1. There is obviously a spiritual message. This has been well documented above, so I am not going to go into detail on it, but rather to say I am in agreement on it.

2. There is quite a bit of editing with the harriers and copters. Needless to say they aren’t going to use a stealth bomber to drop goods, nor a fully armed Apache (the navy version is called a Sea Wolf). Its too easy for a wind or something to make a hellfire missile go off. So there had to have been a point behind it.

It is no secret how the entire aftermath of Katrina was a debacle in stupidity, and both U2 and Green Day were exploiting it.

I do not doubt the professed Christianity of the members of U2; facts are they have done alot of good and they have put there money where there mouth is, which is alot more than I can say for alot of churches. This is not to say that U2 has been entirely Christian in its work.

I have been a fan since before they even showed up in America (way back with the “Unforgettable Fire” album) and when one listens to the lyrics of all of these songs they are intentionally vague so that the listener can take the meaning and do whatever they like with it. Does this make them less of a Christian? By no means no! But one must understand that Adam Clayton has very bluntly stated that he is in the band for the rock and roll status, and he has made no secret of his love for a good party. This has been documented in video and on paper.

Larry Mullen has also stated unceremoniously “Its all about the drums. “, in regards to the Pop Tour. He may or may not be a party boy like Clayton, but he is doing it because it is a good job, he gets noteriety as the U2 stud (he’s by far the most aesthetically appealling of the band)

Furthermore, U2 has been known to read the Bible on tour, and at the same time smoke a few Js on the side.

I’m not bashing on U2, no am I bashing on Christianity.

Christ was with his disciples and he had sent them out in pairs to go spread the Gospel. Some of the disciples stated they found a man who had heard about Jesus, believed in him and started preaching about him. The disciples told him to stop because he was not a REAL disciple. Later on Jesus rebuked them. (the disciples)

The point? Truth is truth regardless of who is telling it.

Green Day has made no secret that it essentially is a band that has political “cynism” (as someone pointed out earlier) as one of its goals. Whether or not they are a Christian band is a moot point. Again; truth is truth regardless of who is telling it.

The point of the video? When one looks at lyrics, then you can see a spiritual message. However, when one HEARS those lyrics, it can sound distorted due to acoustics…..

To me when I heard the MNF video the lyrics “No matter how I try, I realise there’s no reply…” sounded alot like blhalbhalkdhfkldja;jfdla

Note also that Bono stated a quote by I believe was from Nagin, the mayor of New Orleans.

“WE ARE AMERICANS!”

Sure the song can be spiritual in origin, but if that isn’t a political statement I am not sure what is. Bono is famous for making up lyrics as he goes along. He did the same thing for the Live Aid back in 87 or so (you know… “We are the world, we are the children…”)

Then again, maybe I am just old and Im the only one who remembers that.

If you use the charity commercials on TV “It costs 78 cents to feed a child for one day” as a basis… we see we have a problem with priorities.

It costs about a billion dollars for a stealth bomber. So in the video we have a sky full of harriers, bombers and coptors; all appearing to be fully armed, screaming towards the Superdome and dropping food.

Remember now…. 78 cents a day to feed a starving child. A billion dollars for a stealth bomber. I like our priorities, don’t you?

Trask and several others made a really good point. The song “Wake up Dead Man” is the most spiritual U2 song I have heard in a long time.

But to overly spiritualize anything to hide our own guilt, not only for Katrina, but all the other crap in the world that we haven’t dealt with is… well we have heard the song “Wake up Dead Man” but I think we really need to wake up and become active, not just comment about nifty lyrics.

November 4 is coming.

Sincerely

I agree with you on your scriptural reference. I think U2 is most likely referring to Psalm 44.

Psalm 44:22-26
22 Yet for your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.
23 Awake, Lord! Why do you sleep?
Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever.
24 Why do you hide your face
and forget our misery and oppression?
25 We are brought down to the dust;
our bodies cling to the ground.
26 Rise up and help us;
redeem us because of your unfailing love.

However, I do not believe that this alters my interpretation that this is a reference to Jesus Christ in the tomb. I would argue that this reference in Psalm 44 is actually a prophetic reference that points to Jesus Christ in the tomb. This passage is essentially talking about the opposition that has been created between human beings and God because of sin and the painful consequences of that separation. So this request for God to wake up is a request for Jesus to arise and leave the tomb so that his mission of reconciliation can be completed.

One of the sermons in our book, by Brian Walsh, reads “Wake Up Dead Man” as sort of a (less radical than the Bible!) paraphrase of Psalm 44. I’ve also heard it treated as a reference to Ephesians 5:14 but I’m not sure I find that as persuasive.

That is fine. I actually have a few different commentaries on U2 songs that can be found under the Agape Project section of our blog.

It does not surprise me that Edge is responsible for the introductory part of Wake Up Dead Man. Since, Bono does most of the lyric writing, I just generally default to mentioning him. However, I believe that Edge, although very private about his faith, is at least as devout as Bono. There has rarely been an occasion where I have not seen Edge with a shirt that does not have some Christian symbol on it like the number seven or the number three. When I saw U2 perform live, Edge was wearing a shirt with three circles on it that were in the shape of a fish in an abstract artistic way. I believe that the three symbolizes the trinity, the circles symbolize the eternal nature of God, and the fish shape symbolizes Jesus Christ in the Christian tradition. I have also seen Edge wearing a shirt that says “Born Free.”

Another interesting religious symbol on the Vertigo Tour was the stage that they performed on. The stage was physically in the shape of a single circle, but when the stage would light up during the show at certain times, the lights on the stage would actually form the shape of three circular rings on the stage. So even the stage of U2 at their concerts on the Vertigo Tour symbolized the eternal nature of God as both one and three. I would not be surprised if this was a product of Edge’s imagination too because he is such a fan of such non-traditional Christian religious symbols.

One other thing of interest about Wake Up Dead Man that I failed to mention is that I believe that “Wake Up Dead Man” is a symbolic reference to Jesus Christ in the tomb. They are asking him to wake up and conquer the sinful condition of the existing world. So for U2, it is through the waking, resurrection, or rebirth of the dead man (Jesus Christ), that there will be freedom from the suffering of the existing world.

Finally, there was one other interesting religious symbol in their recent performance in New Orleans, which comes to mind, that I did not mention. In the song, Bono makes a reference to “birth and rebirth,” which is not actually part of the original lyrics of The Saints Are Coming. This concept of birth and rebirth is another huge element of U2’s theological project, which is particularly emphasized in songs such as Yahweh and 40. U2 sees rebirth as another symbol for conquering the suffering of the existing world. In the context of the song Yahweh, this concept of rebirth is symbolized through the idea of the pains of child birth because child birth itself is a very painful event, but it is a purposeful sort of suffering because the mother has constant knowledge that the existing suffering is going to accomplish something important, which is the birth of new life. In the scriptures, this concept of rebirth is used to describe the suffering of the existing world and how the suffering will soon fall away as we transition into a new order. See Romans 8:22 (“We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.”).

So Bono uses this symbol of birth and rebirth during the song The Saints Are Coming to add hope and purpose to what is otherwise a somewhat cynical prayer to God. He also uses this symbol in the context of the situation in New Orleans for a specific reason. New Orleans has undergone suffering, but they can have comfort in knowing that there is purpose to their suffering and that something even greater is going to be accomplished through their suffering, which is a rebirth into something greater that is analagous to the Christian concept of salvation.

The U2 song 40 is also a part of this project of rebirth. It is based on Psalm 40. U2 often performs it at then end of their concerts. It is also a song about rebirth and salvation. Throughout the song, the author continually asks the question “how long to sing this song,” which expresses the same type of question that has been expressed by all of the songs that I have mentioned here, which is when will these purposeful pains of child birth come to an end?

Although U2 and Greenday both performed The Saints Are Coming at this concert, the two bands probably offer two opposing views of this song. Greenday probably upholds a more cynical interpretation of this song, which is an attempt to test God like the people who demanded that Jesus prove himself by coming down off the cross. U2 upholds a more devout and healthy interpretation of the song. U2 sees this song more as an honest dialogue with God. They have immense respect for God when they ask him these questions. You will notice that in the live performance Bono raises up his hand in worship when he comes to the line in the song that says “But the shadows still remain since your descent your descent,” which is a reference to Jesus Christ coming into the world. So in the U2 project, the song The Saints Are Coming is a respecful dialogue with God that understands there is purpose to the suffering of the existing world, but it respectfully asks God when these pains of child birth will come to an end. It is a song of faith that anticipates what Christ will accomplish through his death when he finally conquers the suffering of the existing order.

BTW I was really interested to learn in “U2 by U2″ that the first verse of “Wake Up Dead Man” was written not by Bono but by the Edge.