Behind the Pulpit: What Lies Behind the Angry Face?

Behind the Pulpit: What Lies Behind the Angry Face?

By Walter Beck

I’ve known street preachers, first getting acquainted with them during my second year at ISU when I first met a man named George Smock (aka “Brother Jed”) and his side-act that year, Brother Mitch. When I first met them, they seemed like the standard sort of religious fanatics that I’ve seen off and on my whole life. I hassled them for the cheap laughs, getting myself a little bit of press in the process. I would play devil’s advocate and get the crowds riled up and laughing.

Since my first interaction with them in the Fall of 2008, I’ve gotten to know others as well, I’ve known Brother Larry, one of the most notorious in Terre Haute, Preacher Saunders out of California, Sister Pat and Sister Cindy, Brother Cope and Ruben Israel, one of the most hardcore street preachers in America outside of the Westboro Baptist Church.

In the public eye, we’re the perfect matches, these angry men calling down hellfire and damnation and me always there in my ripped up jeans and black metal t-shirts, an unrepentant and unapologetic young rock n roller extoling loud music, rebellion, booze and sex, the public poster boy for decadence. And I always went over the top, French-kissing my buddies in front of ‘em, chanting “Hugs Not Hell”, reading from The Satanic Bible or from George Carlin, singing rock n roll songs, anything to get a laugh from the crowd. That’s what I was doing, defusing the anger of the crowd before it got out of control.

But here’s the truly funny part, I started to get to know these preachers “off-stage”; I think I grew closest to Brother Jed because he was a regular, he’d always show up at ISU. I saw a side to him that the public rarely saw, that of a gentle old man who really felt he was just spreading love. I saw him without his mask on, without the hellfire and damnation pouring out of him. It was startling.

I also got to know Brother Larry quite well, mainly because I was the only guy on campus who would give him the time of day. I think Larry means well, but he doesn’t always know how to turn off the switch, which gets him in trouble. But I have nothing personal against the guy, hell I invited him out to a poetry gig last year.

Even Ruben Israel, one of the hardest of the hard; I don’t know him on quite as personal of a level as I do Jed or Larry, but we’ve spoken privately online. Even he, who posts some of the most unrelenting damnation of anyone I know, told me that if I went out of town, he’d pick up my mail and walk my dog.

So here’s my question, where is the line with these guys? I mean, you’d never think that I would ever have a friendly word with these guys, as polar opposite as we seem. But it’s strange the friendships I have with these angry men. Hell Jed took me out to dinner and next time I see him, if I have the money, I plan on reciprocating the favor.

I wonder how much of their screaming and yelling is all a show? If it’s all a show, that’s fine, I can totally respect that because I’m a showman. And trust me; I’m a completely different person on stage than I am off-stage. As my friend Heather is fond of saying, “Beck, you’re not the Molotov-cocktail throwing anarchist you want people to think you are. I’ve seen you with orphaned kittens.” She’s right, it’s all an image, when I’m back in the room, I listen to Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin and watch Fox News, waiting for Glenn Beck to shred our Commie President with his deep and thoughtful wit (EXTREME SARCASM). No, I listen to Megadeth and feed my political addiction, but there’s still a strong line between on-stage Walter and private Walter; selective schizophrenia, all performers have it, it’s just a matter of controlling it.

Maybe that’s why I’m friends with these guys, because we’re both showmen and we respect each other on a certain level. Even Jed and his side acts have mentioned my ability to work a crowd and my affable nature with people. I’ve watched these guys more than I should admit publically and what they do is total performance art. These guys are the true alternative artists, they do it all for the draw of the crowd, that’s why many of them are so over the top. They’re good at working crowds and they’re good at drawing publicity. They love controversy, maybe even more than I do, because if they get escorted off campuses, banned or even arrested, they can claim persecution and martyrdom. And “martyrdom” is worth more than their weight in gold to these guys.

So that’s where I’m at, wondering how much of the hellfire is just an act; if they can make friends with an unrepentant bisexual rock n roller, how much of their “purity” is just for the papers?

Does anyone out there know?