Flamenco and Prayer
9.30.2009 | All Blog Posts, The Arts, Technology, and Prayer
On a recent hot evening in Fresno, La Canela and El Quijote and Cerro Negro, gathered some fifty of us, crowded into the courtyard of our host’s home, into the spirit of Flamenco. I’ve known Flamenco, even traveled several times to Andalusia, the southern region of Spain, which is home to Flamenco. But there I’d encountered only commercial Flamenco. Though beautiful, it’s commercialization misses the true spirit of Flamenco.
Flamenco is more than music, song, and dance. Traditional Flamenco, the Flamenco of the gypsies is communal, spiritual, even contemplative. In Flamenco—not performed on a stage, but in the round—all participate. All are together in the sound and movement. All are caught up in the ecstasy and agony that is the soul of Flamenco.
It’s not saying too much to say that Flamenco is prayer. And Flamenco helps me see more fully the nature of expressly religious prayer—the kind of prayer I’d be better off praying. Sadly, like commercial Flamenco, much praying misses the ecstasy and agony that is true prayer.
The art of Flamenco makes me wonder how I’d pray the Psalms, for example, if I let the gypsies show me how to pray them—for the Psalms contain the full anatomy of the human soul. Too often I pray them as if I were reading a menu.
9.30.2009
One of the joys of teaching in a large public high school is getting to watch the students share the dances of their cultures in public assemblies. There is nothing commercial about the dances performed by 14-18 year olds. They dance as they were taught. They dance with an innocence and yet with a maturing understanding of the dance’s meaning. I was very much reminded of it on the recent Sunday I visited UPC.
I never thought to see it as prayer though.
10.01.2009
Music moves the soul, as it expresses great joy and deep sadness. It allows the soul to move through the entire range emotion. The music of Flamenco is one of those types of music that causes me to feel great joy and happiness, it lifts my spirit. As my body moves to the music it allows me to become free and connect to the beat of the music in essence to become one with the music.
But there is other music and lyrics that remind me of how desperate I am and how often I fail. One such tune is by Casting Crowns called “From the Alter to the Door”. This song reminds me of how desperate I am for God and how important it is for me to lean on God since there are so many times I fall on my face after having all of the good intentions in the world when I was standing at the altar. As I walk out into the world away from my prayer at the altar (in my pew) and the stuff of the world starts pressing all of my good intentions seem to fall by the path I am walking. Oh how important it is to remain connected to God because without that connection I become powerless.
Honest connection with the words we say when we pray, building them into our souls, not allowing them to become so many empty rote words has amazing potential for our spirits. It changes the words from religious language to honest heart felt connection to all of God (Father, Son and Holy Ghost). (Try it sometime when saying the prayer, we call the ‘Lord’s Prayer” take it apart and build each set of words into you soul–Your’s is the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory forever and ever and ever!!!!!!! AMEN)
10.01.2009
Steve and Joe…yes! Like the connection with dance and praise.
10.02.2009
[...] “Teach Us to Pray” :: Prayer as Dance [...]