Tom Petty died yesterday at the age of 66 after suffering cardiac arrest (lifelong smoker).¹ I know little about the man except that he cranked out the hits in the ’70s through ’90s. I don’t remember buying any of his LPs, but clicking on some of his YouTube vids it’s clear that I memorized the words to many of his songs. He wrote some catchy tunes, which brings us to the subject of tonight’s post: Pastor Douglas Wilson of Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho, has adopted a Tom Petty song for his theology of defiance. The song’s title — “I Won’t Back Down” — and its words, say it all:

I Won’t Back Down

Written by Jeff Lynne & Tom Petty

Well, I won’t back down
No, I won’t back down
You can stand me up at the gates of hell
But I won’t back down

No, I’ll stand my ground
Won’t be turned around
And I’ll keep this world from draggin’ me down
Gonna stand my ground
And I won’t back down
(I won’t back down)

Hey, baby, there ain’t no easy way out
(I won’t back down)
Hey, I will stand my ground
And I won’t back down

Well I know what’s right
I got just one life
In a world that keeps on pushin’ me around
But I’ll stand my ground

And I won’t back down
(I won’t back down)
Hey, baby, there ain’t no easy way out
(I won’t back down)
Hey, I . . .

No one will mistake it for Robert Frost, but there it is.

Proof

Here are five examples from a 13-year period of Douglas Wilson invoking Tom Petty for his defiance:

And Tim Hillebrand is the latest 20/20 participant who believes that we can somehow be embarrassed by a magazine we have been publishing for close to fifteen years, and have been mailing all over the country. You know, when we publish something, we don’t mind when folks read it. Please, have at it. And we don’t even mind things taken out of context, so long as you spell our names right. Like Tom Petty, we won’t back down. You all can try something else now. (Moscow Vision 2020, No Subject, June 22, 2002)

First, Donovan is exactly right in anticipating how I would respond. We did not print and distribute the anonymous flyers, we did not ask for a front page news story that erroneously proclaimed slavery as the topic of the conference, we did not ask for the AP to pick up the story, using that error as the hook of the story, we did not ask for certain progressives to start boycotting businesses owned by multi-racial families who happen to attend our multi-racial church (to show their opposition of racism!), and we did not ask for the subsequent torrent of shrill, humorless, and ugly denunciations. Now, according to the normal drill, whenever the progressive meat grinder goes into action, the selected victim is supposed to apologize and promise to be a good boy thereafter. But we, taking our cue from Tom Petty, are not backing down. And now Moscow has a black eye because certain people insisted on maintaining their slanderous lies at the top of their voices. (Moscow Vision 2020, The end of Moscow? November 26, 2003)

But for those who are on heap big warpath, regardless of the facts, I do have a few rhetorical questions for them. First, if there is no such thing as fixed truth, what could possibly be the problem with plagiarism? I believe plagiarism is a sin, but of course, I believe there is such a thing as sin. Second, if there is a problem with plagiarism anyway, despite your ethical relativism, then are you willing to apply all your current rhetoric to the doctoral dissertation of Martin Luther King, Jr.? If not, then why not? Or perhaps is your outrage selective? Third, am I to feel honored because these charges are being made by Dr. Nick Gier, a man whose scholarship I have personally encountered? And last, rounding things out, do you really think that any of these current tactics are going to get me to back down? Do you not know that I have heeded the exhortations of Tom Petty? (Blog & Mablog, Plagiarism, Aye, August 4, 2004)

Life in community is hard, and life in large community is even harder. When we have angered someone we didn’t want to anger, or hurt someone we ought not to have hurt, we should be eager to put it right, and we should act like we are eager to put it right (Prov. 15:1). When we offend someone we were intending to offend, and we had good biblical reasons for intending that, we should do our level best to be what I call Tom Petty Presbyterians — don’t back down. Don’t climb down either. Above all, don’t crawl. (Blog & Mablog, A Theology of Apology, March 28, 2013)

One of the many beeves that my adversaries have against me is that I do that Tom Petty thing, and don’t back down. And then, when I do issue a retraction or something, it is done in such a manner as to not let the bad guys hit me over the head with it. In that spirit, let me issue an apology to all my sane readers. This last week, we have seen multiple runaway trains in my comment threads, which I should have been able to stop, but was not. (Blog & Mablog, A Technological Lummox, September 12, 2015)

Self-proclaimed apologist for the Christian faith — Doug Wilson — cites Tom Petty as inspiration for his defiance. Tough to reconcile with Scripture, but that’s business as usual. And I actually agree that Mr. Wilson lives his life in accord with the words of this song, with one exception: Tom Petty could sing, “Well I know what’s right” (3^rd verse) — Doug Wilson not so much.

¹ Fellow Travelling Willbury George Harrison died of lung cancer. Smoking ensures premature death. Horrible way to go.