UCC president kicks off symposium celebrating Jazz as liturgy

Written by Anthony Moujaes
October 25, 2013
The Rev. Geoffrey A. Black first noticed the spirituality woven throughout the jazz music repertoire when he was a radio host decades ago in Syracuse, N.Y.  Jazz is, as he put it, both inspirational and a spiritual expression. The General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ believes in jazz as liturgy because of its ability to speak to its listeners.

"Jazz always has a message. For us as people of faith, the Bible has traditionally been the source of our messaging," Black said. "There are the ancient narratives of God's relationship with people — God's liberating acts for a people enslaved. There we also hear the lament of God's people in their trials and suffering.

"We want you to go get the biblical message as expressed in the idiom of jazz and spoken word, a very powerful combination."

With those remarks, Black extended an extravagant welcome to jazz enthusiasts from across the country who came to Cleveland for Jazz for the Journey, a national symposium on jazz music in worship. Sixty-two people gathered at the UCC's headquarters Thursday evening, Oct. 24, to kick off the three-day event. The symposium brings together pastors, worship leaders, jazz musicians and music lovers to celebrate and explore the creative possibilities of jazz and its power to speak to our existential situation and transform Christian worship.

"The music is a natural fit. It is spiritual expression in a very pure form," Black explained to the audience. "It is proclamation. It is jubilation. It is longing. It is prayer. It inspires the body to move."

Black's keynote speech at the Amistad Chapel was the first in a series of presentations, workshops and concerts that continue through Saturday, Oct. 26. The Jazz lovers gathered will spend some time discussing ways liturgical music transforms worship in the church, the ways in which jazz is right in worship, and how jazz improvisation acts as a prayer.

Other presenters include the Rev. Henry T. Simmons, pastor of St. Albans Congregational UCC in Queens, N.Y.; the Rev. Dwight Andrews, senior minister of First Congregational Church UCC in Atlanta; and the Rev. Ozzie Smith, senior pastor of Covenant UCC in South Holland, Ill. The symposium aims to give people the tools, resources and inspiration to bring jazz music into their congregations, and provide attendees with the opportunity to network with each other as they learn more about the history of jazz music. A Friday evening concert, a Saturday Jazz worship service, and musical jam sessions are also scheduled.
Readmore: http://www.ucc.org/news/jazz-for-the-journey-keynote-08062013.html