theology and the arts
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Theology of Worship Panel – Part 2
I had the absolute joy of speaking on music-making, spiritual formation, and worship last night at Redemption Church Arcadia. It was such a fruitful time of sharing my thesis on musical practice as spiritual formation and then discussing how this factors into congregational worship. You can watch and listen here (slides included below): “There is Continue reading
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Theology of Worship Panel – Part 1
On Wednesday, I had the opportunity to collaborate with some fantastic musician-theologians to present a panel on theology of worship/music. Follow the link below to watch/listen and, as always, feel free to share your thoughts! We will be continuing our discussion next week at the same link. https://youtu.be/PVd4U9EmdCg Continue reading
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Wonderful: Preventative Grace in a Classic Film
As per tradition, my mom and I watched It’s a Wonderful Life on Christmas day, cozy and sleepy after an early morning. Although I’ve seen this movie countless times, it struck me very differently than ever before. Perhaps it is because this year has been so turbulent, so full of disappointed hopes and thwarted expectations, Continue reading
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Conjunction
Unlike that lone first star of Christmas nightThis union burns expectedly above, But like that light, this, too, shines highest, brightAnd may still testify of searing love. Drawn closer by the work of innovation,Man captures and contains this far-off flare.How like and unlike the flame of incarnationThat, inverse, came to earth to draw us near. Continue reading
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Immature Compassion in “The Idiot”
While studying “Christian Doctrine and the Arts” through the University of St. Andrew’s, I had the opportunity to read and write on Dostoevsky’s The Idiot, which was immensely fascinating. Once you get the hang of Russian novels (where everyone has ten different names and overly-intricate backstories), they prove to be incredibly satisfying studies! My essay Continue reading
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Fashion Theology Review (Link)
Recently, I had the honor of reviewing a marvellous (and meticulously-researched!) new book, Fashion Theology, by a former professor of mine. The full review has been published by Transpositions, an online journal managed by students from the University of St. Andrew’s Institute for Theology, Imagination, and the Arts. My review can be read here and Continue reading
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Extravagant: A Reflection on the Music of Dan Forrest
I adore playing the music of choral composer, Dan Forrest. An accomplished pianist himself, he knows how to fully engage accompanists, making them feel as if they are featured soloists and equal members of an ensemble rather than merely supporters. Even his simplest pieces cover the whole range of the keyboard and develop across glorious Continue reading
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Befriending Dante: A Reflection on Readership
Although I have always been bookish in about every sense of the word, I went through a “rebellious” phase in high school when my AP Literature class was required to read Dante’s Inferno. I was adamantly against it and now, as I reread it for the fourth or fifth time, I can explain away this opposition as Continue reading
AP Lit, AP Literature, bookish, books, characters, Christian literature, cultural literacy, dante, divine comedy, Fiction, history, inferno, inspiration, literacy, literary, literary friends, literature, narrative, paradise, purgatory, reader, readership, Reading, relationships, theology, theology and the arts -
Theme and Variations
Not long ago (though it seems a lifetime), I wrote about modulations. The idea that the dissonance of post-college life would eventually resolve into normalcy was comforting; considering the modulations in music were consoling to me as I felt keenly the sudden transitions I experienced after four years of relatively little change. Several months later, Continue reading
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Schumann’s Arabeske: A Musical Love Letter
It is my conviction that one must fall in love to play Schumann well. I did not at first enjoy practicing his Arabeske, Op. 18; while I understood the piece theoretically, I did not truly understand it emotionally or spiritually until I, like the composer, fell in love. Then, all at once, its nuances and Continue reading
arabeske, arabesque op. 18, C Major, clara schumann, falling in love, literature and art, literature and music, love, love letter, memory, Music, music and love, music blog, music history, music life, music major, Music writing, musical love letter, musician, pianist, piano, program notes, robert schumann, romantic music, schumann, senior recital, theology and the arts -
Up the Ladder, Down the Ladder: on artistic affection
“He now is struck with wonder by what’s wonderful in him. Unwittingly, he wants himself; he praises, but his praise is for himself; he is the seeker and the sought, the longed-for and the one who longs; he is the arsonist— and is the scorched.” – The Metamorphoses of Ovid In his Metamorphosis, Ovid paints perhaps Continue reading
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Ryanne Molinari 