Modernization of the official Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano (described in this recent Wall Street Journal article by RNS alumnus Stacy Meichtry) proceeds apace.

Tomorrow’s edition of the once-stodgy publication features an essay on Biblical allusions in American popular music, with references to Woody Guthrie and Bruce Springsteen, and a focus on the work of temporary Christian convert Bob Dylan. (Perhaps not surprisingly, the piece skips over Mr. Mister’s 1986 classic, Kyrie Eleison.)

No telling what Pope Benedict, whose musical preferences run to the likes of Mozart, will make of it.