Rethinking John Lennon

A flower adorns a mosaic memorial for John Lennon. It's located at Central Park in New York City. I visited the spot this week.

   'Imagine' was my favorite song composed by John Lennon.
   Not anymore.
   Some of the lyrics are beautiful and heartfelt. Consider this: Imagine all the people, living life in peace. And this: No Need for Greed or Hunger, a brotherhood of man. 
   It's taken me a few years, but I've come to realize that other lyrics in the song are disagreeable.
   Here's the opening line: Imagine there's no heaven.
   No way I agree with that sentiment. Knowing that Heaven exists provides me with hope for salvation.
   Lennon's lyrics ask us to imagine: Nothing to Kill or die for, and no religion too. The first part is beautiful. It'd be nice if people stopped killing one and other.
   The second part of that line, imagining a world without religion, is another sentiment I disagree with. Religions are rudders, they steer us toward God. My rudder is Roman Catholicism. Other people use different rudders to ply the waters toward salvation. Without religions--our moral compasses--the world would regress into darkness.  
   One of Lennon's other hits songs is 'God.' It begins with this line: God is a concept by which we measure our pain. Later he sings, I don't believe in Jesus… I don't believe in Buddha.
   Lennon wasn't denying Jesus' existence, even if it the lyrics suggest he does. But still, the lyrics disrespect God. And they disrespect Buddhism.
   Thirty-three years ago, John Lennon was gunned down. I was shocked. A friend and I hitchhiked to New York City. We stood in Central Park. Surrounding us were thousands of Lennon fans. We'd gathered for ten minutes of silence.
   During that interlude, a man nearby read The Bible. News helicopters hovered overhead. I faced the Dakota building where Lennon had lived and died. My heart was heavy with sorrow.
   The sadness remains. December 8th marks the anniversary of John Lennon's death.
   I miss him. His music I still enjoy. But I don't support his criticisms of religion and God.

Tourists gather around the mosaic.