Felix Mendelssohn

Abstract

[Anjanette’s Piano Piece]... That was a piece called, “Song without Words”.. written by a man named Felix Mendelssohn. Today we’re going to talk a bit about how his faith in God inspired his both his life and compositions. Mendelssohn was born into a Jewish family in 1809 in Hamburg, Germany. Because of the ethnic prejudices of that time, his father had each of his children baptized as Christians. Even though his conversion was coerced, Felix took to his faith with a genuine passion and sincere commitment. Most of those who knew him well would attest to this fact. When he was a young prodigy, he often penned prayerful exclamations onto his manuscripts, phrases like, “Lass es gelingen, Gott!” 7. (Let it succeed God!) or “Hilf du mit” (Help along). (And that will be the extent of my German this sermon!) Obviously he went about his work with a keen awareness of his dependence on the inspiration of God. And he most often saw the biblical text as the best source of material for his works... for his works and his life. A friend who knew him well once wrote, “He felt that all faith must be based on Holy Writ.” Mendelssohn in Elise Polko, Reminiscences of Felix Mendelssohn ... If someone were to alter the bilical text in one of his compositions, he would change it back! “I have time after time had to restore the precise text of the Bible. It is best in the end.”