Art doesn’t presume to be the thing that it depicts. A photo of a tree isn’t a tree and a portrait of a woman isn’t a woman. Opera, however, seems to embrace fully the fact that it isn’t real—it’s wholeheartedly and unabashedly unrealistic. Take, for example, the prolonged operatic death scene: for ten minutes the heroine sings a solo—called an aria—with tremendous passion and enthusiasm, all the while she is dying. The treacherous and mortal wound is inflicted, the heroine is certain to die, yet she sings… and sings… and sings. To many people, this makes opera seem very silly indeed. To others, it may seem silly but, like the emperor and his new “clothes,” they pretend it’s profound but don’t know why. Opera, however, is profound and powerful precisely because it is unrealistic.  Opera challenges the listener to exercise their full imaginations. Audiences need to exert actively a “willing suspension of disbelief” while viewing the operatic performance.[2] Unlike a modern cinematic Imax or 4-D virtual experience, which seeks to trick the audience into thinking they are actually immersed in an experience through eye-popping visual effects, immersive surround-sound and vibrating chairs, the audience of opera is never tricked into thinking the events on the stage are real. Instead of portraying realism, opera attempts to reflect “reality” by means of symbolism. The key to enjoying good opera is to realize that it attempts to function symbolically as “total art.” Opera is “total art” because it capitalizes on all of the resources of nearly every artistic form; at its disposal opera has orchestral and vocal music, poetry and drama, dance, choreography, and a host of visual arts—painted backdrops, sculptures, costumes, set pieces and props—all to convey symbolic meaning. The renowned musicologist, Aaron Copland, writes, “One must be willing to allow that symbolic things mirror realities and sometimes provide greater esthetic pleasure than the merely realistic. The opera house is a good place in which to find these symbolic pleasures.”[3]

Opera also amplifies the human experience for all to hear and see. The power of the prolonged death sequence, for example, is that it slows down and magnifies a heartrending moment in time, allowing the audience to grasp the full weight of emotional and psychological trauma that the dying victim is enduring. The audience gets to witness the feelings of deep betrayal, the impending sense of finality and the reality that one’s hopes will remain unfulfilled. This is what good opera typically does well: enlarging and fully displaying the human emotional and psychological experience for all to see, hear and feel. Humanity’s greatness and folly, triumph and tragedy are showcased with the full weight of an operatic masterpiece. Opera presents a deeper insight into reality, which a realistic “death” would fail to do. In a realistic portrayal, if you blink, you miss it; opera doesn’t allow the audience to miss anything. So good opera, then, is profoundly real yet not realistic—real in its attempt to cause the audience to pause, reflect and respond to the magnified spectacle of human triumph and tragedy.

Christians can gain a great deal of insight into the human experience—the depth of human depravity and folly, the extent of human pride, and the beauty of love and sacrifice—all laid out and magnified before them on the opera stage. But learning to appreciate opera may also help Christians to slow down and better understand what God is doing in their own lives. So often, we rush through life without sufficient reflection or deep consideration of what God is doing or saying. Too often in our Bible readings we zoom through the text and sometimes miss the wonderful truths he has for us in his Word. Take, for example, Mary’s Magnificat recorded in Luke. Robert C. Tannehill in his essay, “The Magnificat as Poem,” points out that the narrative flow in Luke’s gospel is seemingly interrupted by Mary’s song of praise (Luke 1:46-55). This interjection, Tannehill argues, is intentionally designed to cause readers to pause and reflect on the magnificent events that have just occurred in the story so far. He writes, "the Magnificat is like an aria in opera. The artistic conventions of opera allow the composer to stop the action at any point so that, through a poetic and musical development exceeding the possibilities of ordinary life, a deeper awareness of what is happening may be achieved. A similar deep participation in the meaning of an event is made possible by the placement of this poem in Luke’s narrative."[4]

​Like an aria in an opera, Mary’s hymn slows the narrative down allowing readers to truly reflect on what is transpiring in Luke chapter 1. Mary’s song literally magnifies the moment—the pivotal moment in history, the incarnation—by putting a spotlight on what God has done and will do, and like an operatic aria, amplifies Mary’s emotional, psychological and spiritual response for all to see and hear. In so doing, the Magnificat invites the reader, like an audience at the opera, to reflect and respond with Mary in her praise of her Saviour and her God. Opera, like Mary’s “Magnificat,” can teach us to slow down and take in all that we are seeing and hearing on the stage, in life and in the Word.

Not all opera is good opera. As one opera aficionado pointed out to me, some operas are merely vehicles for narcissistic soloists seeking self-glorification.[5] Nevertheless, Christians can learn to appreciate and enjoy opera and benefit from deeper insights into the human experience as well as be encouraged to pause and reflect on the marvellous work of God in our lives, day to day and moment by moment.

Endnotes

[1] Originally published in Barnabas, Vol. 10, No. 3 (Summer 2018): 20.

[2] The phrase, “willing suspension of disbelief” comes from Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Biographia Literaria (1817)
Chapter XIV, and has been wildly applied to works of poetry, theatre and opera to mean an audience’s willingness to exercise an imaginative and poetic faith in the work of art, believing that the events are real and deciding not to “see” the stage, actors or set so as to enter into and experience the performance more fully. 

[3] Aaron Copland, What to Listen for in Music. Penguin Putnam, 2011, p.185.

[4] Robert C. Tannehill, “The Magnificat as Poem.” Journal of Biblical Literature 93, no. 2 (1974): 265

[5] This opera aficionado is my dear friend Gordon Vanderwoude.

With the restriction on group gatherings, many saints are now worshipping God at home. Although worshipping at home is no substitute for meeting with the local church, under the current circumstances, it has become our “new normal.” The challenge is that many Christians have never planned or led a worship service before. I have been a dad for over twenty years, and during those years, I have led many times of family worship of one kind or another. I have also had the privilege of leading congregational worship. Easing into our present “new normal” of worship-at-home was fairly natural for our family and for me. But it occurred to me that it might be helpful for me to share some tips that we have learned along the way. I hope this will be of some use to you during the COVID-19 lock-down!
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1. Be intentional with family worship. This means taking time to plan out your “order of service” and setting a reasonable start time. Get everyone out of their jammies and dressed. Invite them to come with their Bibles and their church bags! Be sure to let your family know in advance that the “event” is happening. Make sure your spouse and older children are onboard as cheerleaders as well. You are not “playing church.” Rather, you are coming together as a family to do the serious business of worshipping the Lord.
2. In terms of planning your service, take cues from your regular church service. Adapt as much as you can to be as familiar as possible during your homemade version. Key elements should include prayer, singing, and the reading of the word. Listening to or watching a sermon is also essential (more on that below).
3. Involve your children. Depending on their ages and abilities, have your kids participate in prayer or the reading of scripture. Because your worship at home is less formal, you also have the opportunity to be more interactive. Ask questions and encourage your children to ask questions. If your children play an instrument, then have them accompany your family during the singing. Singing together is an essential aspect of the corporate worship experience. Below I have listed ideas if you are on your own as well as some ideas of how to lead singing if you aren't musically inclined.
4. Keep your service short. Your service should be long enough to be substantial, but not so long that the experience is torture for your kids, especially younger ones. Our regular congregational services are about 90 minutes long, so I ensure that the non-preaching components of our home service are around 20 minutes long (or less).
5. If your church Livestreams a message or pre-records one, incorporate this online message into your at-home worship service. It is encouraging to see and hear your own local “under-shepherd” preach the word. Although there are fantastic sermons available online by well-known preachers, none of those men are caretakers of your soul or overseers of the souls of your family (Hebrews 13:17). If, however, your local congregation isn’t broadcasting a sermon, then tap into a sermon from another sister church via Facebook, YouTube, Sermon Audio, etc..  Depending on your comfort level, an alternative to listening to a short online sermon is to lead your family through a short reflective devotional based on a text from the Word. 
6. Choose a place in your home that is both comfortable and functional. Be sure to set up your mini-service in advance, making sure there are enough seats, the computer or television can be viewed by everyone, hymns have been bookmarked or printed off, all Internet links work, and the sound is set to the right level.
7. If you are at home alone, then I encourage you to still plan a service for Sunday morning. Read the scripture passages out loud and sing along with the YouTube choirs! Participate in a Livestreaming event if possible via Facebook or other streaming platforms so that you can “virtually” experience the community of Christ. Better yet, get on the phone with someone else who may be on their own; pray together, encourage each other, sing together, and read to one another.

What we have been doing during our home services:

Scripture

• We read a Call to Worship (a brief passage or short Psalm that calls us to praise and worship our Awesome God); this morning, we used Psalm 92:1 – 4. I also ask my children to read a relevant complementary passage (e.g., a Psalm or Old Testament reading) as well as the core sermon text (if known). I also select a benediction text to close the "service" such as Ephesians 3:20 - 21, Colossians 3:15 - 17, 2 Thessalonians 3:16, Hebrews 13:20-21, among others. As mentioned above, engage your family by asking questions about the readings and encourage your children to ask questions as well. Make this time interactive!

Singing

• I plan to sing an Opening Hymn that is stirring, God-centric, sing-able, and well known to the family. This helps to open the lungs, fill the room with voices, and focus our attention on the One we are worshipping. Hymns like “A Mighty Fortress” or “O God, Our Help” or “Jesus Shall Reign” work for us and are topically relevant to praise our unchangeable God during this time of great change! I usually aim for three songs or hymns in total. I am blessed that one of our church pianists is my son, so we have our own accompanist. I also have a stack of hymnals on hand. For those who are musically challenged or are on your own, there are many online hymns and songs with instruments, choirs, and lyrics to help round out your own voices. Be sure to test out the video in advance to ensure the version is the tune you know and that it’s sing-able for a group (as opposed to a stylized version sung by a professional soloist or a daunting version accompanied by a pipe organ and classically trained choristers).

Prayer

• Allot times for prayer throughout your service. This could include opening prayers, praying after and about the Scripture readings, and a slightly longer “pastoral-like” prayer, praying for the needs of the family, the church, neighbours, and the world. Worshipping at home also allows you the opportunity to gather prayer requests from your family members and to pray specifically for them. 
• I also briefly and intermittently provide commentary on the passages, hymns, and prayers to provide continuity or “narrative flow” to the service, helping the family see how every element connects and builds towards the sermon (if topic and text are known).

​Conclusion
Family worship can come in multiple forms. It is less formal than a congregational worship service but more formal than gathering for a game of Monopoly. Find the right balance. Your family should feel at home, but they should also be aware that they are gathering to worship a Holy God. Your service should be delightful but also serious. May the Lord bless you as you seek to honour him in your homes!
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