Episode Details

It is a joy for me to introduce our next guest author for this Arts Wednesday, Kate Kennedy.  It also gives us a chance for us to begin introducing students from the our program who are in the last phase of their seminary training before ordination.  Kate shares something of her path into The Christian Community in the audio portion of this post along with what it was like to experience the performer she writes about today: Sufjan Stevens.

Here is the start of her incredible piece on the music of Sufjian Stevens:

“Everything I See Returns to You, Somehow”: Sacramentalism in the Music of Sufjan Stevens

Every year or so, I get the urge to send some of my Christian friends the final track of Sufjan Stevens’ 2004 album Seven Swans. The song “The Transfiguration” relates the event in Christ’s life known by the same name. Musically, it begins with Sufjan’s voice and the strumming of a banjo, and as the song progresses, more and more instruments chime in. As do more voices: “Lost in the cloud, a sign: Son of man! Turn your ear!” The layers wash over you until you have the sense that what began as simple narration has turned into a revelation. [Keep reading by clicking here]

About Kate Kennedy: Kate is in the last trimester before ordination in The Christian Community, studying at the seminary in Toronto. She is a writer and mother of two and is really enjoying digging holes and planting things in them.

Our thanks to Elliott Chamberlin who composed the opening music for this episode, “Water of Life” and the closing music, "Seeking Together".  You can find more of his music here. 

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