U2, The Joshua Tree and the Theology of the Body

Today marks the 20th anniversary of the release of what I consider one of the 10 greatest albums ever made... U2's "The Joshua Tree." The album made U2 megastars in the same realm of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin. It also made them leaders of the spiritual rock movement, causing them to eventually rebel (at least on the surface for some of them) against their image as "saviors" over the next decade ... although they did maintain a lot of their Christian spirituality (read this book. It's on sale at Amazon for just $6). One of my biggest regrets was turning down the chance to see them at JFK Stadium in Philly on the Joshua Tree tour. I saw them on the Achtung Baby tour at the Spectrum, but by then they had started their rebellion against stardom and the power of the Joshua Tree show was a distant memory.

While Bono is not Catholic (his mother was, I think), I always appreciate the great respect he shows the Catholic Church. His knowledge of Scripture is very impressive. And I have great respect for Bono's efforts to provide AIDS/HIV medication in Africa, to have forgiven the insurmountable debts of poor countries, and the strong Christian overtones in his lyrics. I still think their early "conversion" albums of "Boy," "October" and "War" are the gold standard for those looking to rock with a Christian message. One thing I love about them is that the band really looks at themselves as a marriage, and Bono will often talk about the band in those terms. It is amazing that in the nearly 30 years the band has been around, there have never been any other members other than the original four (not including an Australian concert that Adam Clayton missed, and if you read the book in the above link, it explains that).

That's also why it's no surprise to me that Bono seems to be writing more and more about marriage and true, Christian love that entails gift of self. Christopher West's latest column in The Colorado Catholic Herald (which happens to come out today; timing not intentional) discusses this growing trend, and he analyzes the lyrics to U2's latest new song, "Window In the Skies."

The rule has been disproved
The stone it has been moved
The grave is now a groove
All debts are removed

The sky over our head
We can reach it from our bed
If you let me in your heart
And out of my head…

In the bridge, Bono echoes the joy of Eden – and one of the main themes of John Paul’s teaching -- when he cries: “I’ve got no shame, oh no, oh no!” Then, admitting the many ways he has hurt his wife (Bono has been faithfully married to his high school sweetheart for nearly 25 years), he says, “But love left a window in the skies, and to love I rhapsodize.” As the song ends, he offers the same hope “to every broken heart, for every heart that cries – love left a window in the skies.”

So, has Bono been reading up on the theology of the body? Perhaps. Or, maybe as John Paul II himself emphasized, these are simply truths that find an echo in every human heart and Bono has tapped into it.

I could go on and on about the greatness of U2 and why they are important to listen to. As far as I'm concerned, they're the greatest rock band, period. {Editor's note: Thinking about this, they are actually in my top 3.] No band has put out more relevant music over a longer period time than them. And Bono has shown me to be a man who, despite his human failings, sincerely tries to follow God's will each day.