back is beautiful, quite fragrant when it blooms, and almost disturbs me with how far it can reach. Only after I wrote the tune, did I become aware of a Japanese proverb: while the man is a pine tree, the woman is a wisteria vine. There is something wonderful about love entangling- something mysterious as well- I guess that’s why I was drawn to misspell the vine name in the title (yeah, let’s just call it genius before we acknowledge my propensity for misspelling anything) -tgz

For ten days during the summer of 1997, I was fortunate enough to visit Mexico City and some outlying areas. It was a traveling seminar hosted by Partners in Hope, a non-profit organization that has developed a life-changing program of cultural education, spirituality and social interaction. I came away very much a changed man. I had built houses in Tijuana before but this was different. The principle here was not to come down to the lowly as a rich, white know-it-all. I came to learn and partner as an equal. I was able to face and then move beyond my own ugly prejudice against Mexicans and witness eloquence from my new friends.
All that to say, the trip inspired me to write one of my favorite love songs. -tjz

In the sixth chapter of Deuteronomy, and the 22nd chapter of Matthew, are the words that most shake and inspire me out of all of scripture- in fact, for at least a decade, they’ve been too tender and close for me even to attempt a song- and already I know that this song certainly does not represent my last exploration of this theme. I had been introduced to the all-your-heart-love concept by Matthew’s story of Jesus answering the Pharisees’ question about the greatest commandment. But the big handle I grabbed to get this song off the ground was from a fresh look at the older passage in Dueteronomy - the context in which the words were first uttered: Moses talking to a generation of people that only knew the desert and were about to enter the Promised Land. It figured powerfully for me, the idea of passing on these words to future generations and really, like the end of the song suggests, to claim the idea that I, though a Gentile, am a child who has been touched by and linked to this early generation of God’s people.

Another powerful truth for me is how these words are so dear to Jews, Christians, and Muslims. And that we can use that bond for peace. A peace that demands from us more and more courage to call for it when the powers that be are so bent on war. When I asked Melaku Yigezu to translate the chorus into his native tongue, Amharek (Ethiopian), I was struck by the beauty of the language and also by the way he used his breath to speak it- a spiritual experience. Having the Amanuel Ethiopian group join this song, helped me more tangibly touch how profoundly universal love for God can be. Even with rather large cultural differences along with some differences in biblical interpretation or social priorities, we experience a very real bond and mutual esteem- a gift I cherish. -tgz

Deuteronomy 6:1-9
Matthew 22:34-40

The song basically sets to music the story told in the 11th chapter of John’s gospel. The passage had long been familiar to me as just another one of those big miracles- until I allowed myself to be struck by the political context. Jesus as a friend, as good, perfect, as a super nice guy was who I grew up with in Sunday School. Jesus as a radical, a wanted man by the “proper authorities”- [and perhaps detained by the Office of Homeland Security] this is someone much more dynamic- more relevant to today’s struggle for peace with justice. -tgz

John 11:1-57

This song gets at my core – the thing of which I need constant reminders- ‘spose that’s why I like singing it. -tgz

As many of you probably remember, in November of 1999, Seattle, Washington hosted a conference of the World Trade Organization and wound up the site of the largest protests staged in the U.S. in a generation. I was struck by how groups from around the world of such wide diversity (who historically would never have worked together- environmental groups, labor unions, peace activists, small business leaders, religious and nonreligious) were united in calling for justice and democracy-
I listened to the whole thing go down on radio (KPFK 90.7FM) and then was shocked by how differently things were reported in the mainstream press- an eye-opener for this young sheltered white boy. Moved as I was, it still took me a year to pull this song together to a point where Tom and I could finish it. I now find it especially powerful to sing this song in the wake of 9/11 and while the U.S. is waging a frighteningly expansive war- however you view it, I think we can agree on the need for God’s grace. (for more perspective, check out articles by Ched Meyers at: www.bcm-net.org)

The chorus is based on one of the chants shouted on the streets of Seattle. The verse melody is based on an old traditional hymn “America, the Beautiful.” (more humble and progressive in its latter verses than commonly known) I’m fascinated by how the two, coming from seemingly disparate places, really are a part of the same message. –tgz

p.s. Oh, and just for the record, there’s been some reaction (positive and negative) to the female pronoun we use for God when quoting the hymn. With all due respect to Ms. Bates and her original verse, Tom and I thought it invigorating to throw in a small twist (that could be huge at the same time). I believe God is beyond gender having created them both- but I know my faith has grown tremendously as I’ve freed myself of exclusive male language for God and embraced the feminine along with the masculine aspects of our Creator.

I wrote this song to celebrate sexuality. I chose to contrast my own intimate, exhilarating experiences with what I perceive as society's skin-deep and exploitive manifestations. I wanted to fly in the face of my prudish Puritan roots and say, “Yes, I love this flesh!” I also wanted to register my disgust with our society's twisted marketing machine that warps reality for profit and encourages anorexia. There's a reason sex is such an effective marketing tool, but this marketing image I'm afraid pales in comparison to the real thing. (trivial tidbit: the "video store" and the "billboard sign" and most of the imagery for the first verse came from the corner of Palms and Overland in West L.A.) -tjz

I really enjoyed writing this song. I remember writing most of the verses on the freeways of L.A. I'll never forget the feeling of accomplishment when I finished the second verse. I had just made the interchange from the 110 north to the 10 west. It didn't matter that I was stuck in traffic. I'd just buttoned up the second verse! It helps to be happily married. I was able to tap into that "gaga" and stay true. -tjz

I wrote this one singing into my wife's pregnant belly. When I sang it to Dillon minutes after he was born he turned his head in recognition - very cool. -tjz