Last week, the band Haste The Day issued a statement on their website announcing that they have asked their guitarist Jason Barnes to leave the band.
They write on their MySpace blog:
“For a while Jason has been searching and searching for real meaning in his existence. After several months of reading literature and talking with friends, Jason had determined that he felt there was no God and certainly no Jesus. We as a band do not have problem with those that do not believe in Jesus, nor do we cast judgement on those that do not believe in Jesus … We would call ourselves a Christian band and for that reason, we felt we couldn’t have someone in the band who didn’t agree with the band’s foundational drive.”
Before you all go leaving comments about judgemental Christians and how unloving that decision was, consider the fact that this is a band that shares a message about Jesus and God, and hopes to use the message to bring others to the same beliefs.
In short: CHRISTIAN BAND.
In other words: It makes sense that the members of this Christian band would need to be Christians. That’s not always true with all Christian bands. But this is the way that Haste The Day operates, and I for one don’t have a problem with the decision.
I’m guessing Jason understands; I would imagine that a guy who doesn’t believe in God or Jesus would get tired quickly of singing about how great God and Jesus are. (I’ve been trying for a few days to confirm the story with their publicist and to see if Jason had a statement, but everyone’s tied up touring and with festivals. I’ll keep you posted, because I think Jason needs to share his thoughts as well.)
The band explains that they love Jason, that the decision came with much prayer and discussion, and that it didn’t happen overnight.
If nothing else, the announcement confirms for me that indeed, some Christian bands take that label seriously and that they’re committed to their calling, even when it means making tough decisions. I hope Jason’s searching brings him peace and that he knows that walking away from God doesn’t mean God walks away from us. And I hope he knows that his bandmates still love him regardless of what he believes.
The band’s latest album, Dreamer, hits stores in October. The first single from the album, “68,” will premiere on their MySpace page on August 1.
For more about Haste The Day, visit their MySpace page.
posted July 25, 2008 at 10:06 am
Leaving the band not only makes sense but is also an act of intellectual honesty. I just hope he leaves openly without slinking away as though he had something to be ashamed of.
Good luck.
posted July 25, 2008 at 8:43 pm
Its Sad to See that happen…Jason was a guitarist not a drummer by the way
posted July 26, 2008 at 9:28 am
I know – I caught that error after I posted the story and fixed it right away but it might still show up on some searches incorrectly. Sorry about that!
Joanne
posted August 1, 2008 at 9:21 pm
I’m going to toss in my two cents about this issue. While I am not a Christian (nor a Jew, Muslim, or member of any other faith), I am nonetheless a fan of Haste the Day and other self-described “Christian” bands such as As I Lay Dying and Underoath (I am also a fan of some bands that describe themselves as “anti-Christian” such as Deicide, Slayer, Dimmu Borgir, Marilyn Manson, etc.). Though I think that religion is a really stupid reason to drive people apart from each other, I nonetheless can respect Haste the Day’s decision to ask Jason to step down due to his drifting away from Christianity. It seems that they have made it clear that it was a difficult decision for them and they still consider him a good friend (meaning that they were not trying to shun him), but they couldn’t have had a non-Christian in the band if the entire band was based on Christianity. I mean, would it make sense for bands that base their message on left-wing politics (such as Rise Against, Against Me!, Anti-Flag, NOFX, etc) to have a Republican and/or a McCain supporter in the band? Can people of differing faiths play in a band together? Sure, as long as the band is secular and has nothing to do with religion. Take All That Remains for instance. Their singer Phil is a Christian while their guitarist Oli is a Pagan yet they seem to do just fine. But then again All That Remains is not a Christian/religious band and does not have any sort of faith-based message. Similarly, people with different political persuasions can play together in band as long as the band has nothing to do with political messages (a good example is that supergroup Damnocracy, which included Ted Nugent and Evan Seinfeld of Biohazard. Seinfeld is very left-wing, while Nugent is very right-wing). In summary, it makes sense for Haste the Day to ask Jason to leave, as Jason decided not to be a Christian anymore and HTD would lose credibility as a Christian band (which they seem very intent on being) if they had a non-Christian member. Similarly, NOFX would lose credibility if Fat Mike suddenly came out in support of John McCain and Throwdown would lose credibility if Dave Peters started smoking crack.
posted August 2, 2008 at 11:26 am
Thanks, PhoenixOrion, that was very well said.
Joanne
host of the Gospel SoundCheck blog
posted August 2, 2008 at 12:29 pm
Thanks, Joanne. And I agree with you, Jason needs to share his thoughts as well. There are always two sides to every story…
posted August 2, 2008 at 4:09 pm
I am really interested to hear what he has to say, to be honest. I know that someone who obviously believed in the gospel message at one time doesn’t all of the sudden change his mind. And it appears, from what I’ve read, that it was a thoughtful and lengthy investigation on his part that led him to renounce his Christian faith.
Joanne
host of the Gospel SoundCheck blog
posted August 17, 2008 at 3:03 pm
he made a good decision if u catch my drift homes
posted August 24, 2008 at 2:01 am
as an anti-christian, i can see where jason is coming from, but also i can understand where HTD is coming from, too, i wouldn’t want a christian in my band, it would be an antagonistic relationship, doomed to fail from the start.
posted October 8, 2008 at 5:47 pm
shouldn’t it be about one thing?
MUSIC!!!!
posted October 8, 2008 at 7:31 pm
when i heard about this i was disapointed and was like wat the hell did they do that for!!!. Being a christian myself and after reading the reason why, i agree that this was the best thing to do.I am in a band that places christ at the head of the band and we as a band would not accept others from a different faith because if there heart is not in it than there is no point, it also makes things harder. That is not to say we dont like non christians because a majority of my mates are just that but i still love them the same. i just hope and pray that jason finds direction and a purpos in his life that he had before all thos happened. btw are they getting a new guitarst?
posted December 15, 2008 at 10:17 pm
In my opinion, this was the best choice for the band to do. My only problem is when people go onto a website like this (I’m pretty sure this is a Christian website) and post things like claiming they are anti-Christian and things. My only question for those kind of people- If you are so anti-Christian, and you dislike us so much, why are you on a Christian website? I was just wondering because I want to know exactly how to pray for my enemies. God bless you, Jesus loves you, and I hope to see you in heaven.
posted May 13, 2009 at 7:04 am
Well, i hope you find another guitarist who is madly on fire for Jesus! He is the only reason we’re alive.
posted July 6, 2009 at 10:21 pm
JESUS ROCKS
posted July 11, 2009 at 2:15 pm
i would feel the same way about the decision cuz its all for God. its to worship glorify God !!!!!
wooooooooooooooooo ily Lord
posted October 12, 2010 at 11:33 am
I totally agree with you guys. Being a Christian band means having members who believe in Jesus. Get a new guitarist who loves Jesus and forget about any schmuck whos an atheist — Go Jesus and Go Haste the Day!