We are part of God’s beloved family. We are included into the circle of the Holy Trinity. God welcomes us and invites us in to be a part of what God is up to in our world. Use your imagination with God’s holy imagination and see what will be produced.
Last Sunday, David and Susan Whitebread and I attended the Rededication Recital of the Swedesburg Evangelical Lutheran Church’s organ. The morning worship service was full of hymns and the recital, “Celebrating Heritage and Looking Forward”, demonstrated the many voices of the organ’s palette.
Dr. Jan Kraybill did a wonderful job of welcoming and introducing us to this new organ. It was easy to see how her imagination, gifts and love for playing the organ stepped into the circle of the Trinity and there was a beautiful creation we all enjoyed. God was glorified and we were filled with God’s life giving spirit.
The first piece, Psalm XX: Exaudiat te Dominus (May the Lord hear you) by Benedetto Marcello was the opening piece for the 2nd dedicatory recital on March 31, 1963. It was from a collection that was never intended for use in church but rather to inspire and enhance literary and intellectual discussions in the exploration of ancient cultures. Marcello took what he loved and invited others to witness and join in. I pulled out the hymnal and turned to Psalm 20, reading while the music accompanied and translated the voice of Psalm 20 into music. That was just the beginning as she played all of her recital off of a large electronic device.
Of course there was Bach, Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV 565 which many of us associate with The Phantom of the Opera in the 1962 film or other performances, movies, video games, rock music or phone ring tones. The rich, deep tones filled the room. Dr. Kraybill did a wonderful job of playing pieces that introduced us to the individual voices and other pieces that pulled them all together.
And then in celebration of the Swedes, Elfrida Andree’s Organ Symphony No. 1 in B minor was played. None of us had ever heard of her but she was the first woman to earn a diploma at the Royal Swedish Academy of Music and persistently fought for everything she accomplished with her gifts in music in the late 1800’s when women were not allowed in any of these circles. Not well known but we celebrated her hard work and persistence, and I could see her in God’s circle of creativity and imagination.
Kraybill’s encore was “Here Comes the Sun” which brought smiles to us all as a needed rain shower had just passed through. God was glorified, we were blessed and welcomed into God’s creativity and imagination and now we just might see where we fit into God’s holy circle of imagination and creation.
Bold Inquisitive Belief Loving Expansively,
Pastor Connie Spitzack
