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carols, chanting, Christmas, epiphany, psalm 96, sing to the Lord, The Sophia Center for Spirituality
The Christmas carols have disappeared from radio stations and MUZAK locations around the country, although Church calendars tell us that we still have a long way to go in the Christmas season. On January 10th I’m doing a short presentation on the topic of chanting so I’m beginning to think about breath and tone and vibration and mode – as well as lyrics. And again we wait, in the midst of this week between December 25 and January 1, for something “new” to dawn in us, most likely some resolution that we hope will last longer than a few weeks.
Psalm 96 is a good place to pause for reflection this morning. The psalmist urges us: Sing to the Lord a new song! Sing to the Lord, all you lands. Sing to the Lord; bless God’s name!
If I were to create a new song to the Lord for this coming year, I wonder what title I would give it. Would it be a complex song, one that would necessitate some exercise so I’d have enough breath for each line? Would I foresee a major or minor key in its expression? And what would be its highest note? Do I have any idea of the lyrics at this time or will I have to spend some time in prayer to form my intentions for deep living out of the gift of the year to come? I’ll have about three hours of travel time in my car today – a good opportunity perhaps to tune up and begin to rehearse…
The Sophia Center for Spirituality 