--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Being a pop fan is a lot like Catholic…" description: "\"Being a pop fan is a lot like Catholic devotion - lots of ritual, lots of ceremony... We touch the icon to enter the sacred space, genuflecting to reli..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f01/rob-sheffield-1368_agony_being-a-pop-fan-is-a-lot-like-catholic-d_701582.png" --- # Being a pop fan is a lot like Catholic devotion - lots of… ![“Being a pop fan is a lot like Catholic devotion - lots of ritual, lots of ceremony... We touch the icon to enter the sacred space, genuflecting to reliquaries and ostentatoria that make something splendid of our most secret desires and agonies.” quote by Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f01/rob-sheffield-1368_agony_being-a-pop-fan-is-a-lot-like-catholic-d_701582.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f01/rob-sheffield-1368_agony_being-a-pop-fan-is-a-lot-like-catholic-d_701582.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f01/rob-sheffield-1368_agony_being-a-pop-fan-is-a-lot-like-catholic-d_701582.png) > “Being a pop fan is a lot like Catholic devotion - lots of ritual, lots of ceremony... We touch the icon to enter the sacred space, genuflecting to reliquaries and ostentatoria that make something splendid of our most secret desires and agonies.” [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Being a pop fan mirrors religious devotion, with rituals, icons, and a sacred space for personal desires and pains. **In simple terms:** Pop fandom feels like a personal religion. Key Takeaway Recognize the depth of your passions. Themes culture ritual identity devotion Mood enthusiastic analytical Type cultural reflective When to use this quote - concert attendance - collecting memorabilia - online fan communities Key Concepts iconography ritualism sacred space Questions to Reflect On - In what ways does music serve a spiritual role for you? - How do rituals shape your connection to art? A Different Perspective The analogy may exaggerate the seriousness of fandom. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Agony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agony/) [Catholic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catholic/) [Ceremony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ceremony/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Devotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devotion/) [Icons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/icons/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Ritual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ritual/) [Sacred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacred/) [Sacred space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sacred-space/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) [Secret desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret-desire/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Splendid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/splendid/) ## Related quotes > [“My friend enjoys his lashings like a Catholic schoolboy being flogged with priestly anal beads covered in wet dung. He takes it like he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-gairbay/my-friend-enjoys-his-lashings-like-a-catholic-schoolboy-being-flogged/) Amber Gairbay > [I was raised as a Catholic, but I didn't like the Catholic Church at all. I thought the nuns were mean.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-ford-coppola/i-was-raised-as-a-catholic-but-i-didn-t-like-the-catholic-church-at/) [Francis Ford Coppola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-ford-coppola/) > [Like most Catholic boys, I wanted to be Jesus Christ. I could never get the turn-the-other-cheek thing down, though.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-carrey/like-most-catholic-boys-i-wanted-to-be-jesus-christ-i-could-never-get/) [Jim Carrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-carrey/) > [“I haven't lost my faith, but I've lost my religion. I still believe in something so deeply. ... I've never really gotten past that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-haven-t-lost-my-faith-but-i-ve-lost-my-religion-i-still-believe-in/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [Yeah, I mean, having been raised like a Catholic, I have a sort of sympathy for religion, in that I think that religion's religion.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/declan-mckenna/yeah-i-mean-having-been-raised-like-a-catholic-i-have-a-sort-of/) [Declan McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/declan-mckenna/) > [If we get you in the early years of your life and we fill your head with all of the Catholic stories, then it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-greeley/if-we-get-you-in-the-early-years-of-your-life-and-we-fill-your-head/) [Andrew Greeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-greeley/) > [With a name like that, he must be Catholic, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burt-hochberg/with-a-name-like-that-he-must-be-catholic-right/) Burt Hochberg > [The theatre is like a Catholic Mass of language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-giraudoux/the-theatre-is-like-a-catholic-mass-of-language/) [Jean Giraudoux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-giraudoux/) > [You should invest like a Catholic marries: for life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-buffett/you-should-invest-like-a-catholic-marries-for-life/) [Warren Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-buffett/) > [I do have that secret desire to be a cabaret star and just sing Cole Porter medleys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cole-escola/i-do-have-that-secret-desire-to-be-a-cabaret-star-and-just-sing-cole/) [Cole Escola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cole-escola/) > [“I mean, contrary to popular belief, I'm actually not harboring a secret desire to grow up and become a bioterrorist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-norris/i-mean-contrary-to-popular-belief-i-m-actually-not-harboring-a-secret/) [Elizabeth Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-norris/) > [If each of us were to confess his most secret desire, the one that inspires all his plans, all his actions, he would say:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-m-cioran/if-each-of-us-were-to-confess-his-most-secret-desire-the-one-that/) [Emile M. Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-m-cioran/) > [All of us have a secret desire to be seen as saints, heroes, martyrs. We are afraid to be children, to be ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-vanier/all-of-us-have-a-secret-desire-to-be-seen-as-saints-heroes-martyrs-we/) [Jean Vanier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-vanier/) > [“A blanket could be used to suffocate our secret desires. And what do I secretly desire? I desire suffocation, and that is why I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/a-blanket-could-be-used-to-suffocate-our-secret-desires-and-what-do-i/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“Miss Ellis?" Mrs. Perterson says. "It's your turn. Introduce Alex to the class" "This is Alejandro Fuentes. When he wasn't hanging out on street…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-elkeles/miss-ellis-mrs-perterson-says-it-s-your-turn-introduce-alex-to-the/) [Simone Elkeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-elkeles/) ## More by Rob Sheffield > [One of the best moments of any Liars show is hearing the crowd squawk 'We're doomed! We're doomed!' on cue during 'We Fenced Other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/one-of-the-best-moments-of-any-liars-show-is-hearing-the-crowd-squawk/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [“I suck at fighting. I have never really learned how to talk and be mad at the same time. If I have angry words…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/i-suck-at-fighting-i-have-never-really-learned-how-to-talk-and-be-mad/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [Morrissey was my Mrs. Garrett, the house mother from the Facts of Life, a soothing adult figure giving me words of wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/morrissey-was-my-mrs-garrett-the-house-mother-from-the-facts-of-life/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [“I had never gotten the hang of dating — I was always going to be somebody who either had a girlfriend or didn't.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/i-had-never-gotten-the-hang-of-dating-i-was-always-going-to-be/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [The hottest trash-disco star in the world: Ke$ha! 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The more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/what-doesn-t-kill-you-maims-you-cripples-you-leaves-you-weak-makes/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [“But when you're a teenage boy, you can be narrow-minded about things that are girlie, things that are frivolous, things that are pop. Boys…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/but-when-you-re-a-teenage-boy-you-can-be-narrow-minded-about-things/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [“I've never heard of anybody getting rid of their prized Exile postcards, much less actually writing on them and sending them through the mail…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/i-ve-never-heard-of-anybody-getting-rid-of-their-prized-exile/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [It's always that one song that gets to you. You can hide, but the song comes to find you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/it-s-always-that-one-song-that-gets-to-you-you-can-hide-but-the-song/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [There are all kinds of mix tapes. there is always a reason to make one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/there-are-all-kinds-of-mix-tapes-there-is-always-a-reason-to-make-one/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [“By the time you're an adult, you're used to seeing your friends disappear into their five-year plans. They drop out to get married, have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/by-the-time-you-re-an-adult-you-re-used-to-seeing-your-friends/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [“Last fall, I was sitting at the kitchen table of two friends who have been together since 1972. They tell me a story about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/last-fall-i-was-sitting-at-the-kitchen-table-of-two-friends-who-have/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [Tonight, I feel like my whole body is made out of memories. I'm a mix-tape, a cassette that's been rewound so many times you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/tonight-i-feel-like-my-whole-body-is-made-out-of-memories-i-m-a-mix/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [“You're in a physical landscape you share with this bizarre and fundamentally alien creature, not alien because she's female but alien because you're a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/you-re-in-a-physical-landscape-you-share-with-this-bizarre-and/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) [Explore all 249 Rob Sheffield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) ## More Agony quotes > [Many Republicans have always reminded me of professional WWF wrestlers. They come into the ring all pumped up and acting like they're invincible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feig/many-republicans-have-always-reminded-me-of-professional-wwf/) [Paul Feig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feig/) > [“aaron would not come out aaron entered into agony.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/aaron-would-not-come-out-aaron-entered-into-agony/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) > [ “\[W\]e must learn to accommodate ourselves to the discovery that some of those cunningly-fashioned instruments called human souls have only a very limited range… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/w-e-must-learn-to-accommodate-ourselves-to-the-discovery-that-some-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [As we look upon that agony and those tearful prayers, let us not only look with thankfulness; but let that kneeling Saviour teach us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-maclaren/as-we-look-upon-that-agony-and-those-tearful-prayers-let-us-not-only/) [Alexander MacLaren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-maclaren/) > [Love masters agony; the soul that seemed Forsaken feels her present God again And in her Father's arms Contented dies away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keble/love-masters-agony-the-soul-that-seemed-forsaken-feels-her-present/) [John Keble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keble/) > [I have seen war. I have seen war on land and sea. I have seen blood running from the wounded. I have seen men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/i-have-seen-war-i-have-seen-war-on-land-and-sea-i-have-seen-blood/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [“Anger was a reliable defense, but one that allowed no chance of final victory. Anger was a medicine but never a cure, briefly numbing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/anger-was-a-reliable-defense-but-one-that-allowed-no-chance-of-final/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [The cure is in the house, not brought by other hands from distant places, but by its own, in agony and blood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/the-cure-is-in-the-house-not-brought-by-other-hands-from-distant/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [Sometimes, a lie is told in kindness. I don't believe it ever works kindly. 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"No one bests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/die-enemies-of-ra-sekhemet-yelled-perish-in-agony-she-s-almost-as/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) [Browse all 813 Agony quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agony/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Being a pop fan is a lot like Catholic devotion - lots of ritual, lots of ceremony... 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