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| Photos by Michelle Hoffman, Modeled by Jenny Stevens |
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Pray. Read your scriptures. Go to church.
These "classic Sunday School answers" seem to be self-explanatory, but they can mean different things to every person.
There are those who view prayer differently than most. To them, prayer reaches its pinnacle when it is set to the melodies and harmonies of music.
Doctrine and Covenants 25:12 states: "For my soul delighteth in the song of the heart; yea, the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me, and it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads."
Currently, the Music and Theater Departments at BYU-Idaho are preparing for the November performance of Savior of the World, a musical drama depicting the life of Jesus Christ. This acclaimed production will involve the efforts many students and faculty.
Grace Potter, a senior from Temecula, Calif., and Christy Sandberg, a senior from Tualatin, Ore., will be in the performance with the symphony, playing the bass clarinet and the bassoon respectively. They and their fellow performers spend a great deal of time practicing and pondering in order to perform their pieces by the spirit.
"We're playing, so we definitely feel the spirit, but the purpose is not only to have us feel it, but also to have the audience feel the presence of the Holy Ghost," Potter said. "When you're feeling the Spirit in music, you're about as far away from evil as you can be."
Many students at BYU-I find it easier to express themselves through music rather than words.
"I have a hard time sharing my testimony in testimony meeting," Sandberg said. "But when I play music in church I'm sharing my testimony with the world."
"I think music is one of the best ways to communicate with Heavenly Father," said Wendi O'Brien, a senior from West Jordan, Utah.
Other religions also recognize the importance of music in worship. Catholic services, for example, use the singing of ancient Latin prayers as an intricate part of their traditional masses, as well as congregational hymns.
Elder Dallin H. Oaks encouraged members to "renew [their] fervent participation in the singing of [the] hymns."
"Music is an effective way to worship our Heavenly Father and his Son, Jesus Christ. We should use hymns when we need spiritual strength and inspiration,"he said.
