Dear Friends,
In my sermon September 8th, I said that over the
next few weeks and months we would look at some of the practices that can help
us to join our hearts more fully with the heart of the Holy One, following the
way of Jesus. Episcopal priest, Cynthia Bourgeault, in her book The Wisdom Jesus, describes five such practices:
Centering Prayer Meditation, Lectio
Divina, Chanting & Psalmody, Welcoming, and Eucharist. In this letter,
I’ll focus on Chanting & Psalmody, because we already have a regular
opportunity for engaging this practice as a community in our Taizé service each
Sunday morning at 9am.
Bourgeault reminds us that chanting is at the heart of all
scared tradition worldwide because “it is fundamentally a deep-immersion
experience in the creative power of the universe itself.” To chant, or make any
kind of music, three elements are required: breath (“Every breath you take is the breath of God.” Father
Theophane), tone or vibration, (the
sound you make when you add voice to breath), and intentionality. “When you chant, the quality of your intention and
attention is what makes the difference between boredom and beauty. As you give
yourself to the words you are chanting, their spiritual power comes alive in
you”(p. 162).
The Psalms in Hebrew scripture were sung, not read. Chanting
them has been part of the Hebrew and the Christian monastic tradition for
centuries. Chanting the Psalms is a good
place to begin if you are new to chanting. But chanting is not limited to
Psalms. In recent years, a monastic community in the village of Taizé in
eastern France has developed a simple and more accessible chant form for their
worship. A phrase or sentence is sung repeatedly for 5-10 minutes. Though many
of the chants come from the Psalms, some come from other scriptures or have
been written to affirm the faithful presence of the Holy One, with the intent of
“bringing groups quickly into a deep heart silence.”
You can certainly chant in the privacy of your own space,
using one note or developing a simple tune. When you join others, there is also
that opportunity to hear harmony and be together in “practicing the presence of
God.” Whether you join the Taizé service on Sunday morning, or chant with a
small group or alone, the “most powerful benefit of chanting is to bring you,
heart and soul, into the beauty of presence.”
With you in seeking Presence,
Carol