Religion Through Music

"Come, let's shout praises to God, raise the roof for the Rock who saved us! Let's march into his presence singing praises, lifting the rafters with our hymns!" (Psalm 95:1-2, The Message)

Many religions make use of music during their ritual observances. Song allows us to connect to prayers in a different way - we experience words and music in different parts of our brains, and we can feel the music in our bodies themselves. Furthermore, familiar hymns and tunes can bring communities together as they share a song they've all known since childhood.

What role does music play for you in your religious observances? Does music help you feel connected to God? To the community? What are some of your favorite hymns or songs and what meaning do they hold for you?

Back from hiatus!

Last week I admit I was negligent...I failed to post anything on Kehilla. I thought about it, but the warm Hawaiian sun just won me over. Vacations are certainly a time for renewal, as described in a sermon I heard recently, and I hope to pick up where I left off, here on Kehilla and in all of my life, with renewed strength and vigor. Admittedly, I may get little sympathy from those of you in colder climes while I was away, but I ask you to forgive me anyway.

Today I wish to speak about the role of faith in healing. There exists a scientific body of evidence to suggest that prayer does aid in healing, both in that those with strong faith and strong communities fare better in illness and in that praying for someone who is ill aids their recovery, even if they are some distance away and incapable of knowing about the prayer. Community support structures, i.e. family and friends, are essential to healing - many faiths encourage visiting those who are ill to aid their recovery for this very reason. Sometimes, where medicine cannot conquer illness alone, faith must come to our aide. Thus, when next you know someone in need of healing, say a little prayer for them.

Lost in Translation

Of the major faiths of the world, very few have primary texts that were originally written in English, nor for that matter any language spoken exactly as it is today. Thus, we have nothing but translations to work from, for even if we have the originals (a rare event, indeed), noone can read them. Additionally, we in few cases truly know much about the origins of these texts other than from scripture itself. I do not mean to outright question the origins of religious texts, but I do want everyone to stop long enough to wonder if what they're reading is what it's meant to be.

Over the years, texts have been edited, revised, reduced, enlarged, translated (and re-translated, and re-re-translated), and outright rewritten. Given the trust placed in the scribes who did this work, it is unlikely that much proofreading was done back to original sources, and even then it was likely done by the same small elite that prompted the rewriting. Since languages rarely translate perfectly (considering discrepancies in history and culture), a translator must inherently work in their own spin. Additionally, politics will always work its way into decisions - what to include, what to exclude, what language to use, etc. The final product is not a replica of the original, for sure.

However, the message is probably not changed too drastically. In the end, the books still tell stories of how to be a good person and live a good life. Therefore, don't get tied up in the specific words, but listen to the general idea. Despite some editing, it's still the Good Book.