POPULAR MUSIC AND THE VATICAN

The Vatican's position on popular music is as hazy as ever with the release of a list of the top 10 pop and rock music albums of all time, by its newspaper.

On 15th February, 2010, the Vatican’s official newspaper - L’ Osservatore Romano, published its list of the top 10 rock and pop music albums of all time. This may have come as a surprise to most people especially after Benedict XVI succeeded John Paul II as Pope of the Catholic Church.

Known to be a conservative theologian, Pope Benedict XVI has shown his averseness to rock music in the past. He is believed to have attempted to block Bob Dylan’s concert at the Vatican in 1997 when he was a Cardinal and since assuming the office of Holy See, has called off the Christmas concerts allowed by his predecessor.

The declaration of a list of the top 10 rock and pop music albums of all time by L’ Osservatore Romano is testament, perhaps, to a great under-current of debate over the place of popular music in Christianity.

The List of the Top Ten Rock and Pop Music Albums of All Time According to the Vatican released by the Vatican’s newspaper, L’ Osservatore Romano, includes Supernatural by Carlos Santana, (What’s The Story) Morning Glory? by Oasis, Achtung Baby by U2, Graceland by Paul Simon, Thriller by Michael Jackson, The Nightfly by Donald Fagen, Rumours by Fleetwood Mac, The Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd, If I Could Remember My Name by David Crosby and Revolver by The Beatles.

The newspaper referred to the list as a “semi-serious guide” and a “little handbook of musical resistance”.

Bob Dylan, widely regarded as one of the most influential musicians of all time, was a notable exclusion in the Vatican’s list of the top 10 rock and pop music albums of all time. The article that listed the albums quoted the writers as saying that Dylan’s influence had made way for generations of unprofessional singers and songwriters who had “harshly tested the ears and patience of their listeners” with tormented stories.

Ironically, it was Dylan who, in 1997, performed at the Vatican to an audience of over 300,000 people that included Pope John Paul II himself. At the event, the legendary musician performed his hits “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door”, “A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall” and “Forever Young”.

Pope John Paul II uses Bob Dylan’s “Blowing in the Wind” to deliver a sermon at the Vatican
Delivering a sermon to the faithful immediately after Bob Dylan’s set in the 1997 concert at Vatican City, Pope John Paul II, used Bob Dylan’s “Blowing in the Wind” to convey a message and bring the gathering into perspective from a religious standpoint. In the words of Pope John Paul II, “You say the answer is blowing in the wind, my friend; So it is: but it is not the wind that blows things away, it is the breath and life of the Holy Spirit, the voice that calls and says, 'Come!’. You ask me how many roads a man must walk down before he becomes a man. I answer: there is only one road for man, and it is the road of Jesus Christ, who said, 'I am the Way and the Life'."

The divide in outlook between Pope John Paul II and his successor Pope Benedict XVI as far as popular music is concerned, is sharp and apparent. Yet, the 2010 release of a list of the top ten rock and pop music albums of all time by the Vatican's official newspaper, bears testament to a difference of opinion within its walls. The question is - who will prevail?