Christ and U23D

Today a friend and I went to see U23D. Being self-avowed U2 fans we had high expectations yet it was everything we could hope for. The 3D aspect of the movie was great. More than a couple times I found myself leaning over to better see the Edge since his microphone stand was in the way. There were times when I tried to move out of the glare of a spotlight only to remember that this was a movie, and I couldn’t do that. There were times when I wanted to start cheering with the concert audience but then I remembered that Brian and I were the only two people in the theater at 1:30 in the afternoon.

They didn’t end there with the 3D. I thought they used the medium in ways that pushed the boundaries beyond what I could ever imagine myself. This was especially true as they faded between shots- it looked as if one shot was layered on top of another. They also had a great scene at the end when the band was surrounded by a cascade of falling letters all around them. Wow!

But I can’t just end with those comments in this blog, I have to connect it to Christ and Culture somehow. The closest they got in this movie was the recurring theme of coexistence between the three monotheistic religions- that Bono referred to as Sons of Abraham- Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. This is characteristic of the low Christology in the band’s lyrics (meaning that they focus on Jesus’ humanity over his divinity). Christianity was relegated to a separate but equal religion. Although I, with a higher view of Christ, can agree that all religions can co-exist while believing that Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14.6), the way U2 presented this message was indicative of Christ and Culture.