JAZZ and the Spiritual

International Jazz Day | April 30, 2021

I was recently asked to contemplate the connection between Jazz and the Spiritual.  Here are some of my musings.  I decided to make a list of words that came up for me when I thought of what both Jazz and the Spiritual had in common – mystery, trust, and faith.   As I pondered each of these words more and let their meaning sink in, I felt a few other words rise to the top as well which seemed to enhance these three keywords. From these words, the following thoughts emerged.

As a jazz vocalist who primarily works in the setting of a trio or quartet, I love the ability to move freely in a group formation.  This collective of individuals holds the framework of great trust and allows each of the players to exist as part of and yet, apart from the whole, thereby being able to explore many boundaries. When I am engaged in singing a song in this setting, I can improvise and totally be in the moment because I have faith in my fellow musicians, faith in their ability, commitment, and skill.  There is still a deep connection to what I call “the original thought” or “theme” of a song.  This original thought or theme is always at the core of musical expression in jazz and is understood by all members of this musical collective, yet it is interpreted differently by each member.  Because of these elements in a performance, the end result is always somewhat of a mystery as we are each interpreting the blueprint of the original song in myriad, subtle ways.

“Music, like God, is a phenomenon that is hard to “understand” on an intellectual plane.”

To me, this seems quite similar to how each of us embraces spirituality.  There is a deep sense that we are all part of one body, one giant, universal collective, yet each of us hears the mystery of the divine voice in different and unique ways.  To function as a whole, we must learn to trust each other and have faith in each other as well. 

Music, like God, is a phenomenon that is hard to “understand” on an intellectual plane.  I would say that music is best experienced by the senses, and as for God…perhaps faith could be seen as the sixth sense?  And in the trinity of my original, “root” words, perhaps if we trust in mystery, we experience faith?

-Adi Braun | www.adibraun.com

Born in Toronto, Adi Braun grew up in Europe surrounded by music and musicians. Her parents were opera singers, and her father, Victor Braun, was one of Canada’s leading baritones. Her first instrument was piano, which she began studying at the age of six. With no formal voice lessons, she made her first pop/jazz recording at age 19. Following family tradition, Adi trained classically at the Royal Conservatory of Music and the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Music. She began her singing career as a classical recitalist, a soloist with orchestra and on-stage in operas and operettas alongside her brother, baritone Russell Braun. In addition to her many musical roles, Adi teaches German art song at the Royal Conservatory of Music and is a German diction coach for the Canadian Opera Company.

Grow Through What You Go Through

Easier said than done. Yet, day in, and day out, all of us are gifted with incredible opportunities to grow.  If we dare embrace whatever life presents - even during a difficult pandemic - we will grow through what we go through. If we have the courage, the patience and perseverance, as well as openness to the much-needed grace, we can and will grow through what we go through.  It may not happen in leaps and bounds, but happen it will, even during this pandemic, though we may not recognize the growth instantly but only in hindsight. 

All of us are familiar with sayings such as, “This will either make or break you” or “Bloom where you are planted.” When we find ourselves in difficult situations, such admonitions may be helpful or put our backs up.  While pondering about growth during difficult times, I wondered about creating a sacred space within ourselves where we can discern and choose how to grow through what we are going through during this pandemic instead of letting it break us.  What might this look like if we keep in mind, that we are chosen and appointed “to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last?” (John 15:16)

Hmmm, bloom and bear fruit. That sounds like a tall order, even at the best of times, let alone during this pandemic.  For many of us it may seem highly unlikely that this pandemic would be conducive to growing. If we stay with adages for a moment, such as “The grass is always greener on the other side” might that be true because there is more manure on the other side? If that be the case, we who have been well entrenched ‘on the other side of normal’, should then all be greening, sprouting, and growing as there is plentiful manure on this pandemic side of normal. However, that is not necessarily true, right?

We all know and have experienced, that there is a huge difference between head and heart knowledge.  My mind may take in such words as “This will either make or break you” but what will my heart believe?  During a time like this pandemic, all that might stick in my head might be, “This will break you.”  Yes, like a seed, life breaks us open. Might our hearts be willing to believe though, that difficulties can ‘make us’ and that we can grow? We may all have modest beginnings but through life’s difficulties we can in fact grow into “God’s masterpiece.” (Ephesians 2:10) Just as great oaks from little acorns grow with sufficient sun, rain, and the ‘manure’ of stormy weather, we, too, can grow when we learn to embrace the storms of our lives when we view them with new eyes. Though blasts from our past may aggravate our present pandemic situation, with grace we can weather whatever this pandemic holds for each one of us, even if we’d prefer to avoid these tough situations.

“...find God in all things”

Like our Jesuit brothers, when we have the courage to put aside our preconceived ideas and gain a new perspective, even during these challenging times, surprisingly we just might learn to “find God in all things.” Who knows, out of our difficulties miracles just may sprout. If we dare let go of our illusions, which tend to lead to disillusions, we will gain wisdom, that fertile soil needed to grow through what we are going through. When we no longer cling to our delusions of what life should look like, particularly during this pandemic, no longer holding onto unrealistic expectations, we might surprise ourselves by growing through what we go through.  When we not only face but embrace our reality, even if this pandemic breaks our hearts open evermore, they will surely also be enlarged.

Since I am finishing this reflection on Earth Day, I recall a recent conversation I enjoyed with a wise sage of a woman about pollinators.  What was unusual and fascinating about our conversation, was that she was not telling me about pollinators such as the amazing bees.  No, she spoke eloquently about people being pollinators.  In nature, “Pollination ensures that a plant will produce full-bodied fruit and a full set of viable seeds.” (www.pollinators.org) In the context of this reflection, however, I am pondering the concept of people being pollinators for others. Who are these pollinators, I ask myself, who help me till the inner soil so I can grow, bloom, and “produce full-bodied fruit” in my life and in turn help others seek “greening” in their lives?  In conclusion, then, I would like to invite you to ponder who the pollinators are in your life, particularly during this pandemic. Who is helping you not only to grow through what you daily go through but to bear fruit in great abundance?  On the flip side, for whom are you a caring pollinator?

-Sister Magdalena Vogt, cps

He has Risen.

He has risen as He said,

No questioning or abetting.

Jesus the risen Lord is among us

Challenging our thoughts and actions,

Luring us on to a new path

One of joy, praise and trust,

One with Him in mind and heart

Made new in the Resurrection.

 - Sr. Eileen Foran, age 95

World Day of Prayer for Vocations

BE BEARERS OF A PROMISE:
A REFLECTION FOR THE WORLD DAY OF PRAYER FOR VOCATIONS, 2021

In these troubled days in our world, as we face the prolonged Covid crisis and all of its consequences, and as we experience social unrest globally, many of us long for a message of hope and promise. In his address for the 2021 World Day of Prayer for Vocations (April 25), Pope Francis reminds us that it is not simply a matter of waiting for these gifts of hope and promise to come to us but that we are all called to be the “bearers of promise” – God’s promise.

How? We are to listen for and search out God’s dream for our life and like the Apostles, Simon, and Andrew in Scripture (MK. 1: 16-20)  to follow it without hesitation.  More widely, in the gift of creation, we observe God’s design in the glorious diversity and unity of the Universe and as part of that design, we each have a vital part to play. It is to discover and embrace our particular call from God, for God, with God. As Pope Francis puts it, “We are called to be bold and decisive in seeking God’s plan for our lives”, and in turn to share that in our giftedness in the world. God does have a plan for each of us.

“God has created me to do Him some definite service; God has committed some work to me which he has not committed to another. I have my mission … I have a part in a great work.”

— St. John Henry Newman

As St. John Henry Newman said: “God has created me to do Him some definite service; God has committed some work to me which he has not committed to another. I have my mission … I have a part in a great work.” Each of us, no matter who we are, in our personal vocation (marriage, partnership, committed single life, consecrated life, diocesan priesthood), and whatever our particular gifts and vulnerabilities each have a part to play in a great work. Our own context matters – especially now, we change the world where our feet are and we do that by embracing and living fully our own call.

To embrace our vocation, Pope Francis says, is first to welcome an encounter with God. Francis reminds us, God’s call “is not an intrusion of God in our freedom; it is not a ‘cage’ or a burden to be borne. On the contrary, it is the loving initiative whereby God encounters us and invites us to be part of a great undertaking.” From that encounter with God, an encounter of joy and discovery, not unlike an encounter “with the person we wanted to marry or when we first felt the attraction of life of consecration”, we experience the exhilaration that is the source of our encounter with and commitment to the other in love.

So we pray, on this 2021 World Day of Prayer for Vocations, to listen and discover our call, to hear its resonance anew in each day of our lives, to affirm and accompany one another as each of us contributes to the great work of God in our world today and as each of us finds the courage to risk becoming “bearers of promise” in these days so hungry for hope. 

Sister Mary Rowell, CSJ
President | National Association of Vocation and Formation Directors