What motivated you to create this album?
O'Connor: I came out of the pop and rock arena. I guess it was too noisy. I had intended not to get back into making music at all. The rock and pop arena doesn’t really fit my nature. My family got me thinking about what made want to do music in the first place. When I got to looking at it I remembered that at about age 9 or so my interest was putting scripture to music. I was in church choir in Ireland and I was quite interested in working with Scripture and music. That’s really what made me want to come back but in an arena that suited me more.
As an artist, what intrigued you about scripture and putting it to music?
O'Connor: It isn’t all scripture that I was attracted to. I think people are individually attracted to the bits that mean something to them. For example, the book that lists the names of all the kings doesn’t interest me. I suppose the thing is the words themselves and what they are saying. A lot of the time they almost are music. It certainly is very poetic and very colorful and dramatic. It has a calling in it like music does - for me anyway. Sometimes in the prose sections of the Bible you find songs. Like in "If you had a vineyard." So I guess I was interested the songs that have been put down in the prose sections. Why not try them out and see what they’re like? There’s something about certain scriptures that just beg to be put to music. In a way, when you read them, you want to say them - like praying.
How has your faith journey changed from when you were a choir girl to this point in your life?
O'Connor: That is the question I get asked most. I suppose I feel in a way it has never changed. The focus of my journey has never changed, I have always known what I know. You explore all the different ways in the world to express that feeling, but its all the same feeling toward the same God at the end of the day. Starting off as a kid, I realized there was a God that walks along side everybody whether they like it or not. My father gave me a panting with the great saying "Bidden or not bidden, God is present." I think that when God takes you on a journey it's not your journey. In a way, if you're keeping your eyes open you can watch the ways which God is taking you on a journey.
What does your relationship with God mean to you?
O'Connor: Its very hard to put into words isn’t it? As much as I say its not my journey, its God’s journey, I suppose it's what God’s relationship is to me. Even as a child it's God who asks for the relationship to happen. That’s the way I relate to God. God requested and God dictates. You don’t feel you're part of it, it’s part of you.
Through this journey, you became an ordained priest in a break off of Catholic Church.
O'Connor: Yes.
Why was that step important to you?
O'Connor: If God calls you to do something, you have to do it. You can't be too frightened by what the world might think. For me, ever since I was a kid I had a vocation. I used to pray to God enough to make me want to be a nun. It’s a very secret, intense and priavte thing between me and the Holy Spirit. You got to do it.
Tell us a bit about the motivation to come back after your semi-retirement?
O'Connor: It’s the Scripture I loved that motivated me to come back at this stage in my life. I don’t know if I will or won't make other records beyond this record. This is a record that I absolutely had to make. It is such a part of myself. I couldn’t even begin to explain. If I never made another record I wouldn’t care. This is the fulfillment of a life of target practice, musically speaking.
What is your favorite song from Theology?
O'Connor: "If you had a vineyard." Every single line is from the book of Isaiah. To me it's just unbelievable.
What is your favorite Scripture verse for gaining peace in difficult times?
O'Connor: It isn’t me who doesn’t feel peaceful. In looking around the world at this terrorism and war and all going on, I see a lot of aggression by those who claim to represent God on one side or the other. I suppose in a child-like fashion I get upset when I see God being misused. I don’t believe God loves conditionally. I know God loves unconditionally. I think people need to start standing up on God’s behalf, in whatever little way they can. That’s how you create peace, it’s a long, long process, but you begin to create peace by looking at the spiritual distress which is the existence of war.
How do you view war based on the history of conflict in your country?
O'Connor: In a way no, our war here was absolutely impossible. There were two sides to that war and one side didn't have any sense at all. Since September 11th the war in Ireland has basically ended because no one could justify terrorism. So that shut everybody up, which was great. But the horrible terrorism now exists on a massive scale all over the world, and because of it there exists a massive war. At the end of the day neither action is good for anyone or is the way to sort anything out. If it's true to say we are all a family, it should be that everybody has a right to stand up and say there’s a better way going about these problems.
If you could leave one sound byte from your life, what you want that to be?
O'Connor: The title of my second album, I do not want what I haven’t got.
What is one thing over the course of this album you wished people would have asked you but haven’t?
O'Connor: There are more things I wish they hadn't asked me. I don’t know, they ask pretty much everything.
Is there anything you would change in your life?
O'Connor: I have four children, one a 20 year old son. I was 20 when I had him. I didn’t understand that you should have a child attend the same school for years and years. We moved a lot, and I flipped him from school to school which is terrible. All my other kids have been in the same place for ages. If I could go back I wouldn't have been so stupid with that one.
What bit of advice do you wish you would have known as a teenager?
O'Connor: Grounding I think is what you need when you are a teenager. You can sometimes have the feeling that you are a bird flying but you have no feet and nowhere to land. So I think landing and grounding is important. Whatever way you actually bring yourself to earth.
Do you have people in your life that you look to as spiritual mentors or people that keep you grounded?
O'Connor: Well the son I was referring to, Jake, he’s like one of my best friends. And obviously all my children. That is my major grounding - and my kitchen. I don’t feel grounded unless I’m with my children in my kitchen. And my boyfriend. I should probably add my father to that list of people because he’s pretty wicked. He’s a warrior.
What is something that you would like to be better at?
O'Connor: I need a whole sheet of paper. I would like to be better at loving people and loving myself better and the idea of love. I am sometimes a bit of a shrew in my head. You know when you're just yelling at people in your head. I would like to have more love for people.
Are you going on a big tour for this album, or is it more low key?
O'Connor: Well, I’m touring at the moment, but I’m touring older stuff. I am not touring this album. I would like to tour this album. I am on this tour until the end of November. Then I am going to have to run around and again get to this album. I would much rather be doing Theology songs than the other stuff.
How would you encourage students today to be world changers?
O'Connor: Listen to lots of Rastafari records! All you have to do is listen to Rastafari records! That will sort them out. There's a series of records from Trojan. The Nyahbhingi box set. You can get it on Amazon or iTunes.