American singer-songwriter and Nobel laureate Bob Dylan met with Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday at the Vatican. They spoke briefly, shook hands, and exchanged simple gifts— a rosary and a copy of Dylan’s autobiography, Chronicles Volume One. This was not Dylan’s first meeting with a pope. In 1997, he accepted an invitation from John Paul II, who was a fan, to sing before him and 300,000 at a Eucharistic Congress in Bologna, Italy. At that same event John Paul gave a sermon referencing Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind”.

Spiritual seeking has been one of the touchstones of Dylan’s song lyrics from the very beginning, Sometimes explicit, as during his Christian phase (1979-1981)- e.g., “Gotta Serve Somebody”, ”I Believe in You”, “Pressing On”, and the transcendent “Every Grain of Sand”; and, more often, implicit, sometimes mixed with themes of social justice, a key component of most all religious and spiritual traditions- e.g., “Blowin’ in the Wind”, “Chimes of Freedom”, “I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine”, “I Shall Be Released”, “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door”, “Forever Young”, “Ring Them Bells”, “This Dream of You”, “Key West”, and so many more.

My newest book, DOWN THE ROAD WITH DYLAN – LIVING WITH THE SONGS, details my own spiritual journey even as it explores the many facets of Dylan’s brilliant songs. The book is available at BookBaby Book Shop; I’d be honored if you check it out.