Title Space, Woollim, God, October 31st
Psalm 19:1-6
It is a historic event that Martin Luther, a near-known religious and theological professor, published his 95 theses on October 31, 1517, in a large print above the doorway of the Wittenberg Cathedral. The post-war context in which theology matured and took shape may be far more important. For example, from 1513 to 1515, several years before the fire of the Reformation, Luther taught Psalms at the University of Wittenberg, followed by Romans in 1515 and 1516. It must be said that it was in the study of the Psalms and Romans that Martin Luther obtained the basic concepts of the Reformation, such as only faith (sola fide), only grace (sola gratia), and only the Bible (sola scriptura). For those of us who consider Luther as a forefather of faith, today, in order to get a little closer to Luther's religious passion and theological depth, let us consider in a meditative way some of the psalms he studied and taught.
Psalm 19:1-6 sings of God's revelation in nature. An Old Testament theologian named Artur Weiser calls the author of this psalm a great artist. The figurative language spoken by this poet's insight and concentration has reached the heights of outstanding artists such as Goethe, Haydn, and Beethoven. When we read these psalms, we often miss out on important spiritual depth because of our preconceived notion that it is the word of God. In order to understand this psalm we speak of a God that goes beyond our experience, just as true art begins with the world of experience and requires the study of that process, but in the end it must enter the world of a priori. We must let go of our religious preconceived notions and enter the world of mysterious origins. What was the source of the spiritual experience that made this poet sing like this?
space
In verse 1, the psalmist says, “The heavens whisper the glory of God, and the firmament speaks of his craftsmanship.” and start singing. These verses are linked to Genesis 1. According to the order in which God created the world, light is first and this heaven, or expanse, is second. God said, “Let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters, and let the waters separate from the waters!” Let's just do it. God made the expanse like this and separated the water under the firmament from the water above it. It is said that God called the firmament heaven (Genesis 1:6,7). Here, the creation of the sky means the beginning of space in this world. In this way, the writer of Genesis and the psalmist of today consistently describe this space created by the division of heaven and earth as God's great creative act.
In the sense that the sun, moon, stars, meteors, comets, clouds, etc., belonging to the sky, rivers and land, trees and birds can all exist only in these spaces, space is the home of life. Humans also live in space. Have you ever heard of the Big Bang in cosmic physics? The theory is that the universe exploded from a single point and expanded to an almost infinite size. The key here is also the appearance of space. The creation story of the Bible or the big bang theory of modern physics testifies that the beginning of this universe is the formation of space. To those who take the space given to us for granted, this spatial event may seem insignificant, but if you turn your gaze downward a little, you will be surprised.
The earth we live on has maintained such a space for the past 4.5 billion years, and the flower of life has blossomed. All living things and objects are shining while defending their place. Microorganisms such as aphids and nameless wild plants also have cosmological value in this Earth's space. As long as all living things, including humans, satisfactorily fulfill their share in the space of the earth, the earth will continue to handle this order of life for more than 5 billion years. Conversely, if this space is torn down due to human infinite desire or unexpected natural disasters, life on Earth will also be dismantled.
The phenomenon of life taking place in this space has another inner meaning. In other words, in order for life to function normally and to be active in space, a certain distance must be maintained. If distance is not maintained within this space, life cannot function. For example, if the fetus is to remain in the mother's body forever, he will never attain perfect life. This child's life is complete only when he comes out and keeps a certain distance from his mother. In a sense, it seems that all human-to-human relationships can develop life-oriented only by securing this spatial distance. Going one step further, wouldn't such a spatial distance be necessary even with God? When Jesus was crucified, he felt as if he had been abandoned by God. A sense of distance from God will lead us into a much deeper spiritual world.
ring
What is in the space we live on Earth? There are so many living things and objects here that we can't even imagine. Perhaps there is much more that biologists and physicists have yet to discover. One of the many things on Earth is 'sound'. Sound is the reverberation of the air. Because the vibration stimulates cranial nerves through our eardrums, we can experience sound. Since air is a substance that exists only on Earth, sound, which is the resonance of air, is also a phenomenon that is only possible on Earth. Stars are fireballs, so there is no reason for air to exist, and very few planets can make sounds like Earth. In this respect, we can say that space and resonance are the essence of life. It means that life arises through the condition of space and the phenomenon of resonance.
I'm sorry for the deaf, but I'm often amazed by the fact that I can hear. I feel the fullness of life when I hear the sound of the water in the valley, the wind in the bamboo forest in the backyard of the mountain temple, and the breath of the infant. One of the reasons my family wants to leave the apartment as soon as possible and go into the countryside is that we want to live while listening to the sound of rain falling in the forest. On the one hand, we are alienated from life because of the noise of the city, and on the other hand, we are cut off from the sounds of nature because we live in an apartment isolated from the outside. Still, we live without any inconvenience. The fact that we do not feel the alienation and disconnection from the true sound very seriously means that our inner vitality has been exhausted and exhausted.
However, as I said earlier that life is possible only when the distance of space is secured, a beautiful echo always requires an appropriate distance. Whispers of love between lovers only 30cm is sufficient, but you will need to be at least 10m away to enjoy the symphony. In order to have a beautiful resonance in human-to-human relationships, it is necessary to have a suitable distance. Because if people get too attached, it's never possible to ring. So the mystics practiced being alone for the sake of beautiful souls.
We have to think about another dimension of sound as well. There are sounds and echoes in Earth space that we cannot hear. The sound of flower buds bursting, the sound of mist brushing against the leaves, cannot be captured by our ears. Aren't artists and philosophers the only ones who can capture the ontological depth of such a resonance in their own spiritual sensibility that is inaudible to ordinary people? Thoreau describes this problem in Walden as follows: “Why are we in such a desperate rush to succeed, and so reckless in doing things? If a person doesn't keep pace with his peers, it's probably because he's listening to the drumming of a drummer that's different from them. Let him walk to the music he hears.”
I've heard that Beethoven composed it while he was deaf, and I think it's possible. If our spiritual hearing is open, we can catch the sounds that resonate with our hearts, not just the rumble of the air. The prophets of the Old Testament were such people, and the apostles and Paul of the New Testament were such people. It goes without saying that Jesus said he saw God.
Today the psalmist is singing the cosmological sound we are missing. “The day tells the day and the night tells the night. Even if you can't hear the story, the sound of those words, it resonates in every corner of the world and spreads to the ends of the earth” (2-4). He heard a sound echoing throughout the universe. This poet was aware of the ontological power of sound. This poet had the spiritual ability to capture sounds far more fundamental than our hearing, which can only hear sounds in a very narrow range.
God
I mentioned above in a few words of the psalmist's song that space and reverberation are the essence of life, but today the psalmist does not just glorify the majesty of the universe composed of space and reverberation. There are many songs that praise nature like that. As can be seen from the expression “The sun is like a bridegroom coming out of a bridegroom, like a hero who rushes forward” (5), the mythical elements of the pagans of that time are also included in this song. The poet does not sing the emotion or feeling of the moment toward nature, but praises God through his deep insight into such natural phenomena. Let's read verse 1 again. “The heavens whisper the glory of God, and the firmament speaks of his fine craftsmanship.” Although the mysteries and mysteries of nature are amazing phenomena, in the end he is praising the God who made them. To praise God in this way is the right attitude that can be taken by those who have seen the essence of all things and phenomena in this world.
In this respect, Protestant worship must restore a much more fundamental liturgy. As can be found in the so-called 'open worship', we need a worship method with a true religious symbol in which only the Triune God is ultimately brought to the fore, rather than a method that stimulates human religious sensibility. I think today's music worship is a part of that. I hope that desirable alternatives and experiments in the 21st century church music will be enriched in this building, which is named ‘Resonance of Space’.
To follow that path upright, I think, is one of our small missions to honor Martin Luther, who gave his life to reform the 16th-century Roman Catholic Church, which was steeped in religious authoritarianism and all kinds of human-centered achievements.
<The above sermon was hosted by the 21st Century Church Music Academy, a music service commemorating the 487th anniversary of the Reformation, held on October 30, 2004>