When I entered the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in 2011 as a young grad student, I had no idea what the following two years would be. From laughter to tears and everything in between, my time as a performing arts student changed my perspective on the world. One particular class, Voice for the Actor, broadened my knowledge of what words can truly mean and how their definitions can expand with research and care. For actors, words are a guide to the discovery of emotion. Without words, actors have a tough time conveying meaning. During my voice class, we learned how to dissect words and sentences through a process called image structuring. This method of re-imaging words and phrases forced me to approach the obvious with new eyes. I won’t go into the arduous process of the various symbols and signs used in image structuring, but I will reveal the first and most simple rule. The words and phrases you seek to re-image start with finding an alternate definition or synonym. I’ve used the knowledge I gained in graduate school to re-image a familiar worship element that we use each week: The Lord’s Prayer. It is not a verbatim translation of Merriam-Webster definitions, but rather an interpretation of what the words mean to me.
Caregiver of all, who dwells in the unknown, your presence is excellent! May your relationship with us grow beyond the unknown and into the familiar. Give us the strength to get through the day, and forgive us if we do harm. But let us also be in communion with those who harm us. Do not allow us to give in to impulse. Show us a path of clarity and truth. Your creation is all-encompassing, energetic, magnificent, and infinite. Amen.
- Evan Goetz
Click here to listen to Andrea Bocelli sing Malotte's version of "The Lord's Prayer."
