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Interesting allusion, but it doesn't quite move the soul the same way as previous songs from Corgan's more optimistic post-Pumpkins period, like "Jesus, I" or "All Things Change." Even "For God and Country" (excerpted above) seems more a tongue-in-cheek swipe at the government than a hard-line stance on faith and patriotism. Not that we should expect Corgan to deliver right-wing invectives, but these anti-establishment tunes are too indulgent to incite a revolution—they lack populism to be embraced by today's middle-class rock.

Still, a number of tracks do stand out for their jubilant spirituality, even when they sag musically. "Starz" is one of them: "Born of love and cast in light/Don't you know we cannot die/We are stars, we are the stars above, stars of grace/Shining down what's left to face/You hurt so bad/This knowing, this fallacy/I want so much to follow as I lead/For love I keep, silence I weep/Dead suns rule dead air/But heaven is everywhere/Stars … Torn from God and flung towards night."

More illuminating is "Bring the Light," a call to shine in the world's dark spaces: "A son of God you know you must arrive/In the light, bring the light, let's bring the light … It's yours not mine/If you just want to survive/Go grab a glimpse of any star in heaven's high/I never felt so real and loved and alive/No shadows follow me unsung/In the light, bring the light to me."

It's a reassuring glimmer of Corgan's new perspective in life, even if it doesn't quite jibe with the album's iconoclastic façade. Could it be Corgan is interested in a different type of fight, one more in line with his new convictions? Album closer "Pomp and Circumstances" may provide some clues: "When I was born I lost/When I was freed I fought/Now that I'm loved I'm caught between the rest and this tragic mess/An invited guest/Torn, broken, and frayed/Oh don't we face/War, sunshine, and grace?"

Wherever Corgan is at with his faith these days, Zeitgeist represents a mature summation of his early steps in a faith walk. It suggests that Corgan has it in him to leave behind his own childhood dreams—yes, even the Smashing Pumpkins—and embrace the new man inside him.

Unless specified clearly, we are not implying whether this artist is or is not a Christian. The views expressed are simply the author's. For a more complete description of our Glimpses of God articles, click here

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