sulawesigirl4
Rock n' Roll Doggie ALL ACCESS
Now before anyone looks at the title of the thread and runs away scared of theology...let me clarify what I mean by this question.
This holiday season I was down in Missouri visiting my parents. At this time in their lives they are attending a Southern Baptist church, a denomination that I'm not particularly fond of for some of their tendencies towards legalism, etc. but whatever. I was with my parents, and I was going to be a good daughter and accompany them to church on Sunday. To my surprise the interim pastor got up and said he was going to show a video clip before the sermon, and lo and behold there was Edge on the screen talking about U2 always wanting to write a gospel song! It was the footage of the band visiting the choir in Harlem to sing ISHFWILF in the Rattle and Hum movie. Needless to say I was delighted to see U2 in church no less, but a bit wary as to how this was going to figure into the sermon.
To my disappointment, after the clip was done the speaker barely mentioned the name of the band (didn't even talk about their faith, etc.) but launched right into a sermon based on the Old Testament teachings of Ecclesiastes. His "theme" was basically that we can search for happiness in all the wrong places - his examples were knowledge, sex, alcohol (it wouldn't be a good Baptist church if you didn't demonize drinking
), and drugs. More or less he was using the phrase "I still haven't found what I'm looking for" to refer to the search for meaning that can only be found in Christ. And while at its most simplistic level, I think I can agree with him, something about that naivete really bothered me. The idea that one can "arrive" merely by professing faith and that the search then ends and you have "found what your looking for" is one that I disagree with.
Now for the Philippians part. I'm indebted to Steve Stockman for pointing this correlation out. I first read some of his essays on ISHFWILF when I was working on a project for my theology class - a paper I was writing about U2 and faith. (sound familiar?
) Stockman takes a very different approach to this song...he links it to the words of Paul in Philippians 3:12-14: Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself to have yet taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Now, as I was just typing those verses out, some of the words jumped off the screen at me. Forgetting what is behind...all that you can't leave behind. Press on...walk on. And of course the goal. But even broader than that is the concept that even if one has come to faith, one is still on a journey. That our lives are a continual process in which we grow and learn. I like the way Stockman puts it in the book Walk On (page 75): Paul had to take the belief, then go where that belief would lead him. Proclaiming a new doctrinal statement did not bring with it and overnight holiness.
Anyways, I realize that this is long-winded. lol. I actually have more stuff from the book that I want to add to this, but I'll open it up for discussion and see what you all think.
-sula
[This message has been edited by sulawesigirl4 (edited 01-05-2002).]
This holiday season I was down in Missouri visiting my parents. At this time in their lives they are attending a Southern Baptist church, a denomination that I'm not particularly fond of for some of their tendencies towards legalism, etc. but whatever. I was with my parents, and I was going to be a good daughter and accompany them to church on Sunday. To my surprise the interim pastor got up and said he was going to show a video clip before the sermon, and lo and behold there was Edge on the screen talking about U2 always wanting to write a gospel song! It was the footage of the band visiting the choir in Harlem to sing ISHFWILF in the Rattle and Hum movie. Needless to say I was delighted to see U2 in church no less, but a bit wary as to how this was going to figure into the sermon.
To my disappointment, after the clip was done the speaker barely mentioned the name of the band (didn't even talk about their faith, etc.) but launched right into a sermon based on the Old Testament teachings of Ecclesiastes. His "theme" was basically that we can search for happiness in all the wrong places - his examples were knowledge, sex, alcohol (it wouldn't be a good Baptist church if you didn't demonize drinking
Now for the Philippians part. I'm indebted to Steve Stockman for pointing this correlation out. I first read some of his essays on ISHFWILF when I was working on a project for my theology class - a paper I was writing about U2 and faith. (sound familiar?
Now, as I was just typing those verses out, some of the words jumped off the screen at me. Forgetting what is behind...all that you can't leave behind. Press on...walk on. And of course the goal. But even broader than that is the concept that even if one has come to faith, one is still on a journey. That our lives are a continual process in which we grow and learn. I like the way Stockman puts it in the book Walk On (page 75): Paul had to take the belief, then go where that belief would lead him. Proclaiming a new doctrinal statement did not bring with it and overnight holiness.
Anyways, I realize that this is long-winded. lol. I actually have more stuff from the book that I want to add to this, but I'll open it up for discussion and see what you all think.
-sula
[This message has been edited by sulawesigirl4 (edited 01-05-2002).]
