U2: faith in the ear of the hearer

A handful of my readers will appreciate the Baylor connection in this article.

American religion has adopted the rock band U2.

Its lyrics can be heard coming from pulpits. Its music ringing out in sanctuaries. Its videos show up in Sunday school classes.

Rabbi Steve Lebow of Kol Emeth in Marietta, said, “I taught a class on rock and roll and spirituality. When you do a search of which band has the most biblical allusions and spiritual themes, U2 comes up as number one.”

Jake Hill started teaching a class at Atlanta’s Saint James United Methodist Church in September called the theology of U2. It attracts about 15 people on Wednesday nights.

“Most of their songs have a message of unity, we are all in this together to make this work,” Hill said.

He was inspired to teach the class after one of Saint James’ pastors showed him a book titled “We Get to Carry Each Other: the Gospel According to U2” (Westminster John Knox Press, $16.95).

He has long known about the band’s spiritual leanings, looked for references to faith in their music, and the book helped pull that together, he said.

Greg Garrett, the author, teaches English at Baylor University and writing at an Episcopal seminary. He was writing for a music magazine and interviewed the band in their early years.

Full Atlanta Journal Constitution-Article

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KINDED – Pass It On

KINDED is a movement inspiring unexpected kind acts. These kind acts can be anything from helping someone carry heavy bags, sharing your umbrella, or paying for a stranger’s coffee. “KINDED cards” serve as licenses to do kind acts for people who might otherwise be wary, making KINDED easy to pass on. Since each card has a unique code and can be mapped online, you can track how far your chain of KINDING travels and view kind acts happening around the world.

Link

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