Fantastic read for the doubtful

[totallyconfused]

Christianity Today just ran an excerpt from a new book that consists of Bono talking with music journalist Michka Assayas on a variety of topics, including his faith.

 

Here's an interesting part of it:

 

Assayas: I think I am beginning to understand religion

because I have started acting and thinking like a father. What do you make of

that?

 

Bono: Yes, I think that's normal.

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.

 

Assayas: The Son of God who takes away the sins of the

world. I wish I could believe in that.

 

Bono: But I love the idea of the

Sacrificial Lamb. I love the idea that God says: Look, you cretins, there

are certain results to the way we are, to selfishness, and there's a mortality

as part of your very sinful nature, and, let's face it, you're not living a

very good life, are you? There are consequences to actions. The point of

the death of Christ is that Christ took on the sins of the world, so that what

we put out did not come back to us, and that our sinful nature does not reap

the obvious death. That's the point. It should keep us humbled... . It's not our

own good works that get us through the gates of heaven.

 

Assayas: That's a great idea, no denying it. Such great

hope is wonderful, even though it's close to lunacy, in my view. Christ has his

rank among the world's great thinkers. But Son of God, isn't that farfetched?

 

Bono: No, it's not farfetched to

me. Look, the secular response to the Christ story always goes like this: he

was a great prophet, obviously a very interesting guy, had a lot to say along

the lines of other great prophets, be they Elijah, Muhammad, Buddha, or

Confucius. But actually Christ doesn't allow you that. He doesn't let you off

that hook. Christ says: No. I'm not saying I'm a teacher, don't call me

teacher. I'm not saying I'm a prophet. I'm saying: "I'm the Messiah."

I'm saying: "I am God incarnate." And people say: No, no,

please, just be a prophet. A prophet, we can take. You're a bit eccentric.

We've had John the Baptist eating locusts and wild honey, we can handle that.

But don't mention the "M" word! Because, you know, we're gonna have to

crucify you. And he goes: No, no. I know you're expecting me to come

back with an army, and set you free from these creeps, but actually I am the

Messiah. At this point, everyone starts staring at their shoes, and says: Oh,

my God, he's gonna keep saying this. So what you're left with is: either

Christ was who He said He was—the Messiah—or a complete nutcase. I mean, we're

talking nutcase on the level of Charles Manson. This man was like some of the

people we've been talking about earlier. This man was strapping himself to a

bomb, and had "King of the Jews" on his head, and, as they were

putting him up on the Cross, was going: OK, martyrdom, here we go. Bring on

the pain! I can take it. I'm not joking here. The idea that the entire

course of civilization for over half of the globe could have its fate changed

and turned upside-down by a nutcase, for me, that's farfetched ...

 

Bono later says it all comes down to how we regard Jesus:

 

Bono: ... f only we could be a

bit more like Him, the world would be transformed. ...When I look at the Cross of

Christ, what I see up there is all my s--- and everybody else's. So I ask

myself a question a lot of people have asked: Who is this man? And was He who

He said He was, or was He just a religious nut? And there it is, and that's the

question. And no one can talk you into it or out of it.

 

From Bono: In Conversation with Michka Assayas, by Michka Assayas, copyright © 2005 by Michka Awwayas.

 

---

 

I don't agree completely with Bono's theology, but it seems that the man understands and believes the core of the gospel: grace. And clearly the guy's read his C.S. Lewis... it's encouraging to see Jesus and the gospel being defended by someone so famous popular culture, in the midst of all the Kabbalists and Scientologists.

 

Who knew Bono was this eloquent. I knew he could speak, but to give such coherent and clear answers on his feet is quite impressive. (Still pretty impressive if he had time to prepare.)

 

(i stole this from a blog) great read huh? makes you think twice, that God is made of pure LOVE.

[quankanne]

Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions …

 

which beautifully describes Christ's whole ministry, and why those who have a hard time grasping it cannot grasp it: people tend to think on a linear level, that for every action there IS that opposite and total reaction. There's no room for anything new in the formula ... that a supernatural being like God cannot put into motion something that defies total logic in order to demonstrate that great capacity of love.

 

thanks for sharing that wonderful bit of bloggery, TC -- it is refreshing to find someone we identify as in the here and now, and who is part of popular culture feels as I do. Tob be honest, it's one of the reasons why I love John Paul II -- his whole ministry is based on showing and sharing the love of God with others. Yes he was priest, yes he was pope, but foremost, he was a lovemonger in a world that sometimes did it's best to shun love.

[suegail]

Thank you for sharing that. I hadn't known that about Bono, that he had a strong faith in Christ. I'm so glad to read that. He has an interesting way of making his point.