‘I saw Taylor Swift live and as a Christian, this is what I thought’

This summer, I went to see Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour.

I’ve been a ‘Swiftie’ since 2008, although we definitely didn’t go by such a title back then. I was twelve and thought that ‘Love Story’ was one of the best things I had ever heard. I watched her music videos like they were Rom-Coms, I learnt every word to every song on every album, I even (and I’m really not proud of this) asked my mum for a perm for my 13th birthday.

Only the most longstanding fans will remember the iconic curls of Taylor’s early days. It goes without saying that mine did not come out looking similar.

For better or for worse, Taylor Swift’s music has been a soundtrack to my life

For better or for worse, Taylor Swift’s music has been a soundtrack to my life, her songs are the keys to some of my oldest and most cherished memories. In so many ways, her ‘eras’ frame my own.

And listen, I’m not a permed-up twelve year old anymore, rest assured that I now have a much more adult understanding of the mighty Swift machine. Her PR team will be studied for decades to come, and let’s not even talk about that carbon footprint of hers. But, nevertheless, when it was announced that she was going on a world tour that would celebrate every album, it was a no-brainer. I was going to be there.

And my oh my, was it a beautiful experience. It wasn’t just about witnessing a spectacle (although the whole production was certainly something to behold), it was about more than that. It was an evening of beautiful nostalgia and immense gratitude.

For me, it was celebratory.

I witnessed communal catharsis and unbridled joy being experienced by 90,000 sequin-clad, bracelet-swapping, strangers.

But, what’s more, it was a reminder that girliness, playfulness, silliness, softness and gladness – they’re incredibly important. I witnessed communal catharsis and unbridled joy being experienced by 90,000 sequin-clad, bracelet-swapping, strangers. The purity and innocence of it all felt so rare.

I could go on and on, but I think you get my point. Right? It was a blooming good show.

Interestingly, I’ve since learnt that not everyone has such a positive view of Taylor’s record-breaking tour. You only need to google the words ‘Swift’ and ‘Satan’ and you’ll be hit with an avalanche of people claiming that elements of Taylor’s set have demonic influences.

In a way, it’s pretty predictable. Anyone remember that old rumour that if you play Beyonce’s song backwards it’s actually a Satanic chant? While accusations of Queen B being a part of the illuminati are probably still going strong in certain corners of the internet, it’s now Miss Swift’s turn to face some devil worship allegations.

As you can imagine, being both a theologian and a Swiftie, I have some thoughts on this. Those thoughts can be summed up neatly in three simple words: let’s not panic.

Allow me to take you back to the doomy depths of lockdown. Taylor, as a creative means of escaping the confines of her house, wrote and recorded two concept albums: Folklore and Evermore.

While performing one of the songs from this ‘era’, Taylor and her dancers adorn hooded capes and dance around with crystal balls in their arms. And herein lies the apparent evidence of satanic influences. Thinking about it, it’s fascinating how old this instinct is – we label women that we don’t understand, or perhaps just don’t like, witches. We’ve quite literally been doing this for centuries. Can’t we call it a day now?

I get the need to be careful around this stuff, but what I experienced at Taylor’s show was theatre. And, if I may be so bold, a pretty innocent form of it. She also performs a song or two dressed as a British soldier, at one point turns the entire stadium into a snake, she dances upon purple clouds, has trees sprouting from the stage and gets wheeled around on a gigantic sofa.

To reduce this three-hour-long show down to three minutes of her swaying in a cape, and then freak out about it, seems a little OTT. Doesn’t it?

What I find fascinating about Christian responses to Taylor Swift is how obsessed we are with placing her in an ‘in’ our ‘out’ box, we are desperate to stick a ‘good’ or ‘bad’ label on her and then judge her accordingly. I have no idea about her personal life nor her spiritual influences, and neither do you.

So, I’ll say it again, let’s not panic.