After three notable Christian rappers had
renounced their faith in the span of a year, a
series of tweets last month by Christian hip-
hop legend Da’ T.R.U.T.H. flustered
followers.
Is it dangerous to be exclusive? Can we know what the truth is?
— Da' T.R.U.T.H. (@truthonduty) March 9, 2016
However, seemingly to the rescue came
famed, 70-year-old Christian apologist Ravi
Zacharias
https://twitter.com/RaviZacharias/status/707631978430877696
https://twitter.com/RaviZacharias/status/707632106474606592
Da’ T.R.U.T.H. and Zacharias exchanged
numerous tweets. Many readers of the
conversation realized that the Q&A was
planned. This was given away when Da’
T.R.U.T.H.’s questions started to rhyme, but
not all got it.
“People were just pretty much saying, ‘Oh
no T.R.U.T.H., not you, too. I’m nervous. I’m
afraid. What are you trying to say?’ Some
people are still saying that actually,” the
Philadelphia-based artist told Rapzilla,
“which is good. I kind of like the ambiguity, which is why I haven’t done a Periscope
where I’m trying to diffuse any negative
press or negative reactions or concerns that
people have. I haven’t really done a lot of
that because the ambiguity I think is
necessary, and not just for the sake of ambiguity, but because it keeps the
dialogue going.”
Dialogue is the purpose of Da’ T.R.U.T.H.’s
eighth studio album, It’s Complicated, which
releases May 13.
“It’s Complicated is dealing with the
complexities of life, faith and religion
because I feel like, to some degree, we have
a tendency to oversimplify,” Da’ T.R.U.T.H.
said. “The truth of the matter is, religion is
not simple.” .
.@RaviZacharias They say Abrahamic religion’s the cause for hate and division…
— Da' T.R.U.T.H. (@truthonduty) March 9, 2016
.@RaviZacharias I understand what they feel when they say that religion kills. African slave trade, walls that the Christians built.
— Da' T.R.U.T.H. (@truthonduty) March 9, 2016
https://twitter.com/RaviZacharias/status/707639028368023552
https://twitter.com/RaviZacharias/status/707639230411845632
Da’ T.R.U.T.H. recruited Zacharias, a world-
renowned expert on religion and author of
over 20 books, to respond to these
complexities.
No Christian
apologist has contributed to a hip-hop
album as much as Zacharias has to It’s
Complicated. He’s featured on five tracks.
“I commend Da’ T.R.U.T.H. for tackling tough
questions and communicating fundamental
ideas through hip hop,” Zacharias said. “I
am delighted to participate in this album,
and I pray it will point many people to the
unique and life-transforming message of Jesus Christ.” .
.@RaviZacharias Is his name Allah, or his name a lie? Is it really important the right name or not?
— Da' T.R.U.T.H. (@truthonduty) March 9, 2016
https://twitter.com/RaviZacharias/status/707646092133806080
Zacharias brings clarity to issues addressed
on It’s Complicated, but the album is less
meant to provide answers and more to
foster discussion.
“There’s some resolve on the album. Some
stuff is just open for the conversation,” Da’
T.R.U.T.H. said. “When I started working on
this album, that’s what I wanted. I wanted
to create something that could allow a
platform for Christians to talk. I don’t feel like we’re talking about the hard stuff. What
would cause a Jahaziel to defect? … This is
becoming an epidemic, and what is leading
to it? I think part of it is we have to begin to
have these hard conversations, even in our
youth groups, because these are the questions that are bouncing around in our
minds, even the minds of a 15, 16-year-
old
Da’ T.R.U.T.H. asked these questions in his
lead single for It’s Complicated, “Religion”,
and he’s been pleased with reactions to it.
“I’m getting a lot of people who are church
hurt and walked away from the faith
hearing this song and saying, ‘I haven’t
been into Christian hip hop for years, but
this actually got me thinking. I’m really
interested and intrigued about where he’s going with this and what this all means.’
Part of why I haven’t kind of come out and
been like, ‘Hey guys, I’m not defecting,’ is
because it has opened up a dialogue that I
did not anticipate,” Da’ T.R.U.T.H. said, “and I
don’t want to quickly close the door on that conversation. I want to see that
conversation continue on.”
@truthonduty I'm Muslim and have been following you for the last 5 albums . I've purchased every one.
I really respect your journey— khalilismail (@khalilismail) March 16, 2016
@truthonduty and I admire your willingness to make us think and bare your thoughts and fears.
You're an inspiration.— khalilismail (@khalilismail) March 16, 2016
While these conversations may be especially
needed today, It’s Complicated — which
also features KB, Christon Gray and Natalie
Sims — is a long time in the making.
“I feel like I started writing this album 15
years ago,” Da’ T.R.U.T.H. said. “I honestly
think it’s 15-20 years worth of events
because the truth of the matter is that I have
personally gone through very difficult bouts
with doubts on my Christian journey. Even as Da’ T.RU.T.H. I’ve had moments where I
struggled with doubts. Thankfully, I came
out on the other side with a greater
understanding, but going through those
difficult seasons of doubt is not easy.” .
.@RaviZacharias Did I blindly believe when I got a bible to read?#ItsComplicated
— Da' T.R.U.T.H. (@truthonduty) March 9, 2016
.@RaviZacharias Am I playing roulette? Would I still be a saint if I wasn’t raised in the west? #itscomplicated
— Da' T.R.U.T.H. (@truthonduty) March 9, 2016
.@RaviZacharias How many paths to God, if its one Im taking my steps… #ItsComplicated
— Da' T.R.U.T.H. (@truthonduty) March 9, 2016
How did you go from the doubts throughout your life to the conclusion that God is the truth?
Da’ T.R.U.T.H.: Each time I went through a season of doubt, there was … let me give
you an example. When I was 16, that was
the first time I had went through a period of
doubt, and it was because I was actually
defending the faith, debating with someone
of another faith, and this guy knew far more than I did about the Bible at that time.
By the time we were done, I was like,
“Whoa, I don’t know what to believe about
the deity of Christ because this guy just
dismantled everything that I believe from
my book.” Literally, in that time, I went
through a lot of internal turmoil. I stopped reading. All I did was pray because I still
believed that God was real. I just didn’t
know what to believe about Jesus.
Eventually — and I know this is God
because, at 16 years old, I wasn’t interested
in reading the book of Leviticus. I don’t
even know if I could pronounce it back
then. During that time, I was just praying,
“Lord, please reveal yourself. Reveal the truth to me. I want to know what’s real. I
want to know what’s true.” When I was in
that time of prayer, the Lord impressed
upon me, “Read the books of Leviticus and
Hebrews.”
Now, I know that’s God because I would
never … at that age, I was just reading the
book of Proverbs. I wasn’t thinking about
those kind of Old Testament books,
especially Leviticus. It seemed boring to me.
I just wouldn’t read it.
I started reading it alongside of Hebrews.
Again, I didn’t even know that Leviticus and
Hebrews were sister books. But I started
reading those two together, and God used
that to really, really shed light on the person
of Christ, the deity of Christ, the necessity of Christ, Christ’s death — all of those things
that I was struggling with.
That’s just that first time that I went through
that. … Each time I went through it, it was
something different that God used to help
me overcome those doubts. .
.@RaviZacharias Biggie said "when I die I want to go hell", Pac said "I believe were living in hell"
— Da' T.R.U.T.H. (@truthonduty) March 9, 2016
https://twitter.com/RaviZacharias/status/707664713048428544
.@RaviZacharias I just want to know is God peaceful or hostile, brutal or meek, is he beauty or beast?
— Da' T.R.U.T.H. (@truthonduty) March 9, 2016
https://twitter.com/RaviZacharias/status/707672360632057856
https://twitter.com/RaviZacharias/status/707672479184068608
.@RaviZacharias
With all of it's faults, does the church have the right to judge? Should people even listen to the church?— Da' T.R.U.T.H. (@truthonduty) March 9, 2016
https://twitter.com/RaviZacharias/status/707680670907236352
“These are the questions that I have asked
on my journey and a lot of people ask, but
they’re afraid to say it out loud,” Da’
T.R.U.T.H. said. “This is the album where I
say it out loud.”
Pre-order It’s Complicated on iTunes.
Source: Rapzilla
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