It's the 50th anniversary of Stonewall! I'm posting this song and the next one with gratitude for the brave souls who found the self respect and courage to stand up for themselves in the fifties and sixties as GBLT people at a time when the general culture so viciously rejected them.
The first verse of this song refers to young man I met in Salt Lake City in the early nineties, whose parents had disowned him for being gay. The photo above is of a recent Utah Pride March. I just checked Wikipedia, which said that attendance in 2018 was 100,00 people.
I hope that young man, not so young by now, has been able to find reconciliation with his family as so many people have in the past 30 years.
The second verse is about an older man in Philadelphia who was speaking at a Methodist Church that had just become a "Welcoming Congregation", publicly opening it's doors to queer people for the first time, also in the early ninties. He told us that he had always known God loved him as he was, despite everything he had been told to the contrary. For me it was a pointer to an internal strength I didn't know anyone could even have!
The first verse of this song refers to young man I met in Salt Lake City in the early nineties, whose parents had disowned him for being gay. The photo above is of a recent Utah Pride March. I just checked Wikipedia, which said that attendance in 2018 was 100,00 people.
I hope that young man, not so young by now, has been able to find reconciliation with his family as so many people have in the past 30 years.
The second verse is about an older man in Philadelphia who was speaking at a Methodist Church that had just become a "Welcoming Congregation", publicly opening it's doors to queer people for the first time, also in the early ninties. He told us that he had always known God loved him as he was, despite everything he had been told to the contrary. For me it was a pointer to an internal strength I didn't know anyone could even have!
If You've Ever Loved
© K Hannan 1993
John lives in Salt Lake City
Provo is his home town
And lately John can't seem to find a reason to go down
His dad won't speak his name
His mother says the devil's got his soul
But Christ said only one thing makes us whole
It's love that sets us free,
but love won't bring John home
And love needs friends and family
Love does not thrive alone
And if you listen with your heart, you'll understand
If you've ever loved a woman, if you've ever loved a man
I have heard truth spoken
I have seen true grace
An old man spoke of his childhood,
and tears rolled down my face
He said in my church, my school, my home
Everyone I knew said my love was a crime
But inside, I've always known, God blessed this love of mine
Cause love has set me free
Love has always been my home
And I've found friends and family
I do not live alone
And if you listen with your heart, you'll understand
If you've ever loved a woman, if you've ever loved a man
Now Christ spoke of love for everyone
That's really all he said
He terrified the mighty,
they did not rest till he was dead
But you say that Jesus lives for you
I say it's a shame
Can't you see Love flows through everyone, the same
You think that God speaks only
You think that God speaks only
You think that God speaks only to you
Well God speaks to me too
Cause love can set us free
Love can bring us all home
And love makes friends and family
Love does not thrive alone
So when you listen with your heart you'll understand
If you've ever loved a woman, if you've ever loved a man
If you've ever loved a woman
If you've ever loved a man
© K Hannan 1993
John lives in Salt Lake City
Provo is his home town
And lately John can't seem to find a reason to go down
His dad won't speak his name
His mother says the devil's got his soul
But Christ said only one thing makes us whole
It's love that sets us free,
but love won't bring John home
And love needs friends and family
Love does not thrive alone
And if you listen with your heart, you'll understand
If you've ever loved a woman, if you've ever loved a man
I have heard truth spoken
I have seen true grace
An old man spoke of his childhood,
and tears rolled down my face
He said in my church, my school, my home
Everyone I knew said my love was a crime
But inside, I've always known, God blessed this love of mine
Cause love has set me free
Love has always been my home
And I've found friends and family
I do not live alone
And if you listen with your heart, you'll understand
If you've ever loved a woman, if you've ever loved a man
Now Christ spoke of love for everyone
That's really all he said
He terrified the mighty,
they did not rest till he was dead
But you say that Jesus lives for you
I say it's a shame
Can't you see Love flows through everyone, the same
You think that God speaks only
You think that God speaks only
You think that God speaks only to you
Well God speaks to me too
Cause love can set us free
Love can bring us all home
And love makes friends and family
Love does not thrive alone
So when you listen with your heart you'll understand
If you've ever loved a woman, if you've ever loved a man
If you've ever loved a woman
If you've ever loved a man
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