Walk on : the spiritual journey of U2

You don't have to be a U2 fan to get a lot out of this book. The purpose behind writing may have been to chronicle U2's spiritual journey, but there's a whole lot more at stake here because Walk on takes you on your own journey of spiritual evaluation. Author Steve Stockman, doesn't pull punches when describing U2's relationship with the church.

"The Christian community seems to have confined its definitions of faith to various precise behavioral patterns and cliched statements of faith. In getting caught up in the minutia of behavioral codes that have had more to do with respectable middle-class behavior than biblical guidelines, many have been so obsessed with the cigar hanging out of Bono's mouth that they are missing the radical biblical agenda that has fired his life and work." (pg.3)

It's hard to read words like that without thinking about my own response to taboo behaviour. What's really important? and how well equipped am I to make that judgment on someone else's behalf?

The church isn't the only group U2 has fought. In fact, they've been hit on all sides:

"The press...have been quick to have a go at [Bono] for his do-gooding, telling him to stick to the music. Condemning someone for trying to save lives and help others is a remarkable indictment on third-millennium priorities. It is remarkable how human beings can be so belligerent about people trying to do good. Let us lambaste people who are trying to feed the hungry or fight for drugs for the dying. When did it become a crime for someone, no matter how successful or rich he or she is, to love their neighbor?...How far from the hippy dream has music moved when it is more useful to make a number-one single than keep people alive?" (pg. 193)

I don't know about you, but if I were being attacked on all sides for what I was doing to help someone else, I'd wear out pretty fast. Bono is often characterised as the quintessential brawler - someone who jumps into the fray with both arms swinging and without considering the consequences - but I think he must be a very patient and steadfast man to continue fighting for causes we all know are right while the rest of us would rather snipe at the workers than get our hands (and hearts) dirty by helping.

You don't have to know the music or agree with the methods. The book is still worth reading. It made me think.

Walk on : the spiritual journey of U2 by Steve Stockman. Revised edition published by Relevant in 2005. ISBN: 978-0976035756