Coherence, Refugia, Love and Harmony
What chemistry, biology, theology and music tell us about surviving these days
Who knew that song writing inspiration can be prompted by chemistry, biology, theology and the world around us?
Islands of Coherence
The first inspiration for this new song came about a month ago from a meditation by Rev. Cameron Trimble, When Leadership Fails, Communities Must Rise. She referenced an article, Islands of Coherence by Stephen Poser, PhD, and they both highlighted this quote:
“When a complex system is far from equilibrium, small islands of coherence in a sea of chaos have the capacity to shift the entire system to a higher order.” - Ilya Prigogine, Nobel Prize-winning chemist
Give the incoherence and chaos of the last few weeks, the notion that a small island of coherence could make a difference was a moment of hope. Check the definition of “coherent”—doesn’t that sound appealing?
Refugia
I’ve been a fan of Debra Rienstra’s book, Refugia Faith since it was published in 2022, and also subscribe to her Substack blog, Refugia Newsletter. Here’s a few paragraphs that will give you an idea of why refugia was the next connection and inspiration.
When Mount Saint Helens erupted in May of 1980, it lost 1,300 feet of elevation and gained a new mile-and-a-half-wide crater. The debris and ashfall from the volcanic blast devastated the mountain and its surroundings for miles, crushing, burning, killing, and coating everything in hot ash. Everyone assumed life could return to this apocalyptic death zone only very slowly, maybe over several human lifetimes.
Instead, forty years later, the mountainsides are covered with lush grasses, prairie lupines, alders. Critters scamper, streams flow. It will take a few hundred more years for the vegetation to return to something like old-growth forest. But still. Why did life come back with such vigor, and so quickly? As Kathleen Dean Moore explains in her book Great Tide Rising, “What the scientists know now, but didn’t understand then, is that when the mountain blasted ash and rock across the landscape, the devastation passed over some small places hidden in the lee of rocks and trees. Here, a bed of moss and deer fern under a rotting log. There, under a boulder, a patch of pearly everlasting and the tunnel to a vole’s musty nest.” These little pockets of safety are called refugia. They are tiny coverts where plants and creatures hide from destruction, hidden shelters where life persists and out of which new life emerges.1
Rienstra, Debra. Refugia Faith: Seeking Hidden Shelters, Ordinary Wonders, and the Healing of the Earth (pp. 3-4). Kindle Edition.
Read also On Refugia: Kathleen Dean Moore: “If destructive forces are building under our lives, then our work in this time and place, I tell them, is to create refugia of the imagination. Refugia, places where ideas are sheltered and encouraged to grow.”
Theology and Music
Given that I’m not a chemist or biologist, but rather a pastor/theologian/student of the Bible and musician/singer/composer, I began casting about for the theological and musical equivalents of islands of coherence and refugia. Theologically, love is the response to hate and fear. In this Lenten season, Christians may reflect on the love embodied in Jesus. Biblically, Micah 6:8 is a beautiful summary: “He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
Musically, singing together, breathing together, both in unison and in harmony is something that retunes our bodies to one another.
Besides the resources from chemistry and biology, some of the visuals in the video came as I searched for resources about embodied love and harmony. See/read: How I came to love embodied prayer by Mindi Roll, Using art to put marginalised communities at the centre of research by Ivana Bevilacqua, Hana Riazuddin and Rosa dos Ventos Lopes Heimer, and E+, 9.9 Hz – “the love frequency” .
The song, and video, that came out of several weeks of reflection is a call and response, an affirmation and an invitation. Each verse adds another voice to the response.
Coherence, Refugia, Love and Harmony by Nancy Willbanks
I want to be part of an island of coherence in this sea of chaos, and shift the systems. Come now to be part of an island of coherence in this sea of chaos, and shift the systems. I want to be in a refugia, a nook of safety that survives this catastrophe. Come now and be in a refugia, a nook of safety that survives this catastrophe. I want to be love embodied, holding love at the center of all I do. Do justice, love kindness, walk humbly with my God. Come now and be love embodied, holding love at the center of all we do. Do justice, love kindness, walk humbly with our God. I want to be singing together, with breath, voices, hearts in harmony. Come let us be singing together, with breath, voices, hearts in harmony.
Reflection Questions
What do islands of coherence, refugia, love and harmony have in common and how are they different? What other comparable concepts in other fields might you want to add to our capacity to survive the chaos, be safe, show love, and be in community?
Opportunities for Singing Together
Boston Interfaith Song Circle
I just found out about this and I’m excited to be going to the first gathering this Sunday, March 23, 2025 2:30pm - 4:00pm at Allston Abbey, 5 St. Luke's Road, Allston, MA 02134. Registration required. Masks are required for accessibility.
Monday Morning Grounding
Join Music that Makes Community for a weekly touchstone on Zoom that includes singing, silence, sacred text, and community connection. We'll gather at 10 a.m. EDT (9 CDT / 8 MDT / 7 PST) each Monday for a 30-minute gathering followed by 15 minutes of coffee and conversation.
We’ll be meeting March 24, 31, and April 7 and then take a two week break for Holy Week and Easter Monday, resuming on April 28.
MMC leaders host the gathering, drawing from many musical and spiritual traditions. Register here!
Heart Songs
Click here for the latest post of dates
OR here to sign up for the reminder email (Select "Heart Songs" from the list).
Heart Songs meets next, on Zoom, on March 24 at 7:30 pm Eastern/6:30 pm Central.
Sisters in Harmony Global Summit: Together We Rise
For more details and to get tickets.
I attended the Sisters In Harmony Summit held earlier this year and it was a great resource for new songs, energy, hope, community singing resources and connections. People were so excited that they asked for more. You can attend the sessions live, or if your life doesn’t jive with the Pacific time zone events, esp. in the evening, you can also listen to and get the recordings. I recommend it!
If you are up for a deeper dive into issues of trust and truth and turning toward love, read my Wednesday reflection here. If you’re not already on my MailChimp list to receive my longer reflections each Wednesday, you can subscribe here: http://eepurl.com/ilgIE9.
If you landed here by chance or got this from a friend, I invite you to share with friends and subscribe!