“You’re preaching to the choir.”
Whenever I hear that expression, I have to laugh. It assumes people in choirs are so perfect, they somehow don’t need a sermon.
Well, let’s get real. I sang alto in a church choir for many years. And during that time, I discovered that choir members are not immune to sin.
As for me, it was nothing profoundly juicy. There was no excessive partying and no late-night rendezvous with tenors (well, except my own husband, that is!). It’s just that choirs, like all groups composed of human beings, give rise to a garden variety of sins.
First on the list is envy, which I experienced firsthand. You see, I have a first-grader’s grasp of reading music and I deeply envied folks who sang at the post-doctoral level. These pundits could merely glance at the sheet music and then burst into song a moment later. More miraculous still: They even hit the notes!
As for me, I need to hear a melody sung about 100 times before I finally “get it.” To be honest, that doesn’t always happen. And I recall a particularly embarrassing moment when the alto sitting beside me suggested I might be happier singing soprano. She was probably right, given that I was, without realizing it, doing just that at the time.
And then there is pride. Every choir harbors some folks who think they must be in the limelight, no matter what. They clamor for a solo even if their voices are ho-hum. And they can quickly become a thorn in the side of other singers who are not there to achieve fame and fortune.
Let’s not forget self-deception. Sadly, volunteer choirs often attract individuals who are under the mistaken impression that they can actually sing. Maybe their mothers think they can. Or maybe they like the sound of their voice in the shower.
It took some degree of self-deception for me to show up the first night for choir practice. I really liked singing, you see, but it took a while before I realized that enjoying something doesn’t necessarily make you good at it. And if you’re not sure about this, imagine a brain surgeon who truly relishes wielding the scalpel but is all thumbs in the operating room.
I’m not suggesting that choir members are somehow greater sinners than folks in the pews. In fact, we all struggle with envy, pride and self-deception on a daily basis. And a good pastor will explore these sins, help people overcome them – and not be hesitant about preaching to the choir.
Lorraine's recent books are "Death in the Choir," a mystery set in Decatur, and "The Abbess of Andalusia," a spiritual biography of Flannery O'Connor. Her e-mail address is lorrainevmurray@yahoo.com
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