GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN — Calvin College now offers a class on Irish rock band U2.

”What they have to offer is a vision,” said Mark Mulder, who is teaching the U2 course during Calvin’s three-week interim semester. ”They’re saying there’s something wrong with the world. But at the same time, they offer a hope. The gospel message is embedded within.”
Mulder, who teaches sociology, sees the band bringing a Christian worldview to a ”very elaborate cultural critique.” In that critique, they share common ground with other rock bands such as Radiohead and movies such as ”The Matrix” trilogy, he said.
”If you listen hard enough, there are a lot of things going on in pop culture which really question the ordering of the world today, and offer a vision of what things could and should be like,” said Mulder.