Janos Gereben wrote:

>The way I handle these contraditions and conflicts is by listening to
>the music both "in the abstract" and focusing on the lyricism and passion
>underlying any specific message. I have not done this in a deliberate,
>premeditated way, but now that I think about it, I see a parallel between
>response to the great stories coming from a belief system I do not abide
>by (Mann's "Joseph and His Brothers," for example) and sublime music
>inspired by the composer's faith, which I do not share. Musical, literary
>and psychological gems from the context of archaic superstition remain
>precious, regardless of the source.

Intelligent words. I want to put it this way: when I listen to music
with an orthodox religious message I concentrate on what all religions
and all humanist notions have in common: belief in a big secret.

Robert