Within the past few weeks, a number of troubling stories have roiled the calm waters of contemporary Christian music (CCM). As I wrote two weeks ago, Michael Gungor, who leads the Grammy Award–winning band bearing his name, expressed public doubt about essential Christian doctrine. Last week, singer and songwriter Vicky Beeching, whose “Glory to God Forever” has become a staple of evangelical church services, announced she is a lesbian, which was affirmed by tweets from fellow CCM artists Kim Hill and Margaret Becker.
Expect such announcements to continue, because the Christian music industry’s “star-making machinery,” to use Joni Mitchell’s famous line, is designed to create hits, not necessarily artists with character and integrity. But to understand that, you must first know how the gears in this machine turn and how it relates to the greater Christian Industrial Complex.
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