Salty Dogma

This is pretty cool. It's an interview with U-2's frontman, Bono, concerning what he believes. (Bow to The Funky Presbyterian for the link, and apologies for stealing his post title, which was too good to pass up...)

Some have assailed Bono's faith, doubting whether he is a Christian because of his iconic pop star status. I certainly disagree with him on many temporal issues myself, but you won't find me disagreeing with a word of this:

Bono: My understanding of the Scriptures has been made simple by the person of Christ. Christ teaches that God is love. What does that mean? What it means for me: a study of the life of Christ. Love here describes itself as a child born in straw poverty, the most vulnerable situation of all, without honor. I don't let my religious world get too complicated. I just kind of go: Well, I think I know what God is. God is love, and as much as I respond [sighs] in allowing myself to be transformed by that love and acting in that love, that's my religion. Where things get complicated for me, is when I try to live this love. Now that's not so easy.

Assayas: What about the God of the Old Testament? He wasn't so "peace and love"?

Bono: There's nothing hippie about my picture of Christ. The Gospels paint a picture of a very demanding, sometimes divisive love, but love it is. I accept the Old Testament as more of an action movie: blood, car chases, evacuations, a lot of special effects, seas dividing, mass murder, adultery. The children of God are running amok, wayward. Maybe that's why they're so relatable. But the way we would see it, those of us who are trying to figure out our Christian conundrum, is that the God of the Old Testament is like the journey from stern father to friend. When you're a child, you need clear directions and some strict rules. But with Christ, we have access in a one-to-one relationship, for, as in the Old Testament, it was more one of worship and awe, a vertical relationship. The New Testament, on the other hand, we look across at a Jesus who looks familiar, horizontal. The combination is what makes the Cross.

...Or this...

Bono: It's a mind-blowing concept that the God who created the universe might be looking for company, a real relationship with people, but the thing that keeps me on my knees is the difference between Grace and Karma.

Assayas: I haven't heard you talk about that.

Bono: I really believe we've moved out of the realm of Karma into one of Grace.

Assayas: Well, that doesn't make it clearer for me.

Bono: You see, at the center of all religions is the idea of Karma. You know, what you put out comes back to you: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, or in physics—in physical laws—every action is met by an equal or an opposite one. It's clear to me that Karma is at the very heart of the universe. I'm absolutely sure of it. And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that "as you reap, so you will sow" stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff.

Assayas: I'd be interested to hear that.

Bono: That's between me and God. But I'd be in big trouble if Karma was going to finally be my judge. I'd be in deep s---. It doesn't excuse my mistakes, but I'm holding out for Grace. I'm holding out that Jesus took my sins onto the Cross, because I know who I am, and I hope I don't have to depend on my own religiosity.

Amen, brother. Amen

Hello Hello
We're at a place called Vertigo
Lights go down and all I know
Is that You give me something...
I can feel Your love teaching me how...
Your love is teaching me how...
How to kneel.

--Bono, Vertigo

Monk

Update, 22 Aug 05: Chefjef writes:

Awesome article. I didn't know Bono was a Christian, especially since he took a lot of flack from the right about some of his humanitarian and environmental activisim. I do like the song "Vertigo," and some of the lyrics made me wonder if he was a Believer.

Chefjef

Yeah, he's been pretty roundly criticised by many in that "evangelical critique culture" I wrote about here. One can differ with any Christian's conclusions regarding temporal matters (that's what this blog is about, after all!), but disparaging such a testimony of faith in Jesus is Pharisaical and not in the Spirit of Christ.

Monk