In Christian theology, embodied faith highlights the paradox of Jesus as fully divine and fully human—the incarnate God. It also emphasizes our individual and shared human experiences as critical components of creation itself. 

Embodied faith connects our personal experiences with a personal God, and our relational experiences with a relational God. In other words, this concept of embodiment represents how individual human realities can connect us with one another and our Creator. For in humanity, we are the same: we are created from dust, and to dust we will return (Genesis 3:19). 

The original setting of “O Tu Suavissima Virga” highlights how God chooses each of us to actively participate in our own narrative, while “O Magne Pater” is a humble cry for help that amplifies God’s strength through human weakness. By pinning these texts against one other, they become a conversation about the beauty that lies within the tensions of humility. It is a dialogue that both names our dependency on a Creator and empowers personal action.

This arrangement is written for flexible instrumentation because it reflects a prayer that is fluid in nature: it will be different every time it is played, just as prayers are different every time they are prayed. Melody lines are simple and accessible to shifting ensembles, while the function of the drone is a connecting point through every performance. Ensemble members additionally have the opportunity to engage with embodiment through the action of a homogenous humming.

While this musical reflection is born out of a Christian perspective, I hope that all participants—both performers and audience members—find this as a means of facilitating reflection on the human experience and soul. I invite you to engage with the music and text as a form of communion in whatever season of life you find yourself within.

“Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Spirit

Holy, as it was in the beginning.”

 — Hildegard von Bingen / Doxology