There was excitement at the TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on July 23 as 58,000 people gathered to hear a performance by the rock band U2. Widely regarded as one of the greatest rock bands in the world, U2 was nearing the end of its 360° World Tour, which began in 2009. As a fan of U2 for over 20 years, I was very pleased to be present in the stadium, thoroughly enjoying the performance with the rest of the audience that evening!
Hailing from Dublin, Ireland, the four members of U2 have been performing together since 1976. Over the years, U2 has developed a distinctly recognizable sound, “with emphasis on melodic instrumentals and expressive, larger-thanlife vocals (Wikipedia).” It’s a sound that appeals to a broad variety of people, as shown by the inter-generational makeup of their fan base.
I was initially drawn to the music – besides being energetic and rhythmic, I found the music to have a haunting quality, full of longing and emotion. Over time I paid more attention to the lyrics of U2’s songs, the ideas and meanings expressed by their music. Their songs address a broad variety of topics and emotions, both personal and political. They sing of human experiences such as joy, betrayal, love, loss, hypocrisy, addiction, as well as addressing political realities such as the troubles in Northern Ireland, apartheid in South Africa, and the problems of AIDS, hunger and overwhelming debt in many Third World countries.
As one listens carefully, it also becomes apparent that the music of U2 comes out of deep spiritual roots. Christian Scharen, a Lutheran pastor and professor at the Yale Center for Faith and Culture, has written a book entitled One Step Closer: Why U2 Matters to Those Seeking God in which he demonstrates that “U2 fits within a longer tradition of Christian voices that point us to the cross, to Jesus, and to the power of God’s ways in the world.”
Bono, the lead singer from U2, poetically describes the shape and effect of U2’s music in this way:
“There’s cathedrals and the alleyways in our music. I think the alleyway is usually on the way to the cathedral, where you can hear your own footsteps and you’re slightly nervous and looking over your shoulder and wondering if there’s somebody following you. And then you get there and you realize there was somebody following you: it’s God.”
What many of us appreciate about U2 is that they speak thoughtfully about faith and hope in a way that honestly acknowledges the pain and struggles of life. As Scharen expresses it, U2 speaks “about faith in the midst of doubt, hope in the face of despair, love in the face of violence, and peace and justice in the face of suffering.” I believe we need poets and musicians who can give voice to hope without sugarcoating the difficulties of life.
In future columns, perhaps we can dig deeper into the music of U2 along with comments from Christian Scharen’s book. In the meantime, I’d encourage interested readers to listen to some of U2’s music, perhaps beginning with songs from The Joshua Tree album.
Each month a member of the Cook County Ministerium will offer Spiritual Reflections. This month our contributor is Pastor Deborah Lunde, who has served as pastor of Zoar Lutheran Church in Tofte since July of 2008.
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