SEPTEMBER 2020
music to her treatment. She ends her sharing with 16-bars from Haydn’s oratorio, “Die Schöpfung.”
I began my MEGA session with dramatic storytelling about Jesus healing the lame man at the pool of Bethesda. Instead of needing to “Wade in the water” when the Angel “troubles” the pool, the sick man experiences an instantaneous healing at the word of Jesus. I wanted to present this at the beginning to juxtapose it with the ending of my session, where I present a series of videos documenting instantaneous healing responses to music, in Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and dementia patients. Tese videos were awe-inspiring and unforgettable.
God’s Gonna Trouble the Water: Te Healing Power of Music
ValLimar Jansen
When I was a small child one of my favorite things was story time with my amazing mother. She always ended our nightly “kindertainment” with the coloratura soprano voice of a celestial being. My favorite story was when the boy musician, David would be summoned to perform for an inconsolable King Saul. When David would play and sing the madness would leave King Saul.
Every time I heard this story, I would say, “When I grow up, I want to sing and see God heal people through music. Little did I know, as a child, that empirical scientific data demonstrates strong support for the healing power of music.
My MEGA session was another wonderful experience in my life-journey, delving deeper into my fascination with music’s healing power. As I prepared to present this session, I was honored to meet some of the most renowned scientists in the field of music therapy. I conducted some of the most compelling interviews and exchanged emails I will save and treasure.
I will always hold dear to my heart, the sharing of Cindy Wood, who gave her personal testimony during my session. She is a trained operatic soprano, who was healed from cancer, adding
Christ is Present in the Church Sandra deMasi, SSJ
One of the first pastoral theology books that I read as a novice was Models of the Church by Jesuit priest Avery Dulles. I always questioned the “hierarchical model” as presented by Father Dulles—Yes, I felt strongly that I had a vocation to religious life and entering would mean taking a step “up” (whatever that means) in the Church structure. But more than that, I believed my religious vocation was not only because of Baptism—rather, that my religious vocation is Baptism! Baptism is not a “membership card” stagnant event; it engages us as living members in Christ and his Church. I am convinced that if we want to strengthen the Church or strengthen Christian identity, we must heed the call of Pope Francis to awaken the memory of our Baptism.
“ The fundamental vocation of the human person— every human person—is holiness.”
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