IRB #18: Poem

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IAhDGYlpqY&feature=share

Summary: This poem attacks organized religion, and reveals how contradicting it is of God's will, as portrayed in the bible.  The poem is very causal, as tension has risen with the unjustness of the church and it's followers.  The author, Jefferson Bethke, writes this poem to proclaim his faith not in the church, but in Jesus.  This poem makes one reflect on what God really wants, and how organized religion actually defies God and his son, Jesus.
Author/Source: This poem was written by Jefferson Bethke, a 20-year-old who then made a video and posted it to youtube.  While he may just be an average guy, his video has been viewed over 2 million times, and his powerful message has been spread through social networks.  
Context: The context of this poem is the wrongfulness of organized religion.  Bethke points out how the church is quick to point out sinners and those who struggle, yet praise Jesus, who was an outcast of religion himself.  The exigence for this poem has occurred for thousands of years, as religion has caused war but promotes peace.  Bethke appears fed up with organized religion and writes the poem to explain what he thinks is actually morally correct.
Purpose: I believe that Bethke wrote this poem in order to show a blinded society how contradicting the church really is by referencing the bible and history.  He also writes this poem to explain his own beliefs, and then justifies them.  He definitely achieved this purpose, as his poem is convincing and has spread to many young people through the internet.
Rhetorical Devices: This poem is both logical and credible.  Bethke looks not at religion emotionally, but  uses logical examples of how it is contradicting of God's will.  He questions, "why does it build huge churches, but fails to feed the poor" which makes an audience realize that this is extremely true.  By appealing to one's logic and by quoting Jesus, he is able to make an extremely powerful argument against organized religion.  The entire poem also juxtaposes the actions of the church and the bible to stress how much religion differs from God.