I don't really know exactly how to express my thoughts on the matter.
I feel that I should comment, though, because I see the depths of a gigantic problem here.
First and foremost, I would like to point out that from a purely analytical musical perspective, this is a great piece of work. It has rhythm, depth, feeling, and more.
Of course, one can not analyze it purely from a musical perspective, correct? They have to think of how it ties in with the game, what social impacts it could have, and more. I'll address these one by one.
With the matter on how it ties in with the game, I think it is fitting. It is the Lord's Prayer, and with the first Civ game with religion in it, as someone else remarked, I think that this isn't necessarily bad. I understand fully that it falls under the JCM God, yet I do not mind at all, and for the record, I am an atheist. I feel that there is a valid point brought up that many people react negatively because this concerns Christianity, but at the same time, I believe that there needs to be a look towards the greater picture.
This isn't an attempt to make people believe in Jesus...it's not music that was created for evangelical purposes. It was created as a fitting piece to begin a game that concerns human civilizations, and one can not doubt that religion is part of civilization; indeed, it is an integral part. I believe that people that have negative attitudes would be more affected by this, but at the same time, I don't believe Christians should attempt to use this as a "stealth" way to get others to say the prayer. As has been rightly mentioned, a prayer is more in the attitude and the thoughts than the mere saying - as the Pledge of Allegiance proves, saying words does not necessarily mean you believe in them. If the pledge were musically translated well, would you have a problem in that?
Sorry to derail here, but on a broader scale, this bodes poorly for society. Why do we rebel against Christian music that's disguised but not other music that may be just as disguised, merely not Christian? And more than that, why can we not appreciate music for what it is and not be restrained by the presumably non-intentional meaning behind it? Is art something that can only be practiced or appreciated by those who are of the same religion?
I don't like to be repetitively exposed to some quasi-subliminal Christian promo.
Sorry, but I'm not sure I understand. Christian promo isn't promo unless someone is actively trying to, well, promote it. It's not subliminal until you understand the words, and when you do, you should see that its' not meant to be promo. And to respond to another post later, being harassed by some Christians does not make all things Christian bad - I think that this is a prime example of negative stereotyping.
Hmm, that's just what I think. In the end, I think that this is excellent music, and that's all I have to say about it. Now I know it's religious - and I don't mind anymore than if it weren't, or if it were about some other God. Because I am secure in my religion (or lack thereof, rather), and I can see beyond it to the goodness in the music itself. As someone else postulated, it would be a sad world if we had to reject all art that was remotely religious, no?