Dear friends and members of University UMC:
Earlier this week, I attended my child’s piano recital. It’s always a special time, and I especially enjoy hearing the newest students play their pieces. Some of them are so young their feet don’t even touch the ground when they sit at the piano bench. But one of the newer students at this recent recital was an adult. She was, by far, the oldest of the performers. All the others were high school or younger. I told her she was an inspiration.
Often, we see children taking on a hobby or exercising a new talent. Yet here she was in what I imagined a posture of humility, performing with piano students far younger than she. This woman’s spouse beamed with pride in the back of the room. As she played, he recorded her from his iPhone while their three children did what little children do. One was crawling on the pew. Another was drawing on the church’s registration pad. The youngest was less than a year old, the father cradling the baby in his lap with one arm while filming with the other. For a variety of reasons, I was already feeling a bit overwhelmed with emotion. Seeing the arc of my own child’s progress. Sitting in not just any room, but a sanctuary for the recital. Hearing music that yearned for a day of true peace and joy. And then, taking in the amazement of this woman who— with joy and discipline—embraced a new hobby. One of the pieces she played was Brahms’ lullaby. As she played, I imagined her playing piano at home and singing to her children. And I thought about Mary. Mary must have sung, too, to her children.
Here, on the heels of Christmas, there is music all around us. Holiday songs play on the radio, filling us with cheer. My favorite music of all is found in the sanctuary. In the Gospel of Luke, several songs appear. This Sunday, I’ll be preaching about the song Zechariah sings praising God and telling of his son John the Baptist, who will prepare the way for Jesus. The Sunday after Christmas, Pastor Earl will preach on Simeon’s song of praise at the presentation of Jesus in the temple from Luke 2:22-35. And, of course, in Luke’s Gospel, there is the most amazing song of all—the one Mary sings before she ever gives birth to Jesus. We know it as The Magnificat. It is a powerful song telling of God’s unwavering commitment to the way of justice and peace. Below, I leave you with a few modern-day adaptations of The Magnificat. One is written by Rev. M Barclay and another is by Rev. Maren Tirabassi. There’s also a creative video by SALT, an award-winning, not-for-profit production company dedicated to the craft of visual storytelling.
