U2 and Religion

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Yeah, U2 By U2 does give a very broad look at the beliefs of the band members, showing how they changed from the extremely zealous early years (nearly breaking up the band over perceived contradictions between their music and their faith), to today. I've only read a few pages of In Conversation, so I can't give out any detailed information on that one.
 
Yeah, the upside-down thing is a symbol of humility. And while I'm sure there are some folks who call themselves "satanists," it is such a tiny sliver of a fringe group that's it's not worth the concern.
 
Although I am not a devout person by any stretch, I appreciate the religious content in U2's work.

And, teaching in a Catholic school, I have heard piles of contemporary Christian rock, and it just awful, awful stuff - completely derivative dreck. Actually, a good deal of it steals plenty of U2 more big-anthem moves. But you should hear the God-rock version of whiny emo stuff. Ack.

What I appreciate about U2's religious content is that it actually includes PRAISE. So much of Christian rock is about "ME, ME, ME" and "what God can do for ME." And "I'm so messed up and the big Daddy in the sky will fix me." Whenever I'm in church with my school, I play a little game on the lyric sheets: I count the number of I's and me's and the number of God's or you's. The me's always win! It's like spiritual psycho-babble for dumb people. U2's songs have always been more complex and human.
 
WOW great pics :D

OK I found the thing

Bono-madrid-the-joshua-tree.jpg



that´s the "cross" that got me consfused :D you can see it is some kind of symbol, maybe that celtic cross
 
Dear God, that video made me crack up. Please, Lord, say that it is a parody.

I personally am a Christian, although I really dislike the holier-than-thou attitude of many modern Christians, and cannot stand modern Christian "music", for the reasons listed above. U2 are Christians (except maybe Adam), and, of course, this has found its way into their music, more than most bands.

However, first of all, the greatest thing about Bono's lyric-writing ability is that what he wrote the song about is not necessarily what the song is about. Everyone is free to interpret his lyrics however they want, and, in the end, (barring saying that Mothers of the Disappeared is about sex or something) there is no right or wrong answer.

Bono has always been painfully honest about himself, and that is where my deepest respect for him comes from. I don't know him personally, and will never know what's really in his head, but my guess is that he has what I like to call Albus Dumbledore syndrome. He is a great man, greater than he gives himself credit for, and he's willing to freely admit his imperfections. He realizes that man is not really able to speak honestly about himself, but works as hard as he can to be honest, and, in the process, is better able to understand himself.

Again - just a theory - I am not inside of Bono's head, so I shouldn't claim to know who he is or what he's thinking.

Bono is also a bit of a philosopher, and his philosophy is (duh) influenced by his Christianity. Themes that he strongly believe in... love, especially... end up over and over again in his lyrics, in both positive and pragmatic ways (One, anyone?).

Just my $0.02.
 
i was raised in a family made of 3 different religions and constantly beaten on the head with their doctrines. what i like so much about u2 and the religious aspect of their work and "lives" is that they don't force it down your throat. it's part of them and their work, but like mentioned the songs can be interpreted in many different ways. the other thing is that they are not afraid to question their faith. something religious people don't do. well none that i've met.
 
Screwtape2 said:
I don't see why it would make any difference if the band was satanic or did something satanic. There is nothing wrong with satanists. I'd still love the band. :shrug:
Click to expand...

Look at it from the perspective of someone who isn't you, and perhaps you'll be able to see where people like Caroni are coming from. It would bother me if U2 were satanists, for obvious reasons. It's perfectly fine if you wouldn't be bothered by it, but to say that there is no clear reason why it would bother anyone is rather thoughtless.
 
LemonMelon said:
Look at it from the perspective of someone who isn't you, and perhaps you'll be able to see where people like Caroni are coming from. It would bother me if U2 were satanists, for obvious reasons. It's perfectly fine if you wouldn't be bothered by it, but to say that there is no clear reason why it would bother anyone is rather thoughtless.
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To hate an artist based on their religious beliefs is a sign of a terrible human being. You can hate the content of the art but not the artist because of their religious beliefs. As an atheist, if an artist believed in a religion that said I'm going to suffer forever after death I wouldn't hate them. Come to think of it there is a religion like that. It's called Christianity. But members of U2 are Christian. Should I instantly hate them?

No, because they are not defined by their religion. Recently we saw the anniversary of the I Have A Dream speech. MLK said "all men should be judged by the content of their character." If you are a good human being you look past the labels of person and into who they are inside.
 
Screwtape2 said:
To hate an artist based on their religious beliefs is a sign of a terrible human being. You can hate the content of the art but not the artist because of their religious beliefs. As an atheist, if an artist believed in a religion that said I'm going to suffer forever after death I wouldn't hate them. Come to think of it there is a religion like that. It's called Christianity. But members of U2 are Christian. Should I instantly hate them?

No, because they are not defined by their religion. Recently we saw the anniversary of the I Have A Dream speech. MLK said "all men should be judged by the content of their character." If you are a good human being you look past the labels of person and into who they are inside.
Click to expand...

He did not say that he would hate U2 if they were Satanic. However, if they were Satanic (the thought of Satanic U2 is making me laugh), and those values were represented in their music (as I believe values that are very strong in Christianity, e.g. love, are in the 'real' U2, so to speak), and we disagreed with those values, we would have every right in the world to dislike those values, dislike the music, and not listen to it.
 
I think it's fair to say that people can dislike an artist or any other person in general due to any difference in ideology, religious or not.

The "artist," in this case, infuses their music with their own beliefs... which is kind of the idea of artistic expression. Not sure, maybe I'll check on Wikipedia. It's totally legit for someone to not be interested in the artist or their art if it doesn't fit them, how does that make them a terrible person?
 
Screwtape2 said:
To hate an artist based on their religious beliefs is a sign of a terrible human being. You can hate the content of the art but not the artist because of their religious beliefs. As an atheist, if an artist believed in a religion that said I'm going to suffer forever after death I wouldn't hate them. Come to think of it there is a religion like that. It's called Christianity. But members of U2 are Christian. Should I instantly hate them?

No, because they are not defined by their religion. Recently we saw the anniversary of the I Have A Dream speech. MLK said "all men should be judged by the content of their character." If you are a good human being you look past the labels of person and into who they are inside.
Click to expand...

Where did the word "hatred" creep up anywhere in my post or Caroni's? That's you attempting to puff up the point you're trying to make, when it had no basis to begin with. This has nothing to do with hating a fellow human being AT ALL. Were it, you would have been completely within your rights to call us both hypocrites, as we claim to be loving Christians.

No, this is about a hypothetical situation wherein you must decide whether or not you want to to disassociate yourself with a band's music because it's openly at odds with your chosen belief system. Is it closed-minded to avoid music promoting satanism because you're a Christian? Possibly. But you've got to admit, it's perfectly logical. More so than claiming to be part of every religion on earth just because it creates the illusion of being a kind, accepting human being. But little of what you do makes sense to me, Screw.
 
Well, thank goodness you've come to clear that up for us.

edit: Ha, that was for Bottle Bono. I was beaten to the response.
 
Bottle Bono said:
No matter how much you wish it to be true.

There is NO GOD

So it doesn't matter really.
Click to expand...

If you would like to add something productive to our conversation, please do so. It is good to hear thoughts here. However, I would appreciate some respect for those of us who do believe in God, just as I respect the hell out of those people with the courage not to believe in Him, such as yourself.
 
digitize said:
He did not say that he would hate U2 if they were Satanic. However, if they were Satanic (the thought of Satanic U2 is making me laugh), and those values were represented in their music (as I believe values that are very strong in Christianity, e.g. love, are in the 'real' U2, so to speak), and we disagreed with those values, we would have every right in the world to dislike those values, dislike the music, and not listen to it.
Click to expand...

It is implied. Caroni said if U2 was doing a satanic act with the upside down cross she won't be able to like the band anymore. That's what I'm talking about. You can't hate (a common word used when describing an artist you really don't like) an artist simply because they have a religious belief system you don't like. You can't define a person by their religion. I said it all in my last post.

To go on a small rant. Personally, Satanism makes far more sense than Christianity does. Though I don't believe in any of them. Satanism is about humanity. Christianity takes away a person's humanity. Humans are Lucifer. We are the rebellion. Why have so much distrust towards a figure that embodies us? Humans shouldn't be forgiven of the mistakes in our lives. We need to carry them with us. In the bible, God is the villain. God is a terrible creature. Lucifer and Jesus are the heroes. Jesus is Zeus. He is meant to overthrow the father. Jesus's taste of humanity will lead him to destroy the father who himself would destroy the same humanity if only to be worshipped by all. That is how the story is meant to go. In the end, God is dead and humanity lives on.
 
Caroni said:
WOW great pics :D

OK I found the thing

Bono-madrid-the-joshua-tree.jpg



that´s the "cross" that got me consfused :D you can see it is some kind of symbol, maybe that celtic cross
Click to expand...

Thank you for posting this pic!

But, a Celtic Cross has a circle behind it. I wear one around my neck. Representing the teachings of St. Patrick. The ancient Christian Celtic converts believed like the sun, God's love was eternal.
 
Screwtape2 said:
It is implied. Caroni said if U2 was doing a satanic act with the upside down cross she won't be able to like the band anymore. That's what I'm talking about. You can't hate (a common word used when describing an artist you really don't like) an artist simply because they have a religious belief system you don't like. You can't define a person by their religion. I said it all in my last post.

To go on a small rant. Personally, Satanism makes far more sense than Christianity does. Though I don't believe in any of them. Satanism is about humanity. Christianity takes away a person's humanity. Humans are Lucifer. We are the rebellion. Why have so much distrust towards a figure that embodies us? Humans shouldn't be forgiven of the mistakes in our lives. We need to carry them with us. In the bible, God is the villain. God is a terrible creature. Lucifer and Jesus are the heroes. Jesus is Zeus. He is meant to overthrow the father. Jesus's taste of humanity will lead him to destroy the father who himself would destroy the same humanity if only to be worshipped by all. That is how the story is meant to go. In the end, God is dead and humanity lives on.
Click to expand...

YouTube - U2// Please // Miami //Elevation Tour Finale
 
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