What do Vaccinating and Organ Music Have in Common?
I am sure you have heard this news already. The Salisbury Cathedral in Great Britain has opened its doors as a vaccination center. Click here to read about it. Reasons for doing so were very down-to-earth: the cathedral's central location and the sheer size of the building, which allows for safe distance and good flow of patients. Due to the appropriate shape and size, they were able to vaccinate about 1000 people on just the first day. For the Church, it is a wonderful expression of what it is for, to glorify God and serve the people. Already in the Middle Ages people made pilgrimages to spiritual centers to ask for healing. It seems to me that this is the 21st century rendition of the same idea.
While at the Salisbury Cathedral, patients have been treated to meditative and relaxing organ music by Bach, Handel and others. Classical music is known for being an effective stress reliever. The large chunk of classical music composed for the organ can help channel and embrace emotions.
Why is organ music able to support healing? The majority of organ music has been composed for religious purposes. The organ has been an official liturgical instrument in Western Christian churches for over a thousand years, and most of the music composed for this instrument was meant to be performed during worship. While some organ compositions have religious titles, more don't. But it doesn't mean that these pieces don't convey emotions, religious feelings, philosophical ideas, or pure and untouched Beauty of God. Majority of the composers for the instrument were church musicians and organists themselves.Thus, most organ music was composed for particular practical use: to help congregations pray, meditate, heal, mourn, glorify God, celebrate major feasts, support communal singing, and many others.
Organ's connection to the past and some of the best minds of composers, church musicians and organists out there, gives it a power like no other - to lift, to embrace, and to heal. Realization that generations of Christians have been comforted by organ music created for that sole reason, makes us feel a part of something larger than ourselves, and connects with those who came before us.
