Author:  Bono
Title:  On the Move
Publisher:  Thomas Nelson

Unless you’ve been living in a cave for the last twenty-plus years, you’ve heard of the world-famous rock band U2.

And unless you haven’t paid a lick of attention to the news of the world in the last 10 years, you’re likely aware of all the work U2’s lead singer Bono has done to try and encourage the world to help eliminate poverty and AIDS in Africa. With his popularity and his heart for social change being what they are, it only makes sense that he would have been invited to speak at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington D.C. last year.

On the Move is a transcription of his speech that day, a speech that was presented to individuals of various faiths. In this little book—it barely reaches sixty pages, and that’s with pages of photos and an average of about one hundred words per page—Bono raises an issue that many of us probably don’t think a whole lot about, though we are aware of it: how the laws of man and “higher” laws—be it to God, Allah or whomever you choose to worship—rarely are in line with each other.

Bono discusses how from early on in his childhood, he noticed how religion oftentimes got—and still gets—in the way of God. Growing up the son of a Catholic mother and Protestant in war-torn Ireland, Bono admits at one point that religion was so offensive to him that he stopped caring to a degree:

“Seeing what religious people, in the Name of God, did to my native land . . . and in this country, America, seeing God’s second-hand salesmen on the cable TV channels . . . I must confess, I changed the channel. I wanted my MTV. Even though I was a believer. Perhaps because I was a believer.”

His speech is well crafted. At times he is comical (“I will try to keep my homily brief, but be warned—I’m Irish.”), at others he is quite serious (“History, like God, is watching what we do.”). There are times when he does right to mention the lives that have been changed by the relief efforts that are and have been taking place, and yet he wisely reminds the audience that there is still much to be done. And it’s our responsibility to make sure the work keeps getting done, especially in America. The notion that is stressed here is the fact that we are blessed in order to be a blessing to others, and each and every one of us—regardless of age, sex, race, creed or religion—is going to play a part in ending or prolonging the aids and hunger crises in this world, either through our action or inaction.