The Book of Doctrines and Opinions: notes on Jewish theology and spirituality

Soul Bigger- An Evangelical Rap Video by NJOP

September 2, 2010

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Here is a new video by National Jewish Outreach Program run By Rabbi Ephraim (Effie) Buchwald. He is mainstream Modern Orthodox and based at Lincoln Square Synagogue. They run Shabbat across America and read Hebrew America. When many of us knew Effie 35-25 years ago, the musical aspiration was Kingston Trio via Rabbis Sons. The new song is a remake of the Kanye West’s rap song Gold Digger (original is NSFW). In the episode “Showmance” of Glee, the cast covered and modified the song so that now even Jewfolk know the rap song.

But here in the NJOP version we have a new gospel choral added singing “repent repent repent.” We also have a neo-Calvinist message of cut your credit cards and start praying, give up greed and help the homeless.

This was so Evangelical that they issued their own statement in the Jewish Week. “when the first version of the lyrics came out, we questioned whether the repeating motif of repentance sounded too much like a church revival meeting. However, we realized that teshuvah (repentance in Hebrew) is one of the most beautiful and spiritual concepts in Judaism, far more so than any fire-and-brimstone idea that the word “repent” may conjure up.”

First Things summed it up “As proof that we Christians don’t have exclusive rights to the making of cheesy, religious-oriented videos, I give you the National Jewish Outreach Program’s reimagining of Kanye West’s “Gold Digger.”

Watch the whole thing it has different parts.