Saturday, April 15, 2006

The gospel according to U2 and Bono

While pligrims retraced Jesus' route in Jerusalem on Good Friday, Episcopal Churches turn to U2 to pack pews. just imagine having 'Pride (In the Name if Love)' as an opening hymn as a 10-by-14 foot screen flashes pictures of believers including Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr, just behind the church's altar.

BONO has declared that he is not a man of the cloth, "unless that cloth is leather". But the words of the charismatic U2 front man are nevertheless ringing out from pulpits across the United States.

The Irish rock band's songs and lyrics are being used by the Episcopal Church in so-called "U2 Eucharists" as a means of attracting young people who relate to the group's social activism

Earlier attempts by churches to connect to youth culture have usually involved ministers in open-toed sandals strumming acoustic guitars and singing Kumbaya to the general embarrassment of all. Yet, in parishes from California to Maine, worshippers are flocking to hear U2 classics such as Beautiful Day, Pride and Peace on Earth rolled into a service of prayer.

No comments:

Post a Comment