on the brain S
Jesus By Dawn Rundman Every time I feel the spirit moving in my heart, I will pray.
ong lyrics like this use language describing God’s presence inside our bodies, and as faithful Chris- tians, we are commanded to love the Lord with all
our hearts and souls and minds. But as we live this out, have you ever wondered about the ways our faith prac- tices might actually cause physical changes in us, down to our very cells? Could singing hymns, saying prayers or making the sign of the cross actually lead to changes in how our brains are wired? Imagine an infant
whose family says a dinnertime prayer each evening. One night she surprises them all when her chubby hands clasp into a prayer posture. Now picture an 81-year- old man in a memory care unit who can no longer speak because of the way Alzheimer’s has ravaged his brain. Yet he sings along to “Jesus Loves Me” during the weekly chapel service. One example comes from the beginning of human
The impacts of early exposure to music, positive social interactions and
multisensory experi- ences suggest that what we do in our churches makes a difference.
life and the other from near the end, but both are evi- dence of the ways faith practices make their mark on the human brain. Findings from the field of developmental neurosci-
ence suggest that multisensory formation experiences, especially those during the first three years of life, may shape pathways in the brain in deep and lasting ways. Tis phenomenon is called neuroplasticity and points to the young brain’s ability to form and strengthen neural pathways. So what is it about a church setting that could actu-
ally shape neural connections in young children? What experiences make such lasting impressions on the human brain that they remain encoded for years or even a lifetime? While neuroscience research hasn’t focused
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www.thelutheran.org
CHRIS OCKEN
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