Died in the Prison of the Holy Office

He handled snakes He dared them to bite He put his lips to the strychnine And he inhaled He took the news advice Spent less time indoors Tried drugs, tried church The combination worked Confused but more than willing That's when it all stopped working Tried nihilism Couldn't afford the vacation He took the new advice Spent less time outdoors Tried drugs again Tried church again At last, he heard the voice A black cloud with a gray lining At least we had a choice But he was cursed from the beginning Night and day, he struggled To make his own way in time We crawl just like our fathers Ten miles to get a dime It took a decade The flip of a broken coin Said he owed it to the pastor Who said he'd save this boy Night and day, he struggled To make his own way in time We crawl just like our mothers Ten miles to get a dime It took a decade To flip that broken coin It took a decade To get it in his mind At the gates of Hell Pretend you're saved At the gates of Hell Pretend you're brave At the gates of Hell Pretend you're saved With an everlasting rust We dragged our names into the dust Stripped of love, stripped of skin Built a wall, but they let us in A steel box never unsealed Isolated in a verdant field A phony ring of protection Bought online from a fake white shaman Clenched my teeth all the way down When my therapist said to smile Kill your mind, lit by fire Once I dreamt we heard the choir Away with God, away with love Our hands are tied and stepped on Away with God, away with love Our hands are tied and stepped on Away with God, away with love Our hands are tied and stepped on Away with God, away with love Our hands are tied and stepped on