RELIGION OF THE HEART
 (Words by Rick Springfield / music by Rick Springfield and Jeff Silverman)

His hair was bible black
Face like a priest
His fingers clutched the precious box
And silent as a dream
He hid behind the dark sunglasses
You caught your breath
You thought he was beautiful
You didn't hear his silent scream
As he spread the dead man's ashes

You're always trying to find your worth
In the eyes of someone new
You may not think you need this baby
But I think you do

You need religion of the heart
Religion of the heart
Deep in your system
You're just searching in the dark
For a reason to believe
You need religion of the heart

You raise your glass
You drink their wine
But you're still thirsty all the time
No miracles tonight
And you'll skip the midnight masses
It'll be okay in the cool clear
Bright light of the day
But you just seem so scattered
As though nothing mattered baby

You're always trying to heal yourself
In someone else's skin
Turn the thieves out of the temple baby
And let it in

You need religion of the heart
Religion of the heart
Deep in your system
You're just searching in the dark
For a reason to believe
You need religion of the heart

Oh you think that I am only joking
And it all comes down to nothing
And I'm just talking to your fear
But I 'm not
No, I'm not
And you stand in the field of fire

You need religion of the heart
Religion of the heart
Deep in your system
You're just searching in the dark
For a reason to believe
You need religion of the heart

RELIGION OF THE HEART
(total playing time 3:34)

Rick says:
A song about personal spiritual discipline, not about finding Christianity - Melodicrock.com

Rick also says: it's basically - I don't know what it is - it's just some sense of myself - a song kind of about more spiritual discipline, you know? Not being so, head out in the world. It sounds kind of like a love song but, or to reprimand another person - but it's really, self-directed. Like the [gun] was several times during the session. (Laughter) I can be kind of hard on myself. 
The thing with that was the trick of getting the tremolo guitar in. Because I wanted it, we both wanted it (Bill Drescher), absolutely perfect-tempo in the chorus - and it just wasn't hitting right where we wanted it to. So, we just sampled each chord and hit it, and triggered it. We didn't want there to be any space - we wanted it to go from one beat to the next - eiozone.com

Song Facts:  This song appears on Karma.
Rick performed this song live in Joliet, IL on 11/2/00, with the help of lyrics provided by a fan (DR).

Footnote - background picture was taken in Joliet, IL 11/02/00 by Renata Hearn.  You can see Rick reading the "Please play Religion of the Heart" request, and he did.

 According to US

If ever Rick Springfield were to write a song about *me*, this one is it. From the first time I heard this, I could have swore he was talking about me or to me. This song really came to me at a time that I really needed it. From the first words, "His hair was bible black, face like a priest...to the line you caught your breath you thought he was beautiful" in the first stanza - those words were so *me* it is scary. Sorry Rick, I didn't hear your silent scream...and gosh you sure know how to make me feel guilty about that.

I am so the person that's trying to make sure everyone likes me. "You're always trying to find your worth in the eyes of someone new" I guess I never realized Rick was like that too. For a long time too, I've been searching for a meaning as to why I'm here, who I'm supposed to be - and if I ended up in that right place. I sought out other religions also, being raised a Catholic I never really found comfort there, but yet could find no other place that suited me either. So the religious references in this song seemed to really "fit" too. The lines, "You raise your glass, you drink their wine but you're still thirsty all the time" are some of my favorites from this one. It's a much more eloquent way of saying you're unsatisfied. The comparison of being okay in the bright light of the day, but searching in the dark hits home also. Everything does always seem okay in the hustle bustle of the day to day doings, but it's when I'm laying in bed at night and everyone in my house is sleeping that my mind starts going and I can't sleep because my brain has gone into overdrive. 

I took this as a message from Rick that I really needed to just look within my heart to find what I was looking for. That it was really there all the time, "my religion" that I needed to follow, I just needed to listen to it. To trust myself that I am doing everything right. I play this song quite often, especially when I'm looking for some solace -for someone to tell me everything is going to be okay.

I've not been fortunate enough to hear this one officially live, I say it that way because Rick did do most of it on request at the RLS fanclub gathering in 1999. Again, it is such a shame that this album did not get the radio airplay it deserves, nor the attention from Rick I think it should have received. This is another excellent example of Rick's awesome songwriting ability that only us lucky few get to treasure. - Michelle P.

Like so many others, the first line instantly brings a picture of Rick into my head. 
My strongest vision of Rick Springfield is that pitch black, perfectly feathered hair he had in 1982, so the first line always brings up that image. But besides the very first verse, I always thought he was singing this about/to his wife. I guess mostly because I read somewhere she collects crosses (which is why I guess their wedding rings have a cross theme - well his anyway, I've never seen hers) and that indicated to me that she must be religious and I was thinking maybe that was a source of tension between them, especially since he has done such exploring with his. 
I really like this song alot. I'm actually just now noticing what a heavy acoustic guitar sound there is. So many times, I am so concentrating on lyrics, I totally miss the music part of a song. It's amazing the kinds of things you notice when you sit down and concentrate on a song, looking for something to say.

Rick having said this song was directed at himself, just goes to show, one more time, how "normal" he is. I think it's very common for people to try to find their self worth in other people's opinions and having that desperate need for approval, even someone who has a mass of people adoring him thinking he's wonderful, still searches. - rlh

If Sahara Snow is my favorite (tied closely with LIO) rocking Rick music to keep me peppy, Karma (tied closely with ROL and Tao) is my introspective favorite, and I put it on when I want to think carefully about things and savor the meaning behind the words. Where I love SS and LIO for the beat and the surges in the music to carry me along, Karma is the album that prompts me to listen and savor what pictures are created with the words.

I've always liked Religion of the Heart. The first part always makes me think that he is describing himself at his father's funeral; "bible black, face like a priest, his fingers clutched the precious box"...he knows people think he is beautiful but they can't hear the screaming inside his head at what he has lost in the midst of all that he has gained. 

This line "You're always trying to find your worth in the eyes of someone knew" struck a real chord with me. If Rick is singing about himself here, I think it is very astute of him to recognize it in himself, and while it makes sense, it does astound me that he feels about himself the way so many of us do feel about ourselves. 

I like the second part of this song too: "You raise your glass, drink their wine, but you're still thirsty all the time..." This describes to me Rick's struggle with organized religion. He wants to find his path, wants to believe in something, a larger force, to try and make sense of all that goes on in this world. It's a recurring theme throughout his work from Speak to the Sky to Like Father Like Son, to Tao of Love, to Soul to Soul and onto here. Clearly he was given a path by those who went before him and he struggles because the confines of it just don't seem to fit; it doesn't speak to his heart, and that is what he is grasping at here...he needs something that will make sense to him, so that he doesn't look outwards for affirmation or faith. 

I love the way he sings "you stand in the field of fire..." Anyone who follows Corey Hart knows that is the title of his third album, Fields of Fire, and also has some great introspective tunes on it (favorite: Chase the Sun...for a similar feeling and search as this song of Rick's). I guess it all comes down to our inevitable search for meaning in this world, and how we have to learn to look outside ourselves to be able to come to a peace with the insanity that happens on a daily basis. - Amy SP