You Belong With Me: The Greatest Catholic Sales Pitch Since Pentecost

Throughout history, mankind has been blessed by certain individuals who possess merits and talents greater than the standard. Never is this more true than in the case of Taylor Swift. When the evening of mankind's existence finally arrives, it will be Taylor Swift's music that stands as the sole greatest achievement known to man. In order for a piece of art to be considered truly good it must not only be beautiful to our human senses it must also appeal to something higher, that is, to our soul. Now it is obvious that Taylor's music appeals to our baser human senses. One only needs to turn on the radio and he is quick to come to this truth. However, it is in the higher sense that Taylor's music is profoundly striking. By incorporating deep religious themes and truths throughout her work Taylor achieves a timeless quality. Her music would be equally at home in the time of Moses as it is in the 21st century. Suffice it to say that I believe even God enjoys listening to Taylor's music.

Today, I will examine the song "You Belong With Me" from Taylor's album "Fearless". It is my belief that this song is a heartfelt call to conversion directed at all non-Catholic Christians and Jews. The majority of the song consists of painting a contrast between the Catholic religion and and the Protestant/Jewish religions. However, the depth and complexity of this song is so  unfathomable that Taylor required a separate medium with which to channel many of her insights. This channel is provided by the accompanying music video.  

First, I will inspect the song leaving the music video until later. The prevalent interpretation of this song is that of a girl (the hero) with a crush on a friend. However, this friend is currently in a relationship. This leaves the hero to make her case as to why the friend should be with her as opposed to  the "other" girl (the antagonist). It is only upon dismissing this trivial and petty interpretation that the true meaning of the song can be accessed.

First, the true identity of the hero's friend must be revealed. This is the key to the entire interpretation of the song. Because of this, much reflection and study went into this particular point. It is with the utmost confidence that I can say the friend is meant to represent the average non-Catholic Christian or Jew. The proof for this conclusion is significantly too involved for the sake of this blog and must be omitted for the sake of brevity.     

Taking this fact as true, I shall now reveal the true identity of the hero. The hero is very clearly meant to represent the Catholic Church. This requires very little explanation as I believe it is rather self evident. However, for the sake of those less astute individuals I will briefly put forth the truth. Throughout the song the hero serves as a medium of expression for Catholic sentiment and belief. For instance, the phases "And she'll never know your story like I do" and "Can't you see that I'm the one who understands you?" are meant to illustrate the boundless love God possess for each individual which is often-times channeled through the Catholic Church.  The phrase "Been here all along" is very clearly a reference towards the Catholic Church's longevity and sole claim to being the First and Oldest church. The title of the song, "You Belong with Me"is obviously an allusion to the Church's "catholic" and "universal" characteristics. Before continuing, the character of the "other" girl must at this time be revealed.

The "other" girl is unmistakably a reference to an "umbrella" of Christian and Jewish sects. Throughout the song the characteristics of the "other" girl are compared to the characteristics of the hero as if they were in a competition. This competition is evidently for the membership and consequently the soul of the hero's friend. For instance the verse "But she wears short skirts, I wear T-shirts She's Cheer Captain and I'm on the bleachers" is meant to represent the secularization of many protestant churches and to contrast this secularization with the unchanging tradition of the Catholic Church. The line "And she'll never know your story like I do" is a rather subtle statement of the Catholic Church's infinite wisdom and infallibility. Also, the line "Hey, what ya doing with a girl like that?" is an allusion to the murky and in some cases second rate Christianity practiced by many Protestants. This brings my discussion regarding the lyrics of the song to a close. Now I will examine the accompanying music video. 

 The music video contains two important themes. The first theme is that Catholicism is not only open to non-Catholic Christians but it also welcomes Jews. This can be seen through the not so subtle text on the the girl's shirt (see picture above) where the word Jew is very clearly written under the phrase "I love you". The second, and perhaps less obvious theme, is the existence of truth and goodness (although incomplete and broken) outside of the Catholic Church. This is seen by the fact that in the video, Taylor plays the part of the antagonist in addition to that of the hero. As the antagonist Taylor is barely recognizable. Her face is veiled behind layers of make-up and her hair is dyed an unnatural dark color. Although she appears to be very different, the core of the two characters the"foundation" is still identical.  

In summary, this song is a beautiful and enriching masterpiece directed at converting all people to the one true Church. The shear number of references and illusions to the Catholic faith are to many to number; therefore, only the most obvious have been brought forward in this article. I believe that this song, if viewed properly, can be a true game-changer in the new evangelization.                                          

Taylor Swift: You Belong With Me

You're on the phone with your girlfriend, she's upset

She's going off about something that you said
'Cause she doesn't get your humor like I do

I'm in the room, it's a typical Tuesday night
I'm listening to the kind of music she doesn't like
And she'll never know your story like I do

But she wears short skirts, I wear T-shirts
She's Cheer Captain and I'm on the bleachers
Dreaming about the day when you wake up and find
That what you're looking for has been here the whole time

If you could see that I'm the one who understands you
Been here all along, so why can't you see?
You, you belong with me, you belong with me

Walking the streets with you and your worn-out jeans
I can't help thinking this is how it ought to be
Laughing on a park bench, thinking to myself
Hey, isn't this easy?

And you've got a smile that could light up this whole town
I haven't seen it in a while since she brought you down
You say you're fine, I know you better than that
Hey, what ya doing with a girl like that?

She wears high heels, I wear sneakers
She's Cheer Captain and I'm on the bleachers
Dreaming about the day when you wake up and find
That what you're looking for has been here the whole time

If you could see that I'm the one who understands you
Been here all along, so why can't you see?
You belong with me

Standing by and waiting at your back door
All this time how could you not know?
Baby, you belong with me, you belong with me

Oh, I remember you driving to my house in the middle of the night
I'm the one who makes you laugh when you know you're 'bout to cry
And I know your favorite songs and you tell me 'bout your dreams
Think I know where you belong, think I know it's with me

Can't you see that I'm the one who understands you?
Been here all along, so why can't you see?
You belong with me

Standing by and waiting at your back door
All this time, how could you not know?
Baby, you belong with me, you belong with me

You belong with me
Have you ever thought just maybe
You belong with me
You belong with me

Lyrics taken from <a href="http://www.elyrics.net/read/t/taylor-swift-lyrics/you-belong-with-me-lyrics.html" rel="nofollow">this page</a>