Dangers of Music Theory and Theology

Studying Music Theory and Theology both share an inherent danger.  As a lover of both disciplines it is important I guard myself from this common risk.  Music Theory and Theology each serve their appropriate roles as means to an end, but have the capacity of becoming ends in and of themselves.

When I became a student of Music Theory I did so to expand my understanding of music.  I love how music ebbs and flows and engages with the world.  Tension and release.  Music is awe-inspiring, and learning some of the theory which undergirds it has only increased my adoration of music.  But studying Music Theory was never meant to overshadow my engagement with music.  I studied key signatures, chord structures, and harmonic progressions not to gain mastery over music, but to learn how to better appreciate it.  I want to go deeper in my love of music.

But a frustration I encountered as a music major was the belief every aspect of music, the nuance and sense of beauty, can be explained away by Music Theory.  Arnold Schoenberg articulated this academic belief succinctly saying "music need not be performed any more than books need to be read aloud, for its logic is perfectly represented on the printed page"(1).  I reject the belief Music Theory is superior to music.  A work of music does not exist in score form; music is a temporal and physical art (2).  We cannot divorce music from performance.  Theory exists to assist music and not the reverse.  To reduce music down to only theory assumes our modern academic beliefs trump the centuries of musical expression which predate written musical notation and academic analysis.

My approach to Theology mirrors my approach to Music Theory.  I study Theology because God is awesome.  God is infinite in ways my finite mind will never conceive, and I love this about God.  I do not read Theology books and ponder aspects of God's character so I can somehow express comprehension or control over God.  I study Theology to grow deeper in my understanding and appreciation of who God is.  Any time my learning does not increase my wonder of God I know I am doing something wrong.  Theology must be rooted in the truth God is God and I am not.  If my Theology ever tempts me to think otherwise my Theology has become an idol.  Finding security in my knowledge, even knowledge of God, and not in God Himself is folly.  Therefore Theology must be studied with great humility and caution to safeguard it remains a true avenue of intimacy with God.

So why study Theology?  Why study Music Theory?  If studying both subjects has this inherent danger why bother at all?  Ignorance is bliss right?  But the danger is not in the learning and discovering; the risk is in my ability to twist this knowledge to my own end.  I do not need to fear Theology, but I should instead be wary of what I may be tempted to do or justify with my Theology.  Theology is not God.  Theory is not Music.

In the midst of all this let us remember God is worth knowing.  God is absolutely worth knowing.  He alone is the Infinite and Independent One.  For every moment of the rest of Eternity (a number I cannot and will not ever understand) I will be in awe of my God and learning more about Him.  The key is for me to ponder the mysteries of His infinitude and of my finitude.  God Himself said it best:
"As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." (Isaiah 55:9)

1. Arnold Schoenberg in Newlin 1980: 164.  Spoken in 1940.
2. Jeremy S. Begbie.  Theology, Music and Time. 2000. p 55-56.

Christmas is over, now what?

We are now over one month post-Christmas and life has settled back into our normal routines.  Life continues like nothing happened.  But something did happen; we celebrated Christmas and the mysteries of Emmanuel and the Incarnation.  The whole course of human history changed with Jesus's missions trip to Earth.

If Christmas is not a Civil War reenactment and Jesus has truly come into the world, my life today should look different than it did on 12/24/2012.  But how?  Now what?

We must allow the truth of Jesus' coming, dying, and resurrecting to permeate our lives.  Every aspects; every nook and cranny.  We have to live with the truth our world and our lives will never be the same, nor should we allow ourselves to complacently think so.

Where to begin?  When Jesus was about ready to beam back up to Heaven in Acts 1 He lays out the next stage in His plan for global domination/reconciliation saying "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:8).  We see Peter in John 21 trying to go back to fishing, to his old life.  But Jesus follows him there and calls Peter back into the identity Jesus has for him.  Instead of returning to our old lives of 2012 let us seek Holy Spirit and God's power to be His witnesses here, there, and the world.

With this call to be Jesus's witnesses we cannot afford to stay in our Jerusalems.  I don't want to sonud too dramatic, but the Greek word for "witness" is "martyr", and our call is to martyrdom in whatever forms this may take.  Sharing the Gospel is risky.  It has always been risky.  It will always be risky.  We cannot wait for a "better opportunity" because such a thing will never come.

If we are truly honest with ourselves and with God, we will realize God loves us and God cares about us, but God also loves and cares about everyone else around the world too.  God in His goodness never promised His disciples safety.  Jesus never guaranteed comfort.  In fact He assures us of quite the opposite (Mt 24:9-14, Mk 13:9-13, Lk 21:12-19).  But Jesus did promise to be with us.  "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Mt 28:20).  We may lose in life, we may suffer, but we will never be abandoned.  This is the mystery of Emmanuel; even now in 2013 God is still with us.

My motivation is not based on a guilt-trip, it is rooted in my Jesus who is with me.  He has called us not only to be reconciled with Him, but also to be agents of reconciliation.  We are Christ's ambassadors to this world (2 Cor 5:19-20).

We have to take the Gospel to the world.  We have to live to see God's Kingdom advanced.  This Advent season the Lord continually reminded me of the billions of people on Earth who have never heard of Jesus's first Advent.  We have to see the Gospel taken to the unreached people groups and the far corners of the globe.  Jesus said the "Gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations(ethnic groups), and then the end will come." (Mt 24:14) and we need to take His statement seriously.

May your 2013 be an excellent and Jesus-y year.  May this year not be just another lap around the Sun, but see God's Kingdom come and His will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.

Love and sharing the Good News

Merry Christmas Eve!  With Christmas now only a day away we are preparing to switch gears from Advent to Christmas; from the longings in exile to the joy and good news which has come into the world.  Our messiah is coming.  Through Jesus's birth we see God's love demonstrated; we see the lengths He has gone through to show His love of us to us.  Jesus went on a missions trip to Earth to be our good news.

We remember the awesome truth of Emmanuel ("God with us") who came to this dark and lonely world.  God is with us and we can rest in the truth of His love.  We have the assurance that humanity in all our depravity cannot push God from this world.  Try as we have throughout human history, we cannot eclipse His love; we cannot make Him who is faithful give up.  God's love for this world is too great to be drowned out, and this incomprehensible truth continues to bring me awe.

With this in mind, an often un-discussed but central topic to Christmas is the un-reached people groups of the world.  We can relate to the people of Israel who waited in darkness for the coming of the Lord, and now we too are waiting for the Second Coming.  Our hope is in the assurance Jesus is coming back to bring us home.  Our exile will end and we will be with God.  As we prepare to celebrate Jesus's birth and His Second Coming, there are almost 3 billion (Joshua Project) people who have not heard the truth of Jesus's first coming.  Christmas is about the good news coming to Earth; not to certain regions, not only to the Church, but the whole world.

John the Baptist was sent ahead of Jesus to "prepare the way of the Lord" as testified by all four Gospel authors.  He fulfilled Isaiah 40:3-5 and went before Jesus to be the voice crying out in the wilderness.  John's great task was to go into a dark world and begin testifying about Jesus to any and all who would listen; he prepared the way for Jesus's first coming.  Similarly our great task is to (like John) go before Jesus and prepare the way for His second coming.  Like John we are called to be the voice in the wilderness crying out "prepare the way of the Lord."  We are not called the comfortable, we are not called to the complacent; we are called to "the wilderness" and "the desert".  Our task is not an easy one; we are called to serve the hard, dry, and resistant areas.  Finding such places does not require stepping much beyond our front doors, but on a global scale we have to consider the regions and people groups who have no access to the good news of Jesus.

As we transition from Advent to Christmas may we remember the un-reached who have not heard about our Emmanuel.  We will once again celebrate the truth that Jesus has come into the world and life will never be the same.  May we be people who will take this truth, the light of this good news, and carry it to those still in darkness who have no hope.  May we not look to the Second Coming without thinking to share the message of the First with all the world.

What's the deal with the pink Advent candle?

I don't know your traditions, if you have these traditions, but growing up the four Sundays of Advent were Hope, Peace, Joy, and Love. This last Sunday was the third Sunday of Advent and therefore Joy. Another tradition I have often seen in Advent wreaths is having the third candle be pink instead of the typical purple color of Advent. I did a little digging (wikipedia) to find the story behind this pink candle and have discovered the following.

The third Sunday of Advent is called "Gaudete Sunday" in the liturgical calendar, and "gaudete" is Latin for "rejoice". Historically this Sunday's mass begins with Philippians 4:4-6.

But why the pink candle? Turns out the candle is pink to help distinguish and highlight this Sunday and specifically the theme of joyful anticipation of Jesus's coming into the world. I find this idea intriguing.

I don't know about you, but I experience Advent as a quiet and contemplative season of the year. I enjoy reflecting upon the melancholy themes of exile and walking in darkness before Christ's triumphant entry. Just as we are waiting for the light of Christmas and Jesus's first coming, the whole world is still waiting for the light of Jesus's second coming.

But Christmas is not only about the solemn reflection upon the state of the world, it is a joyful celebration of Emmanuel, our God who came to be with us. After being rejected by humanity God in His goodness He sent us His Son. Jesus came back to this dark world which He could have easily given up on (I would not blame Him if He had). We have hope, peace, joy and love because Jesus has come into the world. Jesus is coming and nothing will ever be the same.

And so it is fitting for Christmas to be a fun and festive season; to give gifts, sing carols, eat cookies, and be with family. Our God is a God of celebration. In the Torah He very specifically called the Israelites to celebrate three festivals in remembrance of what God had done for them (Passover, Booths, and Pentecost). It is only appropriate we too be a people of celebration as we remember all the Lord has done for us.

Yes this world is still in darkness, but we joyfully await Jesus's triumphant return.

What a candle taught me about Advent

A few years ago I had the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving with my sister in Copenhagen Denmark.  Without Thanksgiving to get in the way the whole city was in full Christmas-mode.

A fun Danish Christmas tradition my sister showed me is burning Advent calendar candles (pictured) called a kalenderlys.  The idea is simple enough, each day you burn one day's worth of candle counting down until Christmas.

This last summer we found one of these candles in our travels, and for the month of December I have been burning the candle each day.  This task is nice and cozy, but it has required more intention than I initially expected.  Each day I am forced to find time for the day's burning.  This requires me to plan my days in such a way I will have time for the kalenderlys.  If a day were to be missed I know the little golden numbers on the candle would be there taunting me until the time had been redeemed.

It's amazing how restful it is to daily spend time watching a candle burn.  Since I can't leave the flame unattended, I am required to sit and be still.  So far the time burning the kalenderlys is either spent praying or sitting with my wife Emily (my two favorite people).  The Advent calendars I had growing up (opening a door each day) helped me count the days until Christmas, but they did not require a daily pause from me.  A picture or Bible verse can be merely glanced at; a candle takes time to burn.  I am held accountable for spending time each day resting and reflecting upon the miracle of Emmanuel.

I don't know about you, but I at least can make the idea of spending time with Jesus into this great overwhelming task.  Jesus did not come to add clutter to our lives, but we have a knack for missing this point.  It is easy for me to confuse quantity and quality of time spent with God.  The kalenderlys helps me also remember even a small portion of time spend well with the Lord is time well spent.

This advent season instead of buying into the craziness of our modern holiday let us make room to be still and remember what the Lord has done for us.