Gospel Music and Liturgical Hymns to the Researcher’s Spiritual Healing during the Covid-19 Pandemic: An Autoethnography Biblical Perspective

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic presented challenges for Christian believers worldwide, especially in developing countries like South Africa. On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed COVID-19 as a pandemic. Many activities were suspended, including church gatherings. As a result, like many Christian believers, during the pandemic, the researcher was spiritually and emotionally affected and suddenly filled with fear, depression, panic, loss, and loneliness. During the peak of the pandemic, the researcher used gospel music and liturgical hymns to uplift the researcher’s spiritual well-being. Although gospel music and liturgy hymn music have been used as devotional and spiritual music for the well-being of religious individuals, little academic attention has been given to gospel music and liturgy hymns. Hence, this article aims to provide important insights concerning the researcher’s personal experience in using gospel music and liturgical hymns during the pandemic. In this article, autoethnography was used as a research methodology. This article extends the literature about the researcher‘s experience of using gospel music and liturgical hymns as devotional and spiritual music for well-being. The article presents significant awareness and insights into gospel music and liturgical hymns during the pandemic. The findings of this article are outlined under the following three themes: Feeling vulnerable during the pandemic; (b) the role of gospel music in liturgical hymns during the pandemic; and (c) the use of gospel music and liturgical hymns for healing during the pandemic. The article affirms that gospel music and liturgical hymns can improve psychological and spiritual well-being. This can be attributed to the role of gospel music and liturgical hymns during the COVID-19 pandemic. Keywords: Autoethnography, COVID-19, Christian Believers, Gospel, Liturgy Hymns