By Klaus Döring
“Music is given to God to further his purposes. Sweet melodies mellow the souls of men and women and help prepare them for the gospel. After men receive the truth, songs of praise to Deity help to sanctify and cleanse their souls.” “Music can set an atmosphere of worship which invites [the] spirit of revelation, of testimony.”
Yes, religion and music belong together like a fish and an ocean, light and life, the voice and the ear. In the entire universe, we humans are probably the only beings capable of creating and hearing music. The ability to hear is one of the specific gifts that our Creator gave us.
Our fragile blue planet is surrounded by a thin layer of gases only a few kilometers high. Only this atmosphere is the reason why sound waves can spread through the air. Everything behind this atmosphere is ruled by the sheer endless vacuum of outer space, where galaxies and stars explode and implode in impenetrable silence.
According to the biblical narrative, the world began when God broke through this deadly quiet: “And God said: Let there be light!” (Genesis 1:1). God spoke – and light and life resulted from His audible voice. Because life was created by the word, it depends on the word. That is why it is in the nature of every person to listen. Like a parabolic mirror, our souls are created to listen to the eternal space of the hereafter, to try and sense whether a word, a sound or a voice is trying to reach us from there, in order to fill us with meaning.
I love music. I can’t live without them. Hold on, this is not one of my earlier columns in this paper. But from time to time, I need to express myself if it comes to this topic. And, I know that Filipinos love big tunes with great words and beautiful melodies, especially when it comes to classical music. I experienced this many times in the past while hosting several radio shows with classical music and inspirational thoughts.
Hymns can lift our spirits, give us courage, and move us to righteous action. They can fill our souls with heavenly thoughts and bring us a spirit of peace.
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