pop prophet

London, March 8: The Pope tried to stop Bob Dylan playing for the late John Paul II because he feared the musician was a “prophet” whose beliefs were at odds with the Roman Catholic Church.

In a new book of memoirs about his predecessor, Pope Benedict recalls the events of the World Eucharist Congress at Bologna in 1997, a gathering of 300,000 young Catholic pilgrims who were to be exposed to the singer’s iconoclastic songs and their “completely different” message.

Pope Benedict wrote: “The Pope appeared tired, exhausted. At that very moment the stars arrived, Bob Dylan and others whose names I do not remember. They had a completely different message from the one which the Pope had.

“There was reason to be sceptical — I was, and in some ways I still am — over whether it was really right to allow this type of ‘prophet’ to appear.”

Pope Benedict is known to have a strong dislike of popular music. Last year, he cancelled the Vatican’s Christmas fundraising concert and banned guitars from Mass. Six years ago he labelled rock and pop music “anti-Christian”.

At the event in Bologna, Dylan performed four songs, including Knockin' on Heaven’s Door, A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall and Blowin’ in the Wind. A visibly frail John Paul gave a long sermon based on Blowin’ in the Wind.

He told the young Catholics: “On the road of music this evening, Jesus met you. A representative of yours said on your behalf that the answer is blowing in the wind. Yes, it is true. On the wind there is the voice and breath of the Holy Spirit.”