Fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la!

I love all of the fa-la-la-la-la-ing this time of year! From Handel’s Messiah, to the carolers at your door, music is definitely in the spotlight at the Christmas season. But music isn’t just listening to familiar songs and singing along. It’s active and powerful. Music unites; it brings about warm feelings of peace; it moves people to action; it solidifies friendships. Music uplifts, inspires, heals. Mary Baker Eddy wrote, “Music is the harmony of being” (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 106).

Music isn’t a human invention; where there’s rhythm, harmony, and joy—there’s God. After all, God is the source of these spiritual qualities. Since music is divine, it transcends human limitations. Time has no bearing on the joy music gives. Think of the glorious musical scores by composers like Mozart or Bach, written so long ago. Neither can distance cancel the strength of music’s lasting connections. Music can also bypass the material senses—we can know harmonious tones on a spiritual level, when our ears aren’t even listening to them. Our spiritual sense tells us when a piece of music has washed over us in such a way that we’ll never be the same. Through our spiritual sense, we feel the harmony that puts a spring in our step, and the uplift that puts a smile on our faces—long after a great concert is over. Mrs. Eddy put it this way, “Mental melodies and strains of sweetest music supersede conscious sound. Music is the rhythm of head and heart” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 213).

I still remember with amazement the evening my old college friend from twenty years before—and many miles away—called me. He had been working in his garage that day, and one of our favorite songs had come on the radio. The call was unexpected, because I hadn’t heard from him in years. But honestly, it wasn’t that surprising. I had been cleaning out an old bench of sheet music, and had played the same piece of music on my piano that afternoon. It was astonishing to realize we had relived the connection of those musical memories—at almost the same moment—all those years and miles later. I felt God winking at us both.

Musical connections have their source in Soul—the artsy name for God. The inspiration behind a moving composition, lyrics that make us think, or even a catchy advertising jingle—leading us directly to the store—comes from Soul, which creates all melody and expresses all harmony. I don’t know anyone who hasn’t been moved by music in some way. God is eternal, and since music has its source in Him, the power of music is nothing new.

The Bible gives an account of Solomon dedicating the temple he’s built for God. (See 2 Chronicles, chapter 5.) Music was a valued part of the temple’s magnificence. The instruments were placed alongside the silver and gold. They, and the harmony they would surely express, were as treasured as the precious metals. 

What a powerful scene as the music began to play in Solomon’s new temple: “As the trumpeters and singers were as one…and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music…then the house was filled with a cloud…for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of God” (2 Chronicles, 5:13-14).

As you’re enjoying this music video by the group Pentatonix, and all of the other music you’ll be hearing this Christmas season, remember that music expresses the glory of God, and helps us feel connected to Him. “Music is more than sound in unison....Music is divine” (Message to The Mother Church, 1900, p. 11).